World Series: Yankees manager Aaron Boone's Game 1 moves draw plenty of criticism

LOS ANGELES — A day later, the discussion, and criticism, continued unabated.

In the aftermath of the Yankees' 6-3, 10-inning loss to the Dodgers in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night, one topic dominated: Aaron Boone’s decision to go to lefthander Nestor Cortes, who had not pitched since Sept. 18 because of a flexor strain in his pitching elbow, in the 10th rather than fellow lefty Tim Hill, who had been terrific through seven appearances this postseason.

After getting Shohei Ohtani to foul out on his first pitch and issuing an intentional walk to Mookie Betts, Cortes allowed a walk-off grand slam on his first pitch to Freddie Freeman to hand the Yankees one of their most disheartening postseason losses in years.

Boone defended the call after the game and again before Saturday night’s Game 2, though he did say he thought long and hard about another element of the 10th inning.

“The biggest thing is, do I send Weave back out there for a third up,” he said of closer Luke Weaver, who recorded five straight outs after coming on with one out in the eighth inning. “That’s the one that I quibbled [with].”

Of the other two decisions that caused much criticism — taking out an effective Gerrit Cole in the seventh after 88 pitches and going with Cortes — Boone said: “I would double down'' on them.

After Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled in the top of the 10th, stole second and third and scored on a forceout by Anthony Volpe, the Yankees took a 3-2 lead into the bottom of the inning.

Boone sent out Jake Cousins for the 10th and the righthander retired Will Smith on a flyout  before walking Gavin Lux and allowing a single by Tommy Edman.

Boone had Cortes and Hill ready in the bullpen. With Ohtani coming up, Boone went with Cortes, against whom the DH was  2-for-12 (two singles) in his career.

The move paid an immediate dividend when Ohtani fouled out, with leftfielder Alex Verdugo making a tremendous running catch before flipping into the stands. Because Verdugo went out of play, by rule, both runners were moved up to  second and third. After the intentional walk to Betts, Freeman, swinging at a fastball that Cortes said was about two or three inches lower than he wanted it, ended the game.

“The reality is he's been throwing the ball really well the last few weeks as he's gotten ready for this,” Boone said of Cortes, who had thrown a series of simulated games in two weeks leading up to the World Series. “I knew with one out there, it would be tough to double up Shohei [who stole 59 bases this season] if Tim Hill [who throws a lot of sinkers] gets him on the ground, and then Mookie behind him is a tough matchup there. So felt convicted with Nestor in that spot.”

One rival American League coach, though understanding the thinking behind the move, felt the Yankees overthought things.

“I always say managing is as easy as ‘if I bring Tim Hill in here and we lose, is anyone questioning it? If I bring Cortes in, is anyone questioning it?’ ” he said Saturday. “Just do the obvious is often the correct answer.”

Though not quite to the same degree at the Cortes move, the decision to pull Cole after he allowed a leadoff single in the seventh came under scrutiny, too. And it was a former Yankees legend leading the charge, at least in the immediate aftermath.

“Gerrit Cole was dominating this game. He was dominating the game. And if you take him out after 88 pitches for I don’t know what reason,” Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, a teammate of Boone’s on the 2003 Yankees, said on the Fox Sports postgame show. “I just think when you have someone who’s dealing like Gerrit Cole was dealing tonight, you leave him out there as long as you can.”

Boone, without elaborating, said he didn’t think twice about that call, indicating that Cole expressed, in his own way, that he was fatigued.

“He was done,” Boone said. “You just have to take my word.”