By Hayden Bird
July 22, 2025 | 10:19 AM
Red Sox players weigh in on bizarre ending: The Red Sox found a particularly rare way to lose a game on Monday, falling 3-2 to the Phillies on a catcher’s interference call. It’s just the second time since 1920 that such a scenario has occurred at the Major League level.
Facing a tall task of escaping a bases-loaded situation with no outs in the bottom of the 10th in a tie game, Boston fell victim to an extremely rare circumstance when Phillies infielder Edmundo Sosa’s belated partial swing clipped the glove of Red Sox catcher Carlos Narváez. After the play was reviewed, Narváez was called for catcher’s interference, and the Phillies won the game with Sosa being awarded first base (forcing in the deciding run).
“That’s a rule,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “That’s why we got it. They got it right. We just lost a game.”
“It sucks,” Narváez told reporters. “We don’t want to lose a game, especially in that way.”
“I don’t feel I was that close to the hitter,” Narváez added. “Really tough that that happened. That cost us the game.”
The Boston rookie noted that he “took accountability on that one” and stopped short of accusing Sosa of intentionally trying to draw the interference call. Still, he acknowledged it was a strange situation.
“It was so late. I had the ball, then I felt the contact. Really weird.”
Other Red Sox players walked a careful line while suggesting that, perhaps, the rule could be revisited.
“That’s an interesting one,” Boston pitcher Walker Buehler said, per MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. “I think there needs to be a little bit of [leeway on] how far back that stuff happens. I think we’ve got some guys that are very good at understanding situations and that they can take a loopy swing and take a shot.
“I’m not saying that’s what he did or he’s notorious for that at all,” Buehler explained. “But if stuff like that happens behind the batter’s box, I think it’s a tough situation for everyone. I don’t think anyone, even them, want to see a game end that way.”
As for the Red Sox pitcher who was on the mound at the time, Jordan Hicks, the 28-year-old lamented not being able to escape the jam he’d partially worked himself into.
“I don’t even think it was a full swing. It was like a half-swing,” said Hicks. “The ball is already in the glove, and it was a half-swing. He wasn’t going to come close to it. But the rules are the rules. It just sucks that I didn’t get a chance to get out of it.”
The Red Sox currently lead the league in catcher’s interference calls with seven. Narváez individually leads all catchers with four.
Trivia: The most recent incident of catcher’s interference resulting in a walk-off prior to Monday occurred in 1971. Can you name the catcher involved in that incident?
(Answer at the bottom.)
Hint: A Hall of Famer who played his entire career with one team, he held the record for most home runs in a single season by a catcher with 45 until Salvador Perez eclipsed that total with 48 in 2021.
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox lost to the Phillies 3-2 on Monday. The two teams play again this evening in Philadelphia at 6:45 p.m.
The Patriots begin training camp on Wednesday, with gates opening to fans ahead of the first practice at 9:15 a.m.
More from Boston.com:
Full highlights: It was an eventful (if ultimately disappointing) night for the Red Sox.
On this day: In 1935, Red Sox pitcher Wes Ferrell achieved the extraordinary feat of hitting a walk-off home run for the second straight game. Ferrell, known as a particularly talented batter by any standard — especially for a pitcher — had been inserted as a pinch-hitter the day before. He proceeded to smack a three-run home run to win the game against the Tigers 7-6.
The following day, Ferrell got the start and tossed a complete game, yielding just one run to the St. Louis Browns. With the score tied 1-1 heading into the bottom of the 9th, Ferrell swatted another walk-off blast over the left field fence to give the Red Sox a 2-1 win.
A fascinating baseball player — aside from his hitting heroics, Ferrell went from an American League high in walks in 1931 (130) to leading the league in fewest walks per nine innings by 1934 (2.4), and he not only totaled the most wins in 1935 with 25 but also hit .347 with seven home runs (with a .960 OPS).
Daily highlight: Jarren Duran crushed a lead-off home run in Monday’s game against the Phillies.
Trivia answer: Johnny Bench
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