Aaron Boone had a choice to make in the seventh inning, and Max Muncy made sure it followed the Yankees manager all the way out of the Bronx.
With New York leading by a run Friday night, Gerrit Cole walked Mookie Betts to open the seventh. Boone came to the mound, spoke briefly with his ace, then left him in to face Muncy with left-hander Brent Headrick ready in the bullpen.
Seven pitches later, Muncy launched Cole’s 103rd and final pitch into the right-field second deck. The two-run homer pushed the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the Yankees in their first game back at Yankee Stadium since their 2024 World Series clincher.
Boone put the loss on himself afterward, saying, “On me.”
Cole had carried a three-hit shutout and eight strikeouts into the seventh in his 10th major league start since returning in May from Tommy John surgery. The pressure is now on New York after a sharp outing turned into a narrow defeat against the defending champions.
The Yankees had taken the lead in the fourth without an RBI hit. Jasson Dominguez doubled, moved to third when Andy Pages mishandled the ball near the warning track, then scored on a passed ball by Dalton Rushing.
But the Dodgers found the game’s biggest swing, then protected it with defense. In the eighth, Trent Grisham tried to score from first on Ben Rice’s double off the right-center wall. Pages gathered the ball and fired to Betts, whose relay reached Rushing in time for the tag.
Los Angeles improved to 62-36, the best record in the majors. New York fell to 54-43 and is now 18-20 without Aaron Judge, who remains out with a fractured rib.
Cole said Boone asked him to get Muncy. His answer was simple: “Of course.”
