Remember how the New York Yankees celebrated with a champagne shower this week? Everything was great, the fans were looking forward to another win and the Yanks were on the brink of doing it yet again. But instead, the Baltimore Orioles were soaked in victory on Tuesday. The Yankees lost to the Orioles 5-3, and the real kicker is – this loss kept the Yankees from clinching the American League East title. Meanwhile, the Orioles sure did earn one of the coveted wild-card spots.

But it didn’t have to go down this way for the Yanks, and had it not been for Gleyber Torres’s expensive mistake, things could have been different. He got caught in the rundown of the final out of the game. Now, this isn’t his first time, but one of many, and this has started to pinch everyone. It was his sixth time being thrown out at home this season, tying him up with Yandy Diaz for the league lead. However, despite the costly mistake, Aaron Boone has Torres’s back.

Gleyber Torres’ blunder dooms Yankees’ day, but Boone defends

Things were looking good during the seventh-inning rally, with Aaron Judge coming up and the tying and go-ahead run on base. It felt like the perfect moment waiting to happen—until it wasn’t. Gleyber Torres made a break for home when the opponent threw down, trying to catch Juan Soto. What happened next was a messy rundown, ending with Torres getting tagged out. Then, Soto reached second safely after his single, but with the throw heading straight home, Torres got confused and hesitated, then went to third, only to be caught off and tagged. And just like that, the Yankees lost their chance. But Boone, well, he defended Torres.

Despite the mistakes or repeated mistakes, of Gleyber Torres, Boone supported him during the post-game interview. He highlighted that Torres was just looking to protect Soto at the second base and got caught in between making a decision. Aaron Boone said, “You know, he does make some mistakes on the bases. He’s cleaned it up a lot from, I think, last year and the year before, where he was getting himself in trouble a lot.” Although Boone noted that Torres has toned down his aggressiveness, he held the blame on the player.

At one time, the team was looking to trade Torres but was unable to do so. Failing to perform when needed meant no one wanted a trade deal with him, so, the team just shuffled Torres around, and this time, he was chosen as their leadoff hitter. Without a doubt, he has been amazing, but mistakes like this can easily overshadow the progress. Judge was more direct and did have a lot to say about it.

Aaron Judge calls out Torres for his mishap

Aaron Judge had a clear view of the chaos that unfolded during the seventh inning, and he didn’t hold back from sharing his thoughts. As Torres hesitated and made a confused decision to move home, it was a moment that cost the team. Judge, who rarely has much to comment on, remarked, “I think he wanted to score and got the stop sign and was just kind of in no-man’s-land right there. When it comes down to it, stuff like that can’t happen. We can’t keep shooting ourselves in the foot with mistakes like that on the basepaths”,  which highlights the level of frustration he might have.

Now, it is not always that the captain comes out of their way to point out such errors, but this mistake marks a repetition of Torres being thrown out of the home plate. Moreover, in a game as crucial as that, it was too costly to let the matter slide under the rug. Even Judge, who was caught appreciating Torres and his surge of performance last week, had to be blunt. Meanwhile, Gleyber Torres admitted and realized the gravity of the situation, saying, “My mistake. I just tried to protect Soto. I was a little in between going to home plate. I feel like I went a little bit late, and after that, they made me out.” Torres further added that he should have been more aggressive in deciding at the right time.

Well, what’s done cannot be undone. But more importantly, the New York Yankees need to tighten up their game as they approach the playoffs. Moreover, the Orioles are not to be taken lightly; the wildcard race is getting more nail-biting every passing day.