NEW YORK (AP) — Going into the playoffs without a couple of their best young players and two starters, the depth-depleted Boston Red Sox turned to a rookie with just four major league games of experience to pitch on the road in a winner-take-all situation.
Connelly Early handled the stage well until his defense let him down, and the New York Yankees’ bats wore him down, eliminating Boston by winning Game 3 of the AL Wild Card Series 4-0 on Thursday night.
The Red Sox became the first team to lose in the best-of-three round after winning Game 1 since the expanded playoff format was introduced in 2022.
Not having right-handers Lucas Giolito and Tanner Houck available, combined with season-ending injuries to Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony, put Boston at a disadvantage going into Yankee Stadium.
Still, the Red Sox got a gem from Garrett Crochet and a clutch hit by Masataka Yoshida to win the opener. They even had chances to sweep the series, despite manager Alex Cora’s bullpen gamble in Game 2, when he pulled starter Brayan Bello after just 2 1/2 innings—a move that eventually backfired.
Early went further in Game 3, pitching three scoreless innings before trouble began in the fourth. Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela, right fielder Wilyer Abreu, and second baseman Romy Gonzalez converged on a fly ball by leadoff hitter Cody Bellinger but let it drop between them for a double.
Down 2-0 after a walk and three singles, Nathaniel Lowe mishandled a grounder to first base, allowing two more runs to score and stretching the deficit to 4-0.
Boston led the major leagues with 116 errors—17 more than any team except the league-worst Colorado Rockies. Although the Yankees were charged with an error when they dropped a pop fly in foul territory, strong defensive plays behind rookie pitcher Cam Schlittler, including a notable catch by third baseman Ryan McMahon who fell into the visiting dugout, ensured Boston never got a quality chance to rally.
Simply reaching the playoffs exceeded expectations for the Red Sox, especially after their mid-June trade of Rafael Devers to San Francisco. At that point, Boston was 37-36 but went on to win 52 of their final 89 games to secure a postseason spot.
This stretch included season-long dominance against their biggest rival—Boston won 10 of 14 games against the Yankees, continuing a historical trend of postseason success since the early 2000s.
The Red Sox had previously beaten New York in eight of 10 playoff games dating back to their remarkable comeback from a 3-0 AL Championship Series deficit in 2004 on the way to winning the franchise’s first World Series title since 1918.
https://whdh.com/sports/red-sox-eliminated-by-the-yankees-after-mistakes-in-the-field-bite-boston/
