Cole's intentional walk to Devers with no one on base after plunking Boston star sparks Red Sox

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole stuck out four fingers on his pitching hand, then pointed toward first base as Rafael Devers looked on incredulously. Having held the first 10 Red Sox batters hitless, the New York Yankees ace handed Boston's slumping star an intentional walk with no one on base.

Boston then walked all over Cole and the Yankees.

Devers scored in a three-run fourth inning and hit a two-run single in a four-run fifth that rallied the Red Sox over New York 7-1 on Saturday.

“They grabbed the momentum. It inspired them,” Cole said. “I think, looking back, it’s the wrong move.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he and Cole discussed in the leadup to the game being more aggressive in the use of international walks — Cole hadn't issued one in seven years. Cole said he talked out the possibility with pitching coach Matt Blake while in the tunnel before the fourth inning, viewing it as a way to get the starter deeper into the game on a day when the Yankees bullpen was thin.

Yankees catcher Austin Wells wasn't made aware of the plan.

“I was a bit caught off guard,” he said. “Thought he had some good momentum.”

Wells didn't think about trying to get Cole to reverse his decision.

“We’re just kidding. We don’t actually walk him," Wells proposed. “I don't know if that’s a thing.”

Cole and Boone both took an unusually long time before speaking with reporters after the game.

“Just a rough day," Cole said.

Cole (6-5) allowed seven runs, his most since June 9, 2022. He hit a career-high three batters and left after 4 1/3 innings.

“He caught me by surprise,” Devers said through a translator. "I didn’t expect that from a future Hall of Famer and I feel like he panicked a little bit.”

Cole retired nine of his first 10 batters, allowing his only batter to reach when he hit Devers with a cutter in the first.

“I felt like the first at-bat he hit him on purpose,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “He doesn’t want to face him. That’s the bottom line. He told us with the intentional walk that the first at-bat he hit him.”

At the time of the intentional walk, the Yankees led 1-0 behind Gleyber Torres' third-inning RBI single.

“Once we scored the run my preference would have been let’s attack them. But, obviously, I didn’t communicate that well enough,” Boone said.

Starting with the intentional walk, 10 of 12 batters reached against the 2023 AL Cy Young Award winner.

"It was just odd," Boston's Triston Casas said of Cole's decision.

Devers entered 14 for 41 (.316) with eight homers and 15 strikeouts against Cole, including the postseason.

“Obviously, Raffy's had some success against him, something that he’s also got to get through, too, making sure he understands, hey, the next 40 or 50 at-bats in my career against him I might have massive success because I’m Gerrit Cole," Boone said. "But there is a psychological component to all that.”

Devers stole second and Masataka Yoshida hit an opposite-field RBI double into the left-field corner for Boston’s first hit, tying it at 1. Wilyer Abreu followed with a two-run single for a 3-1 lead, and Casas bounced into an inning-ending double play.

“If I make pitches after that and I continue to execute at a high level, then the plan works,” Cole said. “But evidently the plan didn’t work. So I need to make better pitches afterwards in order for it to work.”

New York's earliest bases-empty intentional walks had been in the sixth inning: to the Philadelphia Athletics’ Al Simmons by Roy Sherid leading off on Sept. 22, 1930, and to Washington’s Frank Howard by Fritz Peterson with two outs on April 22, 1970.

Trevor Story singled leading off the fifth on Saturday and stole second, Danny Jansen walked and Enmanuel Valdez flied out as Story took third. Jarren Duran was hit by a pitch, loading the bases, and Devers lined a knuckle-curve into right for a 5-1 lead. Tyler O’Neill was hit by a pitch and Yoshida chased Cole with a two-run single.

“Obviously, because it backfired a little bit I think we all wish we could go the other way on certain things,” Boone said. “But at the end of the day, we didn’t make pitches when we had opportunities and it burned us today.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Boston Red Sox's Rafael Devers runs to first base for a two-run single during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole reacts after Boston Red Sox's Masataka Yoshida, of Japan, hit a two-run single during the fifth inning of a baseball game Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Boston Red Sox's Rafael Devers smiles after hitting a two-run single during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole reacts after Boston Red Sox's Rafael Devers hit a two-run single during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

New York Yankees' Gerrit Cole throws during the third inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

The New York Giants lost by winning.

A rare victory — 45-33 over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday — knocked the Giants out of control for the coveted No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

So much for Shedeur Sanders’ Giants-themed cleats unless New York trades up to get the Colorado quarterback.

The Giants (3-13) dropped from first to fourth in the draft order, with the Patriots (3-13) moving up to No. 1. New England doesn’t need a quarterback because rookie Drake Maye has been one of the team’s few bright spots this season. But the Titans (3-13) currently sit at No. 2 and they will be seeking a franchise QB at No. 2. The Browns (3-13) should do the same if they stay at No. 3. Sanders and Miami’s Cam Ward won’t be around if New York has to settle for the fourth pick.

That’s why Giants fans were angry after witnessing the team’s first win at MetLife Stadium this season.

“The playoff is out of contention, you understand what they’re saying,” quarterback Drew Lock said after throwing for 309 yards and four touchdowns. “But at the same time, it’s nice to say we’re going to go work, we’re going to keep doing this, we’re going to keep pushing, the season’s not over, we’ve got two games left to be able to come out and win this one — that’s the goal every single week, come out and win and work as hard as we can to do it."

Players aren’t going to tank football games. It’s a violent, physical sport and it would be dangerous to play to lose. Plus, there’s too much pride involved and other factors. Guys are playing for contracts and there are few job guarantees in the NFL.

“We’re obviously not tanking,” said wide receiver Darius Slayton, who screamed an expletive about tanking after catching a 32-yard TD pass. “At the end of the day, we have a job to do. This isn’t basketball, it’s not golf, it’s not tennis. Football, you get hit, so I’m not (going to) go out there and just let people tee off on me just to tank.”

Getting coaches on board to play not to win would be a tough task, too. Brian Daboll has no incentive to care about draft positioning if his job status is uncertain. General manager Joe Schoen also could be fired, so this decision should have come from the top. Start a third-string quarterback and bench key starters. That’s how teams give themselves a better opportunity to lose.

The Giants didn’t do that. The repercussions of this victory could set the organization back a few years if New York doesn’t end up with a franchise quarterback.

That’s not Daboll’s concern. He breathed a sigh of relief after the Giants avoided becoming the first team to go 0-9 at home.

“I see these coaches every day come in and are consistent. It’s hard to be consistent in an inconsistent league when things go ... It’s not great,” Daboll said. “We haven’t had a good record. I firmly acknowledge that and I accept responsibility for that. But their commitment to doing things the right way, day in and day out, staying late and putting together plans much like the players when we’re down and we got two wins. We have the right kind of people. It was good to get a win at home, I’ll say that. It was good to get a win at home. But it means more to me for the players and the coaches.”

Las Vegas, another team that needs a franchise quarterback, was in contention for the top pick before winning consecutive games. Now, the Raiders (4-12) are sitting at No. 8.

“We don’t do this to lose,” Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said last week. “We don’t do this for anybody’s fantasy football team. Don’t do this for anybody’s draft projections. None of that (stuff) matters to us. What matters is winning, and that’s all we want to do.”

Even if winning ends up hurting the franchise.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

New York Giants quarterback Drew Lock (2) celebrates with tight end Daniel Bellinger (82) after Lock scored a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)