NEW YORK (AP) — Jon Berti looked like a Gold Glove winner in his first professional game at first base.
Forced to use backups following Anthony Rizzo's injury, the New York Yankees started Berti at first base in Monday night's 4-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals that evened their AL Division Series at one game apiece.
Berti made a clean pickup of Yuli Gurriel's tricky second-inning squibber over the bag, then a diving stab for an unassisted double play in the sixth to save at least one run — maybe two.
“I thought he was great over there tonight and at the plate,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
Berti sprawled for a backhand catch on pinch-hitter MJ Melendez's 105.3 mph liner in the sixth, popped to his feet and stepped on first to double up Michael Massey for an inning-ending double play.
“Just reacted to it, obviously, and glad we’re able to get out of that and give ourselves a chance moving forward," Berti said.
Berti went 1 for 4 with a strikeout, hitting a pair of flyouts and a ninth-inning single.
“Berti’s an athlete,” Yankees third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “Just like me, you can put him on any part of the field. He’s going to make plays."
Acquired from Miami just before opening day, Berti hit .273 in 25 games and 66 at-bats for the Yankees this year while playing second, third and left.
A 34-year-old veteran of seven big league season, Berti had no experience at first base besides the final three innings of a spring training game when Miami played Washington on March 25, 2021. He caught the throw from third baseman Joe Dunand on Jordy Mercer's eighth-inning grounder for his one putout.
With Rizzo sidelined by a pair of fractured fingers, Oswaldo Cabrera started at first in the Yankees' 6-5 win Saturday in the series opener, going 1 for 4 with three strikeouts and making several sparkling defensive plays.
New York rookie Ben Rice, who played at first while Rizzo was sidelined with a broken right forearm from mid-June through August, was another option on the Yankees roster.
Boone was impressed by Berti's pickup on Gurriel's grounder.
“Sneaky, tough play, especially when you’re not over there a lot where that ball’s spinning on you,” Boone said. “Thought he handled himself really well tonight over there.”
Hurt when hit by a pitch from Pittsburgh’s Ryan Borucki on Sept. 28, Rizzo hopes to be back if the Yankees advance to the League Championship Series.
Berti worked in the past week with coach Travis Chapman and Rizzo to learn first base positioning.
“Just a lot of nuance to it," Berti said. "There’s a lot more to it than people probably think. But coming over as third baseman, shortstop, second baseman, you always want to go after every single ball. But as a first baseman, you've got to learn kind of which balls are going to go towards the second baseman and get over to first.”
Boone picked Clarke Schmidt over Luis Gil to start Game 3 at Kansas City on Wednesday night.
Schmidt, a 28-year-old right-hander, will follow Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón in the rotation, with Cole lined up for Game 4 in the best-of-five series and Rodón for a potential Game 5. A 28-year-old right-hander, Schmidt was 5-5 with a 2.85 ERA in 16 starts, missing time between May 26 and Sept. 7 because of a strained right lat.
“I think a great opportunity and something I’ve been looking forward to and kind of hoping would happen,” Schmidt said.
Gil, a 26-year-old rookie right-hander, was 15-7 with a 3.50 ERA. He struck out 171 in 151 2/3 innings but led the major leagues with 77 walks.
Schmidt said Boone told him of the decision on Sunday.
“It just feels like he’s the right guy for that game,” Boone said. “I have a lot of confidence in what both bring to the table and, hopefully, if we’re able to move on, then Luis is obviously going to find himself back in the rotation, as well.”
AP freelance writer Larry Fleisher contributed to this report.
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New York Yankees third baseman Jon Berti comes off the bag on a throwing error by third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. allowing Kansas City Royals' Yuli Gurriel (18) to reach first base safely during the sixth inning of Game 2 of the American League baseball playoff series, Monday, Oct. 7, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
New York Yankees pitcher Clarke Schmidt delivers during the first inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Tuesday, Sept. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston)
President-elect Donald Trump's billionaire ally Elon Musk played a key role this week in killing a bipartisan funding proposal that would have prevented a government shutdown, railing against the plan in a torrent of more than 100 X posts that included multiple false claims.
The X owner, an unelected figure, not only used his outsize influence on the platform to help sway Congress, he did so without regard for the facts and gave a preview of the role he could play in government over the next four years.
“Trump has got himself a handful with Musk,” John Mark Hansen, a professor of political science at the University of Chicago, said in an email. “Trump’s done this kind of thing before, blowing up a bill at the last minute. This time, though, it looks like he was afraid of Musk upstaging him. Now there’s a new social media bully in town, pushing the champion social media bully around.”
Hansen added: “We’ll see what Musk’s influence is when he runs up against reality — like when he proposes cutting off ‘wasteful’ spending for other people but not NASA contracts for Space-X.”
Musk’s objections to the 1,547-page omnibus bill included misinformation about congressional salaries, federal funding and public health preparedness, among other topics.
He alleged that the plan included a 40% raise for lawmakers. But the maximum pay increase possible through the proposal would have been 3.8%, according to the Congressional Research Service.
One way that members of Congress can receive a pay raise is through automatic adjustments that go into effect unless denied by law. Most members make $174,000 per a year after their last increase of 2.8% in 2009. Congressional leadership is the exception, with the Speaker of the House earning the most at $223,500 annually.
The rejected bill struck a section from a previous appropriations act that denied members of Congress this automatic pay raise. A maximum increase of 3.8% would have bumped their annual salary by about $6,600, to approximately $180,000 annually.
Musk also shared a post from another user that falsely claimed the bill provided $3 billion in funding for a potential new stadium for the NFL's Washington Commanders, commenting: “This should not be funded by your tax dollars!”
The bill included a provision to transfer control of the land that houses RFK Stadium from the federal government to the District of Columbia. That transfer is necessary to pave the way for the Commanders to possibly build a new stadium in the franchise's old home — though the team is still considering other locations.
However, no such funding is provided by the bill. It states, in fact, that the federal government “shall not be responsible for payment or any costs or expenses” that the District of Columbia incurs after the transfer is complete aside from responsibilities related to specific environmental issues.
District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser addressed false claims about the stadium's funding on Thursday, calling them “frustrating.”
“It was stated that the C.R. contains $3 billion for a stadium,” she said at a press conference. "All wrong. There are no federal dollars related to the transfer of RFK and in fact, the legislation does not require or link at all to a stadium.
Bowser added that she has reached out to the Trump administration to correct misinformation about this issue.
In a third post, Musk incorrectly claimed that “We're funding bioweapon labs in this bill!”
The plan provided funds for up to 12 regional biocontainment research laboratories, not facilities for creating bioweapons. It stipulates that among their uses, the labs will conduct biomedical research to prepare for biological agents such as emerging infectious diseases.
A spokesperson for Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Associated Press.
Some members of Congress expressed dismay that Musk had disseminated misinformation about the bill.
“I love you Elon but you need to take 5 seconds to check your sources before highlighting bottom feeders looking for clicks,” Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a Texas Republican, wrote on X.
In a hastily convened Thursday evening vote, the House rejected a new Trump-backed bill whittled down to 116 pages, with the bill failing 174-235. Dozens of Republicans joined Democrats in opposition.
The House finally approved a third spending deal Friday evening, and the Senate followed suit early Saturday. President Joe Biden planned to sign it into law later Saturday.
Trump led Republicans into the longest government shutdown in history in his first term during the 2018 Christmas season, and interrupted the holidays in 2020 by tanking a bipartisan COVID-relief bill and forcing a do-over.
FILE - Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, left, and Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump attend a campaign event at the Butler Farm Show, Oct. 5, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - President-elect Donald Trump listens to Elon Musk as he arrives to watch SpaceX's mega rocket Starship lift off for a test flight from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, Nov. 19, 2024. (Brandon Bell/Pool via AP, File)
