The New York Yankees will go to California to face the Oakland Athletics at the Coliseum for a weekend series starting on Friday. Their ace Gerrit Cole will be the one taking the ball for the opener at 9:40 pm ET. It will be Cole’s first start since last Saturday’s fiasco against the Boston Red Sox.
In case you don’t remember or didn’t pay enough attention, Cole was cruising through 3.1 innings last Saturday until he decided to intentionally walk his personal nemesis, Rafael Devers, with no one on and one out in the fourth inning.
Everything unraveled after that, and the Yankees star wound up surrendering seven earned runs in 4.1 frames.
Is the Yankees ace in the right state of mind?
Many fans have wondered about Cole’s mental state after being the talk of MLB for several days, for the wrong reasons. He was called all kinds of names and adjectives, from a coward to others that can’t be written here.
Does he have the determination and will to leave it all behind and focus on what’s really important? Is he capable of muting everyone else trying to undermine him and deliver the kind of performances the Yankees need to move forward?
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History suggests that Cole has bounced back from adversity every time. However, this is the first incident of its kind, so it’s reasonable to worry about his ability to bounce back and be in the right place of mind.
The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner is 6-5 with a 3.97 ERA for the season. He was cruising and starting to hit his stride in recent starts until Saturday’s events.
There is no reason to think he can’t get back on track, starting on Friday. The Yankees absolutely need him to be at his best as they try to secure a first-round bye in the playoffs, among other things.
