Yankees fans are laughing at Alex Cora's excuse for Red Sox's baserunning gaffe

Through two games in the American League Wild Card series between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, the bitter rivals are tied 1-1, heading into a decisive Game 3 to decide who advances to the ALDS and who starts planning their October golf outings.

Each game has been decided by a clear storyline. In Game 1 Red Sox manager Alex Cora clearly out-managed Aaron Boone, who made a number of decisions that one could point to as gaffes, which cost his team dearly.

The storyline of Game 2 became base running. With the game tied 3-3, Boston had a chance to break the game open. Carlos Rodón lost the strike zone entirely, setting up a first and second situation with no outs before getting pulled for Fernando Cruz.

Cruz recorded the first two outs of the inning before pinch-hitter Masataka Yoshida came to the dish and scalded a grounder to the right side that seemed destined to find its way to the outfield. Instead, second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. made a diving stop, but his desperation throw squirted past first baseman Ben Rice, giving Nate Eaton, the runner who had been on second, a prime opportunity to round third and score.

Except he didn't. Cruz would then set down Trevor Story, who put a charge into the ball but came up just short as Trent Grisham glided over to make the catch in deep center. That was the first turning point.

Later on in the bottom of the eighth, Jazz Chisholm Jr., whose absence from the Game 1 starting lineup was one of Boone's more controversial decisions, drew a two-out walk. The next batter, Austin Wells, laced a single to right, and with that, Jazz got on his horse and came around to score all the way from first. The aggressive move stood in stark contrast to Eaton's conservative decision the previous inning, and Chisholm Jr.'s run represented the Yankees' fourth of the night, securing the 4-3 victory in the face of elimination.

Alex Cora's excuse for Nate Eaton's baserunning blunder will have Yankees fans in stitches

One thing was abundantly clear from Boston's seventh-inning threat: Eaton could have scored. In fact, he should have scored, as noted on the broadcast, where you could also see his first base coach, Jose Flores, frantically waving him on and visibly frustrated when he hit the brakes.

Apparently, it was third base coach, Kyle Hudson, who put up the stop sign for Eaton. Regardless, the decision stood as a critical miscue in the game for the Red Sox, and the contrast between the base running decisions by the two clubs stood out as the difference maker.

Asked after the game, in regard to the broadcasters' observation that Eaton could have scored, Boston's manager Alex Cora had a laughably bad response.

“That’s their opinion, you know? I think it’s easy from up there to say that he could’ve scored. You know, they’re not down there with us.”

Sure, Alex, keep telling yourself that. It was painfully obvious to anyone with eyeballs that the Red Sox left a run on the board, and the Yankees can only be thankful for the gift. Without it, who knows how the game would have played out?

The two clubs will face off Thursday night in a decisive Game 3, with Boston at a disadvantage. Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito has been ruled out, so the Red Sox will turn to rookie Connelly Early. Early impressed after being called up, but with only 19 1/3 big league innings under his belt, a lot will be riding on his left arm.

Adding to the pressure, the Red Sox emptied their bullpen in Game 2, giving Early little room to falter. Perhaps if Eaton had scored, they'd be in a very different spot, and one has to imagine that once Cora goes back and watches the film, he'll recognize what we've all already seen.

The Red Sox shot themselves in the foot with that key baserunning mistake, and no amount of lame excuses can cover up that fact.