NEW YORK — For nearly three months, the New York Yankees have exceeded expectations without star Gerrit Cole, posting the best record in the major leagues while the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner served as an unofficial assistant pitching coach while recovering from an elbow injury.
But the Yankees know that to achieve their ultimate goal – winning the franchise's 28th World Series title and first since 2009 – they almost certainly need a healthy Cole on the mound in October.
Cole's season debut on Wednesday night, in a 10-inning, 7-6 loss to the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium, was a major milestone. And the results were encouraging: four or more innings, two runs on three hits and five strikeouts with one walk. Most importantly, Cole emerged from the season healthy. It was a positive, if abbreviated, step in the right direction.
Here are three things to take away from Cole's first start of the 2024 season.
1. He is (almost) ready for prime time
Cole only made three rehab appearances to prepare for Wednesday. The pitches: 45, 57, 68. The Yankees could have legitimately given Cole another start in Triple-A to continue to build up. But they decided that Cole was ready enough to use him against their main rivals in the AL East. And they were right.
Cole's average fastball velocity was down 1.6 mph from last season, he allowed some hard hits and had trouble striking out some batters, but he was very accurate under the circumstances. The right-hander threw 62 pitches, 40 of which were strikes. He induced six whiffs and 13 strikes while being in full control of his five-pitch arsenal.
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“I think the layup was good,” Cole said. “And I felt like the throws were crisp. I think I got a swing and a miss on every throw. Consistency probably needs to improve with the number of throws as well. I threw a couple of shaky sliders, but I threw a great slider in a big spot. That's encouraging.”
Not surprisingly, Cole took some time to get going. His season began with some heavy contact. Gunnar Henderson opened the game with a 109.1 mph one-hopper that bounced off second baseman Gleyber Torres' glove and into right field for a double. Two batters later, Ryan O'Hearn hit an 0-2 slider for a 102.3 mph RBI ground rule double with two outs.
Cole came into his own from there, striking out nine of the next 10 batters he faced. He shut the team down in the second inning on just seven pitches. He walked Henderson in the third inning – and watched Henderson steal second base – but recorded his first three strikeouts of the season, leaving Henderson helpless. The Orioles went down in the fourth inning on 16 pitches in order.
“I thought he got better as the game went on,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
The Orioles hit six pitches at least 101.5 mph, but the costly damage was limited to those two doubles in the first inning and Cedric Mullins' leadoff single in the fifth. That allowed Cole to average just over 15 pitches per inning, an economical effort on a night when he had to be frugal to avoid overwhelming the bullpen before Thursday's playoff game.
Cole left the game to a standing ovation in the fifth inning when Mullins was on base and the game was tied 1-1. Reliever Ron Marinaccio promptly allowed a two-run home run to Ramon Urías. The Yankees caught up late in the game and tied the game, so Cole played no role in the decision. It wasn't a classic Cole performance, but it was never on the cards.
“It was nice,” Cole said of his return. “It was a little bit of a special game for me. It's just been a long couple of months and a lot of emotions. I wasn't sure how I was going to feel out there, but finding the ball calms the nerves a little bit.”
2. He was not satisfied with the ending
Cole left the game angry at himself for throwing a high fastball to Mullins early in the fifth inning, ending his appearance. He explained that this was why he looked so frustrated when he left the game – not because he wanted to stay in the game any longer.
| Wednesday | Average values for 2023 | |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | IP | 6 1/3 |
| 62 | Parking spaces | 99.4 |
| 4.50 | EPOCH | 2.63 |
| 11.25 | K/9 | 9.6 |
| 95.1 miles per hour | Average FB speed | 96.7 miles per hour |
| According to ESPN Stats & Information | ||
Cole recalled throwing a fastball to Mullins the first time they met that resulted in a lineout to center field, but the next time he faced the veteran center fielder, he wasn't happy with the position.
“He's ready,” Cole said of Mullins. “I had about 30 at-bats against him. He put a good swing on it and got to the middle, so probably just a little frustration with the cat-and-mouse game. Cedric caught me again with a high fastball.”
Mullins is currently 9-for-26 hits, two doubles and one home run in 27 career batting appearances against Cole.
3. There is “more” to come… but how much more is a mystery
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Gerrit Cole's son was thrilled when he spotted his father from the stands
Yankees star Gerrit Cole nods towards the stands to his son Caden, who is very happy to see his father on the team bench.
Before the game, Boone refused to reveal Cole's pitch count, believing that sharing that information would put him at a competitive disadvantage. The number turned out to be 65, so Boone took Cole out of the game after just one pitch in the fifth inning.
Boone said he sensed Cole was exhausted after the fourth inning, but he wanted Cole to strike out one more batter. Mullins quickly did it with a single on Cole's 62nd pitch.
“I thought I held up well,” Cole said. “Now I'm tired. A different level for sure. It just requires a higher level of focus and execution. I felt like I could definitely keep making throws, but it was strategic in the number of throws.”
And what about next time? Cole echoed his manager's statement about the competitive disadvantage and would not divulge that information, other than to say the number of throws will be “higher.”
