Yankees must move on after brutal World Series loss: 'That's what defines character'

LOS ANGELES – Juan Soto left the Yankees clubhouse with a scowl on his face. Aaron Boone walked down the hallway with furrowed eyebrows and a look of annoyance he couldn't hide. Even Aaron Judge, who always has a little smile at the end of his answers regardless of the day or the outcome of a game, struggled to really get there. The mood was set by their extraordinary silence. The only sound that could be heard was that of the clubhouse staff banging on a table with cleats to remove all the dirt.

That hurt.

“It’s a seven-game series. You’re going to lose tough games,” Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. “We have suffered heavy defeats in the past. That's what defines the character. Yes, it hurts because of the magnitude. But I wouldn’t say anyone is angrier than any other loss.”

The Yankees said all the right things like they were getting back to work Saturday, but their disgruntled expressions told a different story after losing 6-3 to the Dodgers in the 10th inning of Game 1 of the World Series . You can't blame them for being shocked or dejected; The stage was set for the Yankees' road win until Freddie Freeman hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history against left-hander Nestor Cortes.

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Despite their defensive errors and a strange early catch to Gerrit Cole, the Yankees were just one slip away from a Game 1 win on Cortes' second pitch in 37 days – a 92 mph fastball, low and inside, right where Freeman was likes to throw the ball – was knocked down halfway up the right field pavilion at Dodger Stadium. Cortes' first pitch sent Shohei Ohtani flying into foul territory, where left fielder Alex Verdugo plunged in and over the railing and made a spectacular catch for second out of the 10th inning. The Yankees never had a chance to celebrate this courageous play, as Mookie Betts was intentionally sent walking to the bases and a Freeman-induced nightmare immediately followed.

“Maybe just two or three inches higher,” Cortes said when asked where he wanted to take his fastball to Freeman. “I thought I got it to the inside part of the plate where I wanted it, but I couldn’t get it high enough.”

Cortes spent the days before Friday's relief appearance trying to convince the Yankees that he belonged on the World Series roster. He missed the final week of the regular season and the first two rounds of the postseason in New York because of a strained elbow. There was clearly a need for his left arm on the pitching staff, and Cortes was eager to help his team win. Boone believed he could do it because the Dodgers' two best left-handed hitters were on the field.

“The reality is he's been throwing the ball really well the last few weeks as he's been preparing,” Boone said of Cortes. “I knew it would be difficult to double Shohei if Tim Hill put him on the ground when one was out there. And then Mookie is a tough opponent behind him, so I felt confident with Nestor at that point.”

Although Cortes did more harm than good in Game 1, he should get at least one more chance to make amends for his mistake in the series. After all, he wasn't the only Yankee to make a mistake.

In the fifth inning, Soto ran over a Kiké Hernández liner in right field, turning what should have been a double into a triple. The Dodgers immediately capitalized on Soto's misplay by hitting a sacrifice fly and scoring Hernández from third in the game's first run. In the eighth, Ohtani hit a double to right with an exit velocity of 113 mph that Soto deflected off the wall. He double pumped before making the throw to second base, where Gleyber Torres was unable to handle the throw as the ball bounced off his glove and landed in no man's land near the mound. Ohtani advanced to third base – Soto was charged with an error – and Mookie Betts promptly hit a sacrifice throw, tying the game at 2-2.

Such mistakes cannot happen at this point in the long season.

“Every little thing in the game is an opportunity for the offense to take the lead again,” Torres said. “And yeah, Ohtani went to third and Mookie hit the ball up the middle and it was a tie. I have to make an adjustment and when I get a chance to block the ball, just keep it in front and make it a little easier.”

The Yankees overcame defensive blunders and Boone's questionable decision to pull Cole – he had allowed just one run and four batters to get through safely over six-plus innings and 88 pitches – to reach the bottom of the 10th inning with a lead of three :2. Playoff hero Giancarlo Stanton hit his fourth home run in his last four games; This was a two-run pitch in the sixth that gave the Yankees a 2-1 lead. Stanton needs one more home run this October to become the first Yankee in franchise history to hit seven home runs in a single postseason.

But the Yankees' triumphs that would have played a big role in Game 1 are now buried somewhere beneath the Dodgers' dogpile at home plate.

“We had our chances there,” said Judge, who went 1 for 5, striking out three times and leaving two runners left while popping out to finish in the ninth. “It was kind of back and forth the whole game. We had our options to utilize them. We just couldn't do it. And in the end they made a big splash there.”

The Yankees could have used more of that. They will now hand the ball to Carlos Rodón for Game 2 on Saturday – with Yoshinobu Yamamoto for the Dodgers – in hopes the left-hander can carry them back to the Bronx with a series split. As Rizzo said, brutal losses can define the character of a team. The Yankees may only have one more day in LA to show who they are.

Deesha Thosar is an MLB reporter for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. Deesha, the daughter of Indian immigrants, grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.

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