Gerrit Cole had been dominant against the Red Sox through the first three innings. However, the game took a dramatic turn in the fourth. With no runners on base and one out, Gerrit Cole opted to intentionally walk Rafael Devers, despite holding a 1-0 lead and having allowed just one batter to reach base — Devers, who had been hit by a pitch earlier.
The decision to walk Devers, given his track record against Gerrit Cole, raised eyebrows. Entering the game, Devers had an impressive 1.370 OPS with eight home runs in previous matchups against the Yankees ace, more than any other player. However, what followed the intentional walk was even more shocking and led to a 7-1 loss to the Red Sox on Saturday at Yankee Stadium.
After Devers took his base, Gerrit Cole unraveled, facing 12 more batters and allowing 10 to reach base. By the time he was pulled, he had surrendered seven runs on five hits, three walks, and three hit batters — a stark contrast to his prior seven starts, during which he had allowed just seven earned runs in total.
The intentional walk decision left many questioning the Yankees’ strategy, particularly with their ace on the mound and the bullpen depleted. Gerrit Cole later explained that the team was aiming for efficiency, concerned about overextending the bullpen. The intention was to avoid throwing extra pitches to Devers, believing it would be less stressful than risking him hitting a mistake pitch.
While the plan may have made sense in theory, Gerrit Cole admitted that its success depended on proper execution, which he acknowledged fell short after the walk.
“With that being said, you have to execute after you do that,” Cole said, “and I didn’t do that. Clearly that was a mistake.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone revealed that the team had agreed to a more assertive approach toward intentional walks before Saturday’s game, but clarified that the situation that unfolded — with the Yankees ahead and Gerrit Cole pitching effectively — wasn’t one of those moments.
Boone expressed that after the team scored in the third inning, he would have preferred to challenge Rafael Devers rather than give him a free pass. He noted that Gerrit Cole seemed unsure on the mound before proceeding with the intentional walk, which led to a series of unfortunate events in the Yankees’ 7-1 loss to the Red Sox.
“Once we scored the run [in the third inning], my preference would have been: Let’s attack him,” the manager said. “Gerrit was a little indecisive out there and rolled with it.
Boone placed the decision squarely on Gerrit Cole, though the pitcher offered a different version of events. According to him, he had discussed a potential walk with Boone and pitching coach Matt Blake in the tunnel before the fourth inning, agreeing that if Jarren Duran was retired, Devers would be walked. Gerrit Cole said he looked to the dugout for confirmation and followed through.
“We were in the tunnel before the inning and had discussed that if Duran was retired, we were going to stick to aggressively, intentionally walk him,” he said, the “we” being himself, pitching coach Matt Blake and Boone prior to the game. “And that was the plan. And then during the inning, I looked to the dugout and stuck with the plan.”
Adding to the confusion, catcher Austin Wells was unaware of these pre-game discussions. Wells, caught off guard by the walk, believed Gerrit Cole had been building momentum and was surprised by the decision.
Despite the mixed accounts, Boone, Cole, and Wells all acknowledged that walking Devers was a mistake in hindsight. Cole took responsibility, admitting the decision clearly backfired.
Gerrit Cole’s walking of Devers proves costly for Yankees
After issuing an intentional walk to Rafael Devers, Gerrit Cole’s day unraveled quickly. He followed with an unintentional walk to Tyler O’Neill, then surrendered a ground-rule RBI double to Masataka Yoshida, marking the first hit he’d allowed all game. Wilyer Abreu then delivered a two-run single through a gap in the defense. Although Triston Casas grounded into a double play to end the inning, Gerrit Cole’s troubles were far from over.
In the fifth inning, Gerrit Cole struggled once again, facing seven batters and managing only one out. Trevor Story led off with a single, and Danny Jansen drew a walk. After getting Enmanuel Valdez to fly out, the Yankees ace hit Jarren Duran with a cutter, loading the bases for Devers. Despite Devers’ recent struggles — he was batting just .175 with a .431 OPS in his previous 15 games — his dominance over Gerrit Cole resurfaced. Devers smacked a two-run single to right-center, extending the Red Sox lead to 5-1.
His outing ended shortly after, as he hit O’Neill with a fastball and gave up another single to Yoshida. Frustrated, Gerrit Cole exited the mound and disappeared into the dugout tunnel, going from a potential no-hitter to a disastrous collapse in just two innings.
Catcher Austin Wells, reflecting on the game, speculated that the intentional walk to Devers might have shifted momentum in Boston’s favor. Gerrit Cole admitted that after the walk, he failed both mentally and physically to regroup. He also noted that there was some second-guessing about whether the decision to walk Devers had been the right call, allowing that uncertainty to affect his performance. Cole believed that the Red Sox capitalized on the shift, leading to their explosive inning.
“That human element came into play,” he said. “They grabbed the momentum and it inspired them.”
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