It was a catch. Ceddanne Rafaela knew it, the Boston Red Sox and their fans know it. Why else would Rafaela, a Gold Glove defender with incredible body control, risk rolling his wrist the way he did? To keep leather under the ball.
But the call on the field didn't play out that way and MLB found the replay inconclusive. Rafaela's "no catch" in the bottom of the fifth inning changed the feeling of the entire game and the New York Yankees took advantage, scoring 10 runs before Andruw Monasterio took over pitching in the eighth inning, where he gave up six more.
Rafaela couldn't let it go, though. After the play, the outfielder jawed with first base umpire Edwin Moscoso to advocate for himself. His protest of the game continued into the eighth inning when he didn't run out a ground ball.
When the call came up postgame, Rafaela didn't budge. He even posted about the ordeal on Instagram, saying "It's a man above that saw it" as a catch. Rafaela's otherworldly defense is not usually up for debate, making the brutal call hurt all the more.
"I know when a ball drops and a ball doesn't drop. I know I made the catch," he said. "...I was really mad in the moment. I really wanted to help my pitcher there and I feel that changed the whole game."
Ceddanne Rafaela emotional after controversial no catch ruling during Sunday Red Sox-Yankees matchup
Through the Red Sox went on to lose by 15 runs, it's impossible to argue that the call had no influence on the outcome of the game. Had the play been called in Rafaela's favor, it would've been called a double play, as he threw to first base in time to get José Caballero, who didn't tag up on the play. Instead, the inning continued with zero outs on the board and the Yankees collected five runs off a rattled Ranger Suarez.
The Red Sox's offense didn't show up against Will Warren, the weakest member of the Yankees' rotation this year. Seven hits and a 1-for-5 stretch with runners on base isn't going to get the job done against a slugging New York team.
Boston clearly didn't feel like it could win after the no-catch — if Rafaela can't make a play like that, no one can. But the complete lack of fight they showed after the controversial play needs to be recitifed before October. The Red Sox can't play well if their emotions get in the way.
The team has to move on to its series against Seattle and play better than it did at any point in the Bronx. Lifeless offense and overly-emotional play won't go far in this American League playoff picture. But it was a catch.
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