The Boston Red Sox expressed significant frustration following a controversial non-catch call that they believe altered the course of Sunday's game against the New York Yankees, which Boston lost 16-1. The incident occurred in the fifth inning when Red Sox center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela appeared to make a diving catch on a fly ball hit by the Yankees' Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Rafaela was adamant that he secured the catch, which would have resulted in a double play with a runner on first base. However, umpires ruled that the ball was trapped, allowing runners to advance to first and second. A subsequent video review upheld the on-field decision.
"I know I made the catch. I know when a ball drops and a ball don’t drop. And I know I made the catch," Rafaela told reporters, as cited by ESPN. He later posted a zoomed-in image of the ball in his glove on social media, stating, "it’s a man above that saw it."
Rafaela conveyed that he was "mad in the moment" because he wanted to support his pitcher. "I feel that changed the whole game right there," he added.
Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy pointed out the distinction between a call being confirmed and a call being upheld. "I know when you hear ‘call stands,’ not ‘call confirmed,’ that’s a pretty good indicator that they’re saying it’s very difficult to see anything on video for us to overturn on the field," Tracy explained. "So, if you hear ‘call confirmed,’ that’s different. That’s not what you heard."
Tracy added, "We in the dugout feel like our center fielder caught the ball. But if they don’t have anything that they can definitively overturn it, that’s usually where you end up and obviously it’s frustrating."
The Yankees capitalized on the situation, extending their lead with runs in the sixth and seventh innings before scoring nine runs in the bottom of the eighth to secure their decisive victory. The game concluded with a final score of 16-1 in favor of New York.
