I watched the first episode on Wednesday evening The comeback. The episode reinforces every negative feeling I've ever had about the New York Yankees. They are portrayed (rightfully) as vile, holier-than-thou people who believe baseball is something other than a game. Not that you need reminding, but the 2003 Red Sox season highlighted in this episode was ended by Aaron Boone's walk-off home run in Game 7 of the ALCS. Tim Wakefield had a great game, but in the 11th inning he threw a knuckleball that didn't quite hit the ankle and found its way to the seats.

Fast forward to 2018: The Yankees are looking for a new manager. Instead of hiring someone with coaching experience, they hired Aaron Boone. Boone jumped from TV analyst to Yankees boss in one offseason. There could have been other teams interested in hiring Boone, but his status as a Yankees hero may have played a role in the decision. (Note: Although the Yankees defeated the Red Sox, they did not win the 2003 World Series).

By Yankee standards, Boone's tenure was unsuccessful. Although they have been regularly in the playoffs, this is the first year they have advanced to the World Series. In Boone's first World Series game last night against the Dodgers, he made the decision to bring Nestor Cortes into the game with one out in the bottom of the tenth inning. Some may call the decision questionable, but I would call it certifiably insane.

Cortes is a pitcher who relies primarily on command and deception. His skills are okay, but he lacks speed and often uses trickery to keep batsmen off balance. Plus, he hadn't pitched in over a month when he entered tonight's game. You don't add a pitcher to your roster if you don't think he can provide something in the series. You also don't put a pitcher in the game who relies on command when the bases are loaded and three former MVPs come to the plate for the first time in several weeks.

Hindsight is 20-20, but what was Boone thinking? Will Cortes come in and suddenly start throwing 95 miles per hour with flawless control? Did he think this was a straight-to-television Disney movie starring a smart-ass left-hander with a shitty mustache? Did he expect Cortes to smuggle a 92 mph fastball from Freddie Freeman? No, he thought Cortes had been throwing the ball really well lately.

I don't want to give Aaron Boone any advice, but he should consider the situation the next time he makes a decision like this. Cortes had been throwing the ball really well in the last few weeks – against anyone. Throwing a bullpen while rehabbing is a lot different than pitching to future Hall-of-Famers with a World Series game on the line.

In short, thank you, Tim Wakefield, for throwing a knuckleball that didn't hit the knuckle. It was a major domino in the chain of events that led to reversing the curse and ensuring the Yankees had an absolute idiot in charge.