Jun 18, 2021; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) talks with third base coach Phil Nevin (88) during the sixth inning against the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
New York Yankees third base coach Phil Nevin responds to Alex Rodriguez’s comments on Nevin’s decision that led to Aaron Judge being thrown out at home.
The Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card Game on Tuesday night, 6-2. Just about everything went wrong for the Yankees, from Gerrit Cole getting pulled in the third inning to Phil Nevin causing Aaron Judge to be thrown out at home. Alex Rodriguez criticized Nevin’s decision on ESPN’s broadcast, which may have been one of the few things that A-Rod said that viewers actually agreed with.
Either way, the Yankees are out of the postseason and Phil not stopping Judge at third base is now filed under the ‘what could have been’ section for New York’s 2021 season.
New York Yankees’ Phil Nevin responds back to Alex Rodriguez’s critique
Rodriguez was one of many that questioned Nevin’s thought process that resulted in Judge getting tagged out by Red Sox catcher Kevin Plawecki at the plate. A-Rod said that he “was surprised by the magnitude of that mistake.” He simply said what thousands of people were thinking.
On Wednesday, Phil defended his decision and commented on A-Rod’s critique:
“The guy has never been in that situation, but thinks he has a good idea of what baseball is in that spot and he’s wrong,” Nevin said. “He’s never been in that position.”
The third base coach does have a point, but it still doesn’t mean that Yankees fans will be forgiving him anytime soon.