Gerrit Cole Is Getting Crushed For His Explanation Of 5th Inning Blunder
10/31/2024 10:50 AM
In a blunder that ranks among the worst in World Series history, New York Yankees ace pitcher Gerrit Cole failed to cover first base on what would have been an inning-ending out, that instead opened the door for the Los Angeles Dodgers to erase a five-run deficit en route to winning the game and the series.
With two outs remaining in the top of the fifth inning at Yankee Stadium, Dodgers slugger Mookie Betts hit a grounder that Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo had to leave base to field. But rather than charge to the mound to try and cover the base, Cole slowed down and Rizzo was unable to get back to the base in time to force the out. The Dodgers got a run on that play and would score four more to tie the game.
The Yankees would retake the lead in the bottom of the sixth, but the Dodgers secured the win with two runs in the eighth.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Cole's explanation for the play that contributed to their downfall was that he took a bad angle and didn't realize how hard the ball had been hit.
"I took a bad angle to the ball. I wasn't sure how hard he hit it," Cole said after the game. "By the time the ball got by me, I was not in a position to cover first. Neither of us were."
"I took a bad angle to the ball. I wasn't sure how hard he hit it. By the time the ball got by me, I was not in a position to cover first. Neither of us were"
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) October 31, 2024
- Gerrit Cole on what happened on Mookie Betts' ground ball in the 5th inning of Game 5 pic.twitter.com/xeXOnPTA2E
As you might expect, this explanation is not satisfying Yankees fans at all:
"Bro you legit hard stopped mid-play," one fan replied.
"He just stopped running which he never should've done. Was pitching hell of a legacy game up until that point too. Got too caught up in the moment," wrote another.
"Ball hit to the right the pitcher is taught to run to first. You let the 1B call you off. This is done in the first 72 hours of pitchers reporting. Yet, it wasn't done in a do or die WS game," a third declared.
And those are some of the more polite responses to Cole's blunder.
It's a play that may live in infamy for the Yankees for months, if not years, to come.
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