The Yankees' self-induced blunders in the World Series had a crushing domino effect

For all the hype surrounding the first Yankees-Dodgers World Series since 1981, Game 1 delivered an instant classic — or, depending on your point of view, an epic gut punch.

Nestor Cortes, who had not pitched since September 18, was one out away from a save.

Instead, on his second pitch of the night, he left a fastball in Freddie Freeman’s bread basket and allowed the injured first baseman to enter Dodgers lore with a walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning for Friday’s 6-3 win at Chavez Ravine.

There’s a lot to unpack for just one game. Here’s an overview:

— Aaron Boone might never have had to make a decision between Cortes and Tim Hill if his club had done better not to give the Dodgers an extra 30 yards on multiple occasions.

It happened too many times during the season and is now being magnified on the biggest stage, with the Yankees doing it twice before arriving in the 10th inning.

In the fifth inning, Kiké Hernandez roped a fly ball to right field that Juan Soto had to run a long way for.

Instead of pulling up and playing for the double, Soto kept the gas on and still couldn’t get to it, but he couldn’t stop himself fast enough as the ball bounced past him, allowing Hernandez to reach a triple.

Then Shohei Ohtani doubled off the right field wall against Tommy Kahnle in the eighth inning.

Soto fielded the ball and fired a one-hop throw to second base that Gleyber Torres tried to backhand. only for the ball to ricochet off his glove and onto the moundputting Ohtani in third.

Both times the Dodgers cashed with a sacrifice fly.

In the 10th, Oswaldo Cabrera (who had entered second base in the ninth after Jasson Dominguez pinch-run Torres in the top of the inning) couldn’t come up with a diving stop on Tommy Edman’s ground ball up the middle.

But the two miscues before that were more preventable.

And at this time of year, when every game is more exciting, the little things add up.

— Would Boone have had to choose between Cortes and Hill in the 10th if he had given Gerrit Cole a longer leash?

The Yankees ace usually through six innings of one run ball before Teoscar Hernandez singled off him to start the seventh – after falling behind 0-2 and then fighting for a full count.

Boone then decided to go to the bullpen for Clay Holmes to face Max Muncy.

But Cole had solved a problem the inning before when Edman hit a leadoff double to retire Cole Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freeman.

And Hernandez was only the fourth baserunner he had allowed all evening.

“I thought he got a little tax there,” Boone said. “The last 20, 30 pitches I thought he was grinding a little bit.”

Maybe, though Cole still flashed 98 mph in the seventh.

Holmes and Kahnle eventually emerged from the seventh with an intact 2-1 lead, but the decision had a domino effect.

Holmes, Kahnle and Luke Weaver combined for nine outs to get through the ninth inning, meaning Jake Cousins had to start in the bottom of the 10th in an attempt to protect a 3–2 lead.

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— Maybe Boone won’t have to choose between Cortes and Hill if Aaron Judge has made his mark.

The game seems to continue to find him in big moments in October, but after going 1-for-5 with three strikeouts on Friday, he is 6-for-36 with 16 strikeouts this postseason.

The likely AL MVP can still change the story with one big swing.

He almost had his moment in Game 3 of the ALCS, when he hit a game-tying home runonly for the Yankees to ultimately lose that game.

But her I need him to take the opportunity again soon.

– Okay, now the Cortes-Hill decision:

Hill was the Yankees’ most valuable reliever in the ALCS, throwing big outs in all five games.

He and Cortes were both warming up when Cousins started the 10th, putting up two men with one out when the lineup flipped.

Ohtani was the first problem to be solved.

He went 2-for-12 lifetime against Cortes and 1-for-4 against Hill.

Betts had done better against Hill (2-for-5) than Cortes (0-for-5).

And Freeman went 1-for-3 vs. Cortes and 3-for-7 vs. Hill.

Then again, Cortes hadn’t pitched in over a month.

And after getting Ohtani on one pitch, thanks to a great catch by Alex Verdugo as he spun over the half-wall in left field before intentionally walking Betts, Cortes threw a fastball to the wrong location and paid for it.

– If you’re looking for silver linings, here are two:

The Yankees saw five Dodger relievers, virtually all of their power arms.

The more they see them – with a bullpen game in the market for Game 3 or 4 – the more it should work in their favor.

And Jazz Chisholm Jr. had his best game of the play-offs.

In addition to a strong pick on a one-hopper on a hard-hit grounder by Betts in the fifth inning that helped Cole get out of trouble, he singled and stole two bases in the top of the 10th to put him in position. score the winning point.

The Yankees need more from Chisholm, and not swing for the fences.

Quick hits:

— Kahnle has now made 56 consecutive substitutions. He’s got to throw a fastball at some point…right?

— Things I didn’t expect in the World Series: Anthony Volpe was walked intentionally, in the sixth inning no less.

— Three of the Yankees’ last four games have gone to overtime. Gray hair for everyone.