I don't think Boone made a mistake.

I thought CC had a better chance of getting the ninth out than any other pitcher on the Yankees.

Just to go back and explain what happened:

In the first inning, the Red Sox loaded the bases.If you thought Sabathia should come out after 2 2/3, then why not 2/3? Since David Robertson is the invincible savior, why not go to Robertson in the first inning? So Gardner makes the catch in the first inning and ... Boone must be a genius?

The general take is that as soon as Sabathia hit the leadoff batter in the top of the third ... Heaven Forfend! ... it's the biggest mistake by a pitcher in baseball history! ... Boone should have instantly given him the hook.

Of course, this makes perfect sense in retrospect.

He gave up two more runs, duh! The Yankees lost by one run! So there you go!

What's the overall strategy then?

Go to the Infinite Bullpen of Excellence every time a pitcher allows a baserunner?

CC has guts and he's plenty battle-tested. He didn't get the ninth out, but I sure thought he would. (Actually, he did get the ninth out ... but it took him three tries to do it.)

You know what else? The Yankee bullpen is like the Yankee lineup: Lots of strikeouts and overrated.

As if to disprove his own thesis, these are actual back-to-back sentences by Feinsand:

"Sabathia allowed three runs on five hits and two walks, striking out one batter and hitting another. With their season on the line, the Yankees went to their bullpen to open the fourth, but some will surely wonder whether Boone should have had a quicker hook in an elimination game.

Zach Britton, who began warming up when the top of the third ended, took over for the Yankees in the top of the fourth, promptly allowing a solo home run by Vazquez that proved to be the decisive run."

Maybe Sabathia would have "settled down" and breezed through the fourth and the fifth.

Maybe Boone took him out too soon.