KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Chisholm Jr. of the Jazz bent over in the batter's box and whispered in catcher Salvador Perez's ear amid deafening boos.
Maybe a thank you to Perez for not taking a shot at Chisholm when he had a chance to undermine the Yankees star's claim that the Royals were “lucky” to win in the final game of a back-and-forth playoff series. There are probably people who think it can't be done. , let's think again.
“I told him I love this game,” Chisholm said Wednesday night after being demonized by angry Royals fans. “That's exactly what I said to Salvy.”
Chisholm got the loudest boos during his pregame introductions — and then Chisholm ran to the third base line to greet his teammates and tell them he loved them too — and every time he stepped up to bat in Game 3 of the ALDS. Despite being booed again, he was all smiles after the Yankees won 3-2 and took control of the series.
“This gives me a boost,” Chisholm said. Chisholm was 0-for-4, but played third base without giving up a run. “I hear loud noises and have everything in my head. I've never seen anyone boo my ass.”
His teammates and coach Aaron Boone weren't worried about the reception's impact.
“It's good to have some of that in the playoffs,” Boone said. “I don't think he said that in any way to belittle it. It made things a little better.”
In Game 2, after the Yankees had nothing to show for their strong atemballs, Chisholm took the initiative.
“We had a lot of chances tonight,” Chisholm said Monday. “They just got lucky.”
Mr. Boone then tried to extricate Mr. Chisholm from the scene, saying a series of questions led to misunderstood words.
But this last-minute trade-deadline acquisition didn't bring the kind of relief they'd hoped for at Kauffman Stadium.
Follow The Post's coverage of the Yankees in the postseason.
“That's the reaction I was hoping for,” Chisholm said. “I'm glad we did that. It pushed the team forward.”
Chisholm said playing the troll was “for me.”
“If I wasn't the kind of player they cared about, they wouldn't boo. They just let me do what I wanted,” Chisholm said. . “Of course, you met a lot of people, right?”
The boos are almost certain to get even louder on Thursday when the Yankees clinch the series. It may be difficult for anyone to top Chisholm's funniest moments.
“There was this 27-year-old guy, and I think he was imitating the girl next to him,” Chisholm said, his voice turning high-pitched. “He said, 'You're 0-for-3.' But he looked like a big guy, so when he did that, I almost cried. It was funny.”
