"Well don’t you trust Gerrit Cole more than Lou Trivino?" - MLB broadcaster Michael Kay lashed out at Yankees manager Aaron Boone after his decision to take out Gerrit Cole from ALCS Game 3 backfired terribly
yankees-history" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Michael Kay clearly isn’t a fan of Aaron Boone. He tore into Boone's decision to pull Gerrit Cole in the sixth inning of the Yankees’ Game 3 loss to the Astros on Saturday.
.@BobLorenz, @flash17yes, @JackCurryYES, and @RealMichaelKay react to the Aaron Boone postgame press conference after the 5-0 #ALCS Game 3 loss. https://t.co/L7vp3dd39m
".@BobLorenz, @flash17yes, @JackCurryYES, and @RealMichaelKay react to the Aaron Boone postgame press conference after the 5-0 #ALCS Game 3 loss." - YES Network, Twitter
The bases were loaded for the Astros in the sixth inning. The Astros were leading 2-0. Boone decided to bring in reliever Lou Trivino to replace Cole on the mound. Trivino allowed all three runners to score.
“I don’t get it, I heard [Boone’s] answer. He said ‘We’re down 2-0, we have to keep it right there.’ Well don’t you trust Gerrit Cole more than Lou Trivino? Even with Gerrit Cole at [96] pitches, I trust him to save my season. Not a knock on Lou Trivino, but that’s not even your top reliever. That doesn’t make sense.” Kay said.
“The only thing that would’ve made sense was if Cole was hurt. He’s not hurt. He’s your ace. He won those two games against the Guardians. He’s why you’re in the American League Championship Series. You take him out there because you didn’t want the game to get out of hand? He’s the guy [who] can keep it from getting out of hand.”
Kay has a point. Cole is the main reason why the Yankees reached the ALCS. His heroics in Game 4 against the Guardians in the ALDS saved them from elimination.
Boone clearly doesn’t trust his ace to get the team out of a jam. He made some questionable bullpen decisions throughout the series.
“I was hoping to get Gerrit through there,” Boone said after the game. “Thought he threw the ball incredibly well. I got Trivino up just in case he needed some help there with the bottom righties that we liked him against. Obviously, it turned out that it didn’t work for us.”
Aaron Boone's future with the Yankees in the MLB
Many Yankees fans want Aaron Boone to be fired. Even though the Yankees made it to the ALCS, the season did not live up to expectations. Anything short of a World Series title is a bust. They couldn't even make the World Series, let alone win it.
Although there are a lot of reasons why the Yankees failed, Boone will be scapegoated by the fanbase. His questional decisions in crucial moments proved to be costly.
It seems unlikely that the Yankees will bring him back next year. Only time will tell.