Yankees Star Rips His ‘Boneheaded Play’ In Playoff Win Over Red Sox

The New York Yankees can laugh off an awkward moment after eliminating the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night.

Giancarlo Stanton thought he gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead when he crushed a Connelly Early curveball to left field during the second inning. The designated hitter watched the ball and started to celebrate before realizing it fell short of a home run, but he reacted in time to salvage a double.

During New York’s post-game celebration, YES Network’s Meredith Marakovits asked Stanton what gave the Yankees confidence in their ability to overcome a Game 1 loss and beat Boston. Stanton responded by criticizing his mental lapse.

“The only doubt was if that was a homer or not,” Stanton said. “Thank goodness for that boneheaded play that the team was resilient enough, and Cam Schlittler was resilient enough to go out and … It didn’t mess up the chemistry or the moment. So that’s good.”

As champagne poured in the Yankee Stadium clubhouse, Stanton delivered a PSA to the children watching.

“Kids at home, don’t do that,” Stanton warned. “Future opponents, please do that. It was a boneheaded play. I’m just glad it worked in our favor, and it won’t happen again.”

Marakovits noted that Stanton still made it to second base despite not hustling out of the box, but the 35-year-old wasn’t completely letting himself off the hook.

“No harm, no foul. But still, it could have changed a lot, and we could have not been doing this,” Stanton said, pointing to the celebration unfolding around him.

The Yankees will advance to play the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Division Series. New York struggled against the AL East foe during the regular season, but Stanton is wiping the slate clean and looking for his team to avoid any self-inflicted miscues in the best-of-five series.

“The past is the past,” Stanton said. “Doesn’t matter now. It’s all a matter of the least amount of mistakes, who’s gonna play the crispest baseball.”