Alex Verdugo was so pumped up after delivering the game-winning single in the Red Sox’s 5-4, 10-inning victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night in Boston that he couldn’t stop saying the F-word in a postgame interview.
The reason the 26-year-old center fielder was so excited was because his game-winning hit — which bounced off the low wall in right field just short of Pesky’s Pole — barely stayed fair, and he had to wait, along with all of Red Sox nation, for the review to confirm Boston actually had won the game so his team could celebrate for a second time.
After the Red Sox’s thrilling win, an excited Verdugo caught up with NESN television reporter Jahmai Webster to talk about the game, and he just couldn’t stop swearing.
“Please be f–king fair,” Verdugo said when asked by Webster what was going through his mind when he was awaiting for the umpires’ final decision. “Oh, my bad. Please be fair, man.
“I was like. I just didn’t want to pull one and f–king, god dang. … “We’re live, Alex,” Webster said with an uncomfortable laugh.
Warning explicit language
“Sorry, sorry,” a smiling, but embarrassed Verdugo replied. “I didn’t want to roll over, you know.”
Reese McGuire had just tied it with a two-run single as the Red Sox rallied after allowing two runs in the top of the 10th.
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McGuire entered as a pinch hitter in the eighth and reached on a key defensive error when Christian Vázquez was called for catcher’s interference.
The play helped Boston score once in the eighth and eventually force the extra inning, which featured more offense than the previous nine combined.
“The home plate umpire called it right away, so I knew I was going to be granted first base no matter what,” McGuire said. “Then when I saw the third baseman come in and field it and make a throw to first, no one was covering so Kiké (Hernández) intelligently just kept running to third.”
Donovan Solano was covering first, but he stepped off the bag before the ball arrived and McGuire ran out the play.
Cora said he knew he had the option to take the interference call or the live play, which left Solano with an error and the Red Sox with runners at first and third.
“That was a great heads-up play by Kiké,” Cora said.
Chris Sale, who allowed just one run and struck out 11, had a no-decision but avoided a tough-luck loss, thank to the Red Sox’s late rally.
— with AP
