The top of the fifth inning Wednesday night was a nightmare for the New York Yankees.
In an alternate universe, the Yankees are leading 3-2 over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 6 of the World Series on Friday.
But in Game 5, just days after some mistakes in Game 1, the Yankees had their worst defensive inning in history.
The Dodgers won both games.
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New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto reacts with outfielder Aaron Judge after Judge drops a fly ball in the bottom of the fifth inning of Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. (right). (James Lang/Imagine Images)
On Wednesday night, the Yankees were trying to become the first team to force a Game 6 in the Fall Classic after trailing 3-0 in the series and running away with a 5-0 run. Then the sky fell.
In the fifth inning, Aaron Judge dropped a routine fly ball, leaving runners on first and second base with no outs. Jazz Chisholm then failed to handle a short throw to third base, resulting in the bases being loaded. Gerrit Cole got two big outs, but failed to cover first base on the third out as he should have, and the inning stayed that way.
The Dodgers saw an opportunity and jumped on it. Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez each drove in two runs to tie the game at five.
For the Dodgers, this was no coincidence.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge made a fielding error in the bottom of the fifth inning of Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. (Vincent Calchietta/Imagn Images)
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The New York Post reported that the Dodgers emphasized in team meetings that the Yankees were a team of “talent over fundamentals.”
“Run the bases with intent and aggression and the Yankees would shoot themselves in the foot. … The value of putting the ball in play to force the Yankees to run was very high,” the Post reported, adding that the Yankees pointed out that it was the worst in MLB. Evaluate the base running team “by every indicator.''
The paper added, “They were excited about how short the Yankees' lead at first base would be and potentially less of a threat in the pivot at second base, where Gavin Lux hasn't excelled.”
It also reported that the Yankees' outfield position was poor. Alex Verdugo and Juan Soto may be this year's Gold Glove finalists, but an eye test will show that Soto is a poor right fielder. (The Yankees prefer him in right field over left field.) And Judge's skills as a center fielder fall short of what he can do in the regular right field position.
In the bottom of the seventh inning of Game 2 of the World Series held in Los Angeles on October 26, 2024, Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers attempts to steal a base and is tagged out by New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
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The Dodgers also noted that an infielder was out of position on a ball hit to the outfield. Such was the case when Shohei Ohtani reached third base on a double after the ball left Gleyber Torres, but there was no one around to pick it up.
The Yankees outperformed poor fundamentals from April through September. They were also able to do so against the Royals and Guardians in the ALDS and ALCS, but the elite teams clearly took notice and took advantage of it.
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