Yankees’ Boone Defends Decision to Pull Fried as Bullpen Falters in Game 1

NEW YORK — Yankees manager Aaron Boone once again found himself at the center of postseason scrutiny after pulling starter Max Fried during a stellar 6⅓ scoreless-inning outing in Tuesday night’s 3-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series.

Fried, who had thrown 99 pitches, was lifted after recording the first out in the seventh inning, despite having navigated through Boston’s lineup with precision. Boone admitted postgame that the plan had been to remove Fried after six, but the left-hander’s quick seventh-inning out convinced him to let Fried face one more batter.

“We felt he had worked really hard in the middle innings,” Boone said. “He did a great job, but we thought it was the right time.”

The move backfired quickly. Reliever Luke Weaver walked the first batter he faced, then gave up a double and a pinch-hit, two-run single to Masataka Yoshida. David Bednar later surrendered back-to-back hits in the ninth, giving the Red Sox insurance runs and sealing the Yankees’ fate in the opener.

Boone defended the decision by pointing to the traffic Fried navigated in the fourth through sixth innings, saying the lefty had “emptied the tank” just to keep Boston off the board.

“He was terrific,” Boone said. “But given the intensity of those innings and where his pitch count was, we felt it was time to turn it over to the bullpen.”

“I felt like his command was not as sharp those final few innings,” Boone said. “He was making a lot of big pitches and grinding. His stuff was still good, and he gave us everything we needed. I just felt pretty convicted that it was time. Especially after we got the double play, it was like, ‘Let’s get one more hitter and then go to the bullpen.’”

Fried’s final out came on a hustling play where he beat Boston’s Jarren Duran to first base to complete the double play. After the game, Fried said he felt he still had plenty left.

“I definitely felt good at the end,” Fried said. “I’m going to stay in until I get the ball taken from me. I had enough in the tank for whatever the team needed.”

That decision fell to Boone, who turned the game over to Luke Weaver. The right-hander, however, couldn’t hold the lead. Weaver, who has struggled since returning from a hamstring injury in June, issued a walk, gave up a double, and then surrendered a pinch-hit, two-run single to Masataka Yoshida.

Weaver had been dominant early in the season, posting a 1.05 ERA in his first 24 appearances, but saw that number balloon to 5.31 over his final 40 games post-injury.

Still, Boone expressed confidence in the matchup.

“I’ll take Weave there at the bottom of the order, especially with an out already recorded,” Boone said.

Reliever David Bednar later allowed two more hits in the ninth, giving Boston some breathing room and putting the Yankees in a must-win situation heading into Game 2.

Whether Boone’s decision will loom large over the short series remains to be seen — but for now, the manager is standing by his choice, even if the result didn’t go New York’s way.

Weaver jumped ahead 0-2 on Boston's Ceddanne Rafaela but ultimately walked him after an 11-pitch battle. That misstep opened the floodgates: Nick Sogard followed with a double, and Masataka Yoshida delivered a pinch-hit, two-run single. Weaver faced three batters, recorded no outs, and left with the Yankees suddenly trailing 2-1.

“They put a good approach together, put the ball in play, and found the holes,” Weaver said. “I know there’s a lot of disappointed people, including myself. I just have to be better.”

Weaver’s struggles weren't entirely unexpected. Since returning from a hamstring injury in June, he posted a 5.31 ERA over his final 40 appearances—well off the 1.05 mark he had compiled before the injury.

Boone, though, continued to express confidence in his reliever, saying, “I felt good about him going through there—Sogard and then probably a pinch-hit lefty. They found a couple hits on him, where he maybe left pitches just a bit more elevated than he wanted.”

Boone’s decisions were under the microscope even before the first pitch. Left-handed hitters Ben Rice, Jazz Chisholm Jr., and Ryan McMahon were all left out of the starting lineup against Boston southpaw Garrett Crochet. The Red Sox starter was dominant, retiring 17 straight Yankees after Anthony Volpe’s solo homer and recording 23 outs before Aroldis Chapman closed it out with the final four.

Crochet’s brilliance only magnified the pressure on Boone, who has faced criticism for high-stakes bullpen moves before. Most memorably, he turned to Nestor Cortes in last year’s World Series Game 1 against the Dodgers—only to see Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off grand slam on Cortes’ first pitch.

Despite the recurring theme, Boone maintained his stance.

“I don’t regret the decisions,” he said. “I just wish we got Rafaela there. One out and we’re probably in a different spot.”

New York’s bullpen finished the regular season with a 4.37 ERA—23rd in the league—and once again couldn’t hold a lead. The Yankees nearly salvaged the night in the ninth, loading the bases with no outs. But Chapman, facing his former team, escaped unscathed.

It was a rare failure in a situation the Yankees had recently thrived in: they had scored in 25 of their previous 28 innings when loading the bases with none out.

“One hit there and we tie the game,” said Paul Goldschmidt, who singled to start the rally. “Unfortunately, it didn’t work out, but a good job giving ourselves a chance.”

Now down 0-1 in the best-of-three series, the Yankees are once again staring down an early October exit unless they can quickly regroup for Game 2.