Yankees believe Pete Alonso's potential go-ahead home run was foul: 'Sorry, Pete'

Arguably, the biggest moment of the Yankees' 5-3 win over the Orioles on Wednesday was Pete Alonso's would-be go-ahead home run that was called foul.

The Orioles slugger already hit a solo shot earlier in the game, but was up in the seventh in a tied game with two outs. Yankees reliever Brent Headrick threw an 84 mph slider over the heart of the plate. Alonso smashed the pitch to left field for what looked to be a go-ahead homer, but third base umpire Will Little called it foul.

A crew chief review ensued as everyone waited for MLB's Replay Official to make a decision. After a few minutes, the call was upheld to the shock of Alonso and the rest of the Orioles. 

The Orioles couldn't believe this potential go-ahead home run from Pete Alonso was called foul. 😳 pic.twitter.com/Wb8Q3AZT6d

"You definitely never know what they're gonna rule. But I was really surprised that it came back 'stands,'" Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said after the game. 

"Just based on the video, the Hawkeye had it fair in the dugout," Alonso said. "From what it looked like, it was to the right of the pole. What I was told, in order to overturn a call, you need to have two camera angles to confirm it. The only view that shows it fair or foul was down the line, but no other camera angle is available."

"After viewing all relevant angles, the Replay Official could not definitively determine that the ball left the playing field in fair territory," a statement on Alonso's homer from MLB's Replay Command Center read. "The call stands, and it is a foul ball."

Alonso would strike out two pitches later and the Yankees rallied to put up two runs in the top of the eighth to take the lead and hold on for the win. The Orioles slugger, while disappointed, gave the Yankees credit for doing what needed to be done to win.

"It is what it is. The video room and the umpire at third base, that’s the only opinions that really made it happen," Alonso said. "Kudos to [the Yankees] for breaking the tie that next half-inning. They executed and they bared down and got it down. And we didn’t." 

"It’s 2026, I think technology advanced pretty good," Albernaz said. "There’s teams using AI on the iPads and other sports use ball-tracking data for challengeable calls. Don’t understand why we don’t do it, but it’s not why we lost the game. But that moment was a big moment, and takes away a home run from us and Pete as well."

The Yankees were 2-for-11 with RISP, which included George Lomard Jr.'s go-ahead single in the eighth, while the Orioles were 0-for-6. 

From the New York side, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was asked about the call after the game and revealed that Brett Weber, who handles replays for the team, had the ball as foul. 

"We were unsure and then Webby looked out after the game. And he’s got a foul," Boone said. "Sorry, Pete."

"When I went towards the line, I thought it was foul," Headrick said. "You never know in that situation the way it’s hooking. You never know what’s going to be called. Obviously, we’re glad to see that it was foul. We’ll take it."

The win extended the Yankees' streak to three games and kept pace with the Rays, who also won Wednesday. New York remains 5.0 games behind Tampa Bay for the AL East crown while the Yankees gained a game on the Red Sox for the top AL wild card spot, now 3.5 games ahead of their division rivals.