Red Sox 3rd Base Coach Explains Controversial Decision In Loss To Orio

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 18, 2025, 8:42 AM

red sox 3rd base coach explains controversial decision in loss to orio

Ryan Mountcastle #6 of the Baltimore Orioles gets the out at first base on Nate Eaton #40 of the Boston Red Sox during a game at Fenway Park. Red Sox third base coach Kyle Hudson is under a bit of a microscope after making a decision that arguably cost his team a game. Down 4-3 in the bottom of the 11th inning, with ghost runner Nate Eaton on third base and one out, Roman Anthony skied a relatively shallow flyball to left-center. The Orioles' Colton Cowser got under it to make the out, and Eaton initially took off, but Hudson stopped him. Cowser's throw was way off target, indicating that had Eaton been sent, he would've been all alone at home plate to score the tying run. Instead, he never made it home, as Alex Bregman flew out to end the ballgame.

Speaking to the Boston Globe, Hudson explained that Cowser was too shallow in the outfield for him to feel confident in sending Eaton for a potential sacrifice fly. NEW YORK — Red Sox third base coach Kyle Hudson had to make a split-second decision Wednesday in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium. He held baserunner Nate Eaton at third base on Masataka Yoshida’s infield single with the gamed tied 3-3 in the seventh inning. Eaton took off from second base on the pitch, with the count full and two outs. Yoshida hit a hard ground ball (97 mph off the bat) that Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. made a diving play to his right to field.

Chisholm threw off balance, and his throw to first baseman Ben Rice short-hopped and Rice couldn’t catch it cleanly. NEW YORK — With two outs and the score tied at 3-3 in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s Game 2, Masataka Yoshida legged out an infield single, loading the bases and giving Trevor Story... But had Nate Eaton been sent home on the play, the Red Sox likely could have taken the lead right then and there. Eaton being held at third became a hot topic following the game, with much of the postgame analysis suggesting that if the speedy outfielder had been sent, he could have scored easily. That is likely true, but Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Thursday afternoon that while it might have seemed obvious from the replays, making a split second decision like that in real time isn’t... “It’s the hardest job in baseball, besides this of course, but I’ve never been in that third base coaching box.

Never,” Cora said. “So for people just to say this and that, it’s hard. It’s very hard.” BREAKING: Mariners brings back First baseman on 5-year deal BREAKING: Mariners Signs 25-Year-Old Bullpen Option from Dodgers BREAKING: Phillies to sign Astros outfielder as Harrison Bader replacement

BREAKING: Phillies to cut ties with Third baseman for $260M, 10-time Gold Glove, 8-time All-Star BREAKING: Mariners to sign 25-Year-Old Japanese Star as Top Free-Agent Fit In the high-stakes cauldron of Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium, Red Sox third base coach Kyle Hudson faced a moment that could haunt a coach’s dreams. With the score knotted at 3-3 in the seventh inning, a daring decision at third base became the fulcrum of Boston’s 4-3 loss to the New York Yankees, leveling the best-of-three series at 1-1. On Thursday, ahead of a do-or-die Game 3, Hudson peeled back the curtain on the split-second call that left Red Sox Nation reeling. The scene was set with two outs and a full count.

Nate Eaton, pinch-running at second, took off on the pitch, giving him a head start toward third. Masataka Yoshida, not known for his speed, ripped a blistering 97-mph grounder toward Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. Chisholm dove to his right, snaring the ball with a spectacular play, but his off-balance throw to first baseman Ben Rice was a short-hop disaster. Rice couldn’t corral it cleanly, and the ball squirted away. For a fleeting moment, it seemed Eaton might have a chance to score the go-ahead run. But Hudson held Eaton at third, a decision that loomed large when, four pitches later, Trevor Story launched a 393-foot flyout to deep center with the bases loaded, ending the inning.

The Yankees seized the momentum, scoring in the eighth to secure the 4-3 victory. Fans and analysts alike wondered: why didn’t Hudson send Eaton home? Speaking candidly before Game 3, Hudson dissected the play with the clarity of hindsight and the weight of experience. “Eaton’s running on the pitch, which gives him a slight head start,” he explained. “But Jazz moved way to his right to field it. I know Masa’s not the fastest, so Chisholm’s likely thinking he’s got a shot at first.

Eaton’s two steps from third when Chisholm secures the ball. If I send him right then and Chisholm pops up and throws home, Eaton’s out by 60 feet.” The roar of Yankee Stadium added another layer of complexity. “It’s so loud there,” Hudson said. “I probably should’ve given Eaton more space to round third, so he could see the ball’s path. From our angle, we couldn’t tell where it went—it was blocked.

If Eaton gets a bit further, maybe he sees it come off Rice’s glove, and we make a different call.” The Boston Red Sox just had a heart-breaking loss last night to the Baltimore Orioles, losing 4-3. The Sox lost back to back games at home, where they were 16-3 before the series. This also was the first home series loss since late June. Sox manager Alex Cora held a post-game press conference to talk about the loss, and explain their grievous mistake: They had Nate Eaton pinch run as the game-tying run in extra innings on third,... MORE: Red Sox predicted to reunite with four-time All-star through waivers to upgrade bullpen for playoff push

““That’s an impact arm in CF. We prepare before the series and we decide who we’re gonna challenge and not, so we didn’t challenge him…We prepared before the series, and that’s an impact arm, and we decided not to challenge... Cora stuck with the answer, even after follow ups. The Orioles had Colton Cowser in center field, who’s in the 95th percentile for arm strength, which means he has one of the best arms in the game.

Red Sox 3rd Base Coach Explains Controversial Decision In Loss To Orio

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