Video summary
Gerrit Cole secured a decisive 9-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, delivering an eight-strikeout performance that highlighted his continued dominance on the mound. Despite challenging wind conditions that caused significant movement for both the ball and the pitcher, Cole managed to navigate the difficulties effectively, though he expressed slight disappointment regarding three walks allowed during the game. He noted that while the gusty weather made balancing his delivery tough, it ultimately presented a fun challenge that also tested the hitters, pushing his pitch count to 105 as he worked through the innings with poise and control.
Looking ahead to the postseason, Cole acknowledged the excitement of a potential Wild Card series against the Red Sox, even though the team fell short of securing the division title this year. He emphasized that despite not achieving their ultimate goal of winning the division, the Yankees still possess the second-best record in the league and have built a balanced, hungry team capable of making special runs in October. Cole felt physically ready for the playoffs, noting that his recovery from surgery has progressed smoothly, allowing him to fine-tune his mechanics and maintain a level of freshness comparable to previous years despite having pitched fewer than 220 innings this season.
The victory also served as a platform to praise key contributors like Ben Rice, who had an exceptional night alongside George Springer and Aaron Judge. Cole highlighted Rice's significant development over the past year plus, citing his ability to stay balanced and deliver high-efficiency strikes across the zone as standout traits that make him dangerous at the plate. The team's offensive output was crucial in a tough environment, with home runs from the lineup proving vital, while the defense held up well against the Rays' challenges, contributing to an overall strong performance that reinforced the team's confidence and belief in their ability to compete for the championship.
Regarding the implementation of Absolute Batter Sizing (ABS), Cole expressed satisfaction with its current usage and suggested that it is time to stabilize the approach rather than introducing further changes after five years of adjustments. He pointed out a specific instance where a pitch was correctly called as a strike thanks to ABS, preventing a potential error by the umpire and demonstrating the technology's value in maintaining accuracy. Cole concluded that since the system has gone really well, there is no need to disrupt a successful formula, advocating for consistency as the team moves forward into the playoffs with a stable and effective setup.
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car working into the sixth inning, eight
strikeouts tonight. Just what did your
stuff tell you about where you're at
right now?
>> Um it was a good night overall. Uh
a little u disappointed with the three
walks, but um I thought the stuff was
good. It was really windy tonight. It
was kind of blowing um myself and the
ball a little bit all over the place.
So, uh it was a fun challenge to work
through.
>> Kind of mention that. Just how much does
that affect you when you're on the mound
and how does it affect
>> Yeah, I mean it it uh it's sometimes
it's tough to balance. I I got a couple
gusts and it's just uh I don't know, you
just deal with it. You know what I mean?
The hitters got to deal with it, too.
So,
>> really push the pitch count 105 pitches.
How significant was it to you to to kind
of get there?
>> Yeah, I mean it is opportunity to just
get a little extra work and, you know,
from a physical standpoint just expose
yourself to that and one more up and uh
you know, just preparing for, you know,
what may lie ahead.
>> Your next start will probably be in a
wild card series. probably against the
Red Sox. What's your thoughts about that
potential series and taking them on
again?
>> Yeah, I mean, you know, very exciting.
Uh still maybe a little disappointed
that we didn't accomplish our ultimate
goal, but uh you know, we for the
division, but you know, we we have a
chance to do something special in
October. So, we're, you know, excited
excited for the first matchup for sure.
>> How do you assess your body of work over
the four and a half months? Yeah,
>> I mean, I I think it's been pretty good.
Yeah.
>> Just where we came from in midMay to now
versus your expectations going into the
year.
>> Yeah, I didn't have much expectations.
Uh I wanted to come back and get in the
rotation and stay in the rotation. That
was a goal. Uh accomplish that. And um I
think that you know the
pro progression from the surgery um and
you know phasing back into playing every
day has uh gone about as well as uh I
think you could hope and it's allowed us
ability to make some adjustments along
the way um continue to fine-tune things
and and hopefully you know continue to
pitch well here over the next month or
so. How would you compare how you're
feeling physically to where you're
usually at going into the playoffs?
>> I mean, I feel ready to go. So, I I
would say
uh the same feels fresher just because
you don't have the full
>> um
I don't know about that. It's kind of
like its own unique year. And uh so, um
I don't know about fresher. I mean, I
feel like I've pitched a little bit, but
I don't feel like I've pitched, you
know, 220 innings, but um,
you know, at the same time, like I've
still been pitching since February, so
feels about the same. You
>> said it's disappointing not to win the
division, but you guys still have the
second best record in the league. Um,
going in this playoffs is a lot
different than past teams with pitching,
possibly no judge. What what's your
thoughts on how this team is built going
in the past and how dangerous you guys
can be?
>> Yeah, I mean I think we're extremely
confident. I mean, it's a blessing to be
here and and be in this position more
often times than not. You know, you talk
about the competitive team. We've had
competitive teams here every single year
I've been here, giving ourselves a
chance outside of the one year we missed
the playoffs to to accomplish the
ultimate goal. Uh this team is balanced.
Uh this team is hungry. Um and we've
played well by and large for most of the
year. So, um, you know, I think I, you
know, I think that says that we we we
got a good chance and we believe in
ourselves.
>> Certainly seen a lot from Ben Rice over
over the last year year plus, but 40 and
and 41 now. What does it say about his
continued development and what he really
means to this line?
>> Um, you know, super proud of him. Um,
you know, a really exciting season for
him. Um,
yeah, I deserves it, too. He works
really hard and puts in a lot of work
behind the scenes and and had a great
night tonight along with Mac. That was
great to see along with George just keep
plugging along. Those those homers were
huge for us. I mean, the offense played
well and uh you know, we played pretty
good defense in a tough tough
environment tonight, too. So, overall uh
really great and a nice nice night for
Ben.
>> What stands out as a hitter when you
watch him?
>> Um
well, I think he he it's tough to pull
him off his back leg.
uh he's really uh able to stay balanced
and uh deliver, you know, like high
efficacy strikes uh on various pitches
in all parts of the zone. So, he's
always dangerous um and really accurate.
>> That ABS challenge, he got no return.
>> I didn't think it was a strike. Did you
think it was a strike? Palasio didn't
either. So, I mean, uh well, neither did
uh John Hoy either. So, no one thought
it was a strike except for Ali. He was
on it. Thank God. Uh, that was great.
That was perfect pitch. That was a one
before. They didn't even make a move at
it. So, I'm glad we got that right.
>> After a full season of ABS, would you
like to see it in all pitches or like
the current?
>> Uh, let's just we we've we've made a lot
of changes in in the last five years.
And um it's time to stabilize a little
bit. In my opinion, this situation right
now with the ABS has gone really really
well. And um so let's not mess a good
thing up.