The New York Yankees won three out of four games against the Boston Red Sox this weekend, but the series was marked by some controversy involving Aaron Boone, Alex Cora, and others.
The tension began when Gerrit Cole hit Rafael Devers in Saturday’s game, leading Red Sox manager Alex Cora to suspect it was intentional. Cora suggested that the Red Sox retaliated by targeting Aaron Judge, although the pitch didn’t hit its mark. Following the Yankees’ 5-2 victory on Sunday, Cora described the incident as “a closed case.”
“Yeah,” Cora stated, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com. “It was closed yesterday, around the sixth inning. We had our chance, it didn’t happen. We have to move on.”
Aaron Boone responded to Cora’s remarks about the Red Sox targeting Judge by firmly rejecting the notion.
“That’s not allowed,” Boone said, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. “That’s for somebody else to deal with. We’re finished playing with them. We’re on to Seattle.”
Aaron Judge was not particularly troubled by the Red Sox’s actions and comments.
“Things like that happen,” Judge commented, according to Kirschner. “I know they’re upset. I think three of their guys got hit. That’s the way this game kind of gets policed. … The biggest thing is just don’t miss.”
“If this happens (making the playoffs), we’re going to look back at yesterday,” Cora said, as reported by Kirschner. “We’re probably going to thank Gerrit Cole for getting us going. Hopefully it happens and hopefully we can face him in the playoffs because he will have to pitch to him (Devers). Hopefully it happens. We still have a long way to go. I’m not promising that we’re going to make the playoffs, but if we do, we’ll look back on Saturday.”
The situation intensified when Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello threw a pitch behind Aaron Judge on Saturday, raising questions about whether it was a retaliatory act. Cora did little to quell speculation when asked if the issue was resolved, stating, “It was closed [Saturday] around the sixth inning. We had our chance. It didn’t happen.”
Major League Baseball is now investigating to determine if Bello’s pitch was intended as retribution, though no decision has been reached as of Monday morning, according to the New York Post.
