Pete Alonso hit a go-ahead home run that wasn’t. The towering drive to left was supposed to help the Baltimore Orioles take the lead against the New York Yankees. But umpires ruled it a foul ball. It became a frustrating what-if for the crowd at Camden Yards as the Yankees eventually clinched a 5-3 win. And Aaron Boone offered his take on the play. 

“We were unsure, and Webby [Yankees replay coordinator Brett Weber] went out and looked after the game. He wanted to get on the line and see where. So he’s got it foul,” the Yankees manager said in a postgame interview with YES Network. “Sorry, Pete. I think it was foul.”

The Yankees were tied 3-3 with the Orioles at the bottom of the 7th on Wednesday. And Alonso came to the batter’s box with 2 outs in the inning.

He hit the very first pitch off Brent Headrick outside the ballpark. And everyone thought Baltimore had just gone ahead. The 31-year-old had already started celebrating.

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But then, third-base umpire Will Little declared it a foul ball. Alonso’s hands went up to his head as he couldn’t believe the decision, mouthing “No.”

And the next words were, “That’s a fair ball,” while no one from the Baltimore dugout believed the call.

Orioles manager Craig Albernaz immediately asked for a review.

And in the replays, the ball appeared to be flying through the fair side of the foul pole. But even after a lengthy review, the MLB Replay Command Center determined that the angles were inconclusive to offer a clear decision. Hence, the original call stood. The official statement read:

“After viewing all relevant angles, the Replay Official could not definitively determine that the ball left the playing field in fair territory. The call stands, and it is a foul ball.”

Back in the 3rd, Alonso had hit another homer to reduce the gap with New York. But this time, he returned empty-handed as Headrick struck him out.

The reporters asked Aaron Boone if he thought the play offered them a break. But he confidently said it was a foul. The skipper himself earlier exchanged a few angry words with home-plate umpire Ryan Wills, who called Will Warren’s high-up pitch a hit-by-pitch and awarded Samuel Basallo first base. But his pitcher had a slightly different perspective. 

“I’m a pitcher, right? So from my vantage point, I thought it was foul,” Headrick said after the win. “But yeah, I think it could have gone either way. It went in our favor.”

But Pete Alonso himself didn’t want to use the foul ball as an excuse for their defeat. 

“They executed and they beared down, and they got it done. We didn’t,” the 5x MLB All-Star said, who nearly threw his helmet to the ground after the ump call.

“Obviously, that’s a really defining call in the game. But when adversity is faced, you’ve got to push past it and move through it.”

With that, he even agreed that such calls do shift the momentum of a game.

“You definitely never know what they’re going to rule, but I was really surprised that it came back stands,” Albernaz offered his perspective after the game.

Beyond the what-if, the Yankees earned a much-needed win. They secured the series, recording their 3rd win in a row right after 3 consecutive losses. They have one more road game before their 10-game homestand. So they would definitely want to end the series on a high note before heading to New York.

Despite their recent offensive struggles, they are 9.0 games ahead in the Wild Card race. For now, that’s good enough motivation for Aaron Boone and his boys.