For a while on Tuesday night, everything was going swimmingly for the New York Yankees. Max Fried was fully locked in and dealing. Paul Goldschmidt and Aaron Judge opened the first inning with back-to-back singles. And before Boston Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet had settled into a dominant outing (featuring 17-straight retired batters), Anthony Volpe had already snuck in a 382-foot solo shot to right field in the second inning off of the lefty.

With the way that Fried was pitching, an early 1-0 lead for New York felt as comfortable as a 1-0 lead can feel during an anxiety-inducing Game 1 of a three-game Wild Card Series. Fried wasn’t spotless, but when he did get into jams (fourth and fifth innings), the left-hander maneuvered his way out of them with ice in his veins.

Then, in the seventh inning, things went south for the Yankees, and quickly. Adding insult to injury, New York’s Game 1 giveaway happened with one of the franchise’s most venerable legends in attendance.

Joe Torre attended Game 1, but the Yankees failed to honor him with a victory

The 2025 Yankees are trying at the moment to reclaim the magic of the Joe Torre-era Yanks, so it was only fitting to see Torre himself in the seats at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night.

What a perfect opportunity for the current Yankees to get their postseason run off to a successful start in front of the legend! But it wasn’t meant to be.

Ironically, New York’s downfall on Tuesday began with a manager decision. Aaron Boone pulled Fried in the seventh inning after 102 pitches, a move that has stirred up controversy in the hours since.

In came Luke Weaver for the Yankees with no one on base and one out. Three batters later, New York trailed 2-1. Weaver walked Ceddanne Rafaela (after being ahead in the count 0-2!) before allowing a base knock to Nick Sogard, which Aaron Judge’s nonchalance (and right arm hesitance) allowed Sogard to turn into a double. One pitch later, the pinch-hitting Masataka Yoshida smacked a single to right, and Weaver’s disaster class was secured.

The horror didn’t end there for the Yankees, though. With every opportunity to salvage things in the bottom of the ninth against flamethrowing former Yankee Aroldis Chapman, New York fell flat. A trio of singles from Goldschmidt, Judge, and Cody Bellinger loaded the bases for the Yankees with zero outs.

But what seemed like a can’t-miss opportunity for New York turned into a miracle for Chapman in the end. Giancarlo Stanton struck out, Jazz Chisholm flied out, and Trent Grisham stepped to the plate with the chance to establish hero status in the Bronx for decades to come.

Grisham, however, went down swinging against Chapman, and the Yankees went down 0-1 in the series. Now, the Yankees face back-to-back must-win games in the next 48 hours, and they’ll need more than the aura of Joe Torre aiding them to take care of business.