In a frustrating 7-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Friday night, an extremely important baserunning mistake by rookie Jorbit Vivas threatened to derail any momentum for the New York Yankees. Yet, despite the visible lapse, manager Aaron Boone chose not to bench the 24-year-old infielder immediately, a decision that took into account both the circumstances and Vivas' overall effort.
The play in question came in the third inning when Vivas and Trent Grisham had drawn back-to-back walks, setting the stage for a possible rally. Cody Bellinger followed with a deep fly ball to right field, caught by Ronald Acuna Jr. near the warning track. Vivas attempted to tag from second to third but inexplicably slowed down before reaching the bag. Ignoring third-base coach Luis Rojas' clear signal to slide, Vivas was tagged standing up by Nacho Alvarez Jr., who had feigned disinterest in the play.
“I bench when guys don't run hard,” Boone said.
While Vivas admitted to pumping the brakes, he and Boone attributed the lapse to Nacho Alvarez Jr.'s acting, as the Braves' third baseman pretended there was no throw coming from Acuna.
“Can't happen. Just can't happen,” Boone said. “That said, I did that all my career at third base, where you kind of play dumb, like dead. [Vivas] read the body. Obviously, he knew it was a deep flyball, so I think it caught him up, but Luis is telling him to kind of get down, and then at the end, just trying to hold the bag. And Vivas heard him, too. But the body language of Alvarez there just deeked him, but it's not something that can happen.”
Boone explained that while the error was unacceptable, he didn't consider an immediate benching because Vivas is typically a hard-nosed, high-effort player. The rookie remained in the game until Giancarlo Stanton pinch-hit for him in the seventh inning.
Boone was clear in his postgame message:
“You can never let that happen again,” Boone declared.
After the game, Vivas accepted full responsibility.
“I slowed down, and that's my mistake,” Vivas said. “You gotta learn and do better.” He noted that he picked up Rojas late and that Alvarez partially blocked his view.
This isn't the first time baserunning issues have plagued the Yankees. Last season, the team posted an MLB-worst -17.1 BsR per FanGraphs. Though their 2025 mark of -4.3 entering Friday's game ranks 24th in the league.
The Yankees, now 53-44, have dropped three straight following a five-game win streak and trail the Blue Jays by three games. With Max Fried nursing a blister and Cam Schlittler dealing with arm soreness, Boone opted for a bullpen game rather than altering rotation plans. Four relievers combined to throw eight innings, allowing all seven Braves runs.
