The New York Yankees took the field for the second night in a row for another televised intrasquad game at Yankee Stadium. The game featured every starter for the exception of DJ LeMahieu as he not partaking in Summer Camp yet after his recent positive test. It’s still early in camp that players, especially hitters, are still catching up to being game-ready, however, there are some positive things to note from the intrasquad.
Gerrit Cole looks sharp, has bulldog mentality
After allowing a home run to Miguel Andujar as the second batter of his outing, Gerrit Cole focused up and retired 15 out of the 19 total batters he faced. He allowed just one hit (the Andujar homer) while fanning six batters. Cole’s fastball looked strong and his offspeed pitches were getting swing-and-misses. He also retired the last ten batters he faced in his outing.
One thing to note about Cole is his bulldog mentality no matter what situation he’s in. “I was trying to win. Unfortunately, we lost,” Cole said after the game. Even though these intrasquad are low intensity and are mainly for hitters and pitchers to get live looks, Cole had the mentality of thinking this was a mid-season game down the stretch.
It’s so fun to watch Gerrit Cole knowing he’s ours.pic.twitter.com/GXbzTuRwqV
— The Short Porch (@short_porch) July 7, 2020
Michael King showed a flash of dominance
After appearing in just one game for the New York Yankees last season, Michael King showed a sample of dominance today. King has a deceiving motion that hides the ball well from hitters and throws across his body which makes it uncomfortable for right-handed hitters.
In two innings of work, King fanned three batters while allowing just one hit. King’s fastball looked strong as he commanded it well while flashing a good-looking slider and curveball.
King is definitely someone the Yankees are going to have to think about when deciding on what arms they are going to put on the roster. Clarke Schmidt, who was fabulous in Monday’s intrasquad game, is also another guy who will be in the run for a roster spot.
#Yankees prospect Michael King strikes out Hicks. pic.twitter.com/CEDLGWYRRg
— Tom Hanslin (@TomHanslin) July 7, 2020
Andujar homers off Cole
In Gerrit Cole’s first inning of work, Miguel Andujar took a fastball to right-field for a home run. Definitely mixed emotions for Yankee fans, but on a positive side, Andujar’s swing is looking like it did in 2018 and showed tremendous opposite-field power.
https://twitter.com/KyleNYY/status/1280639293632008192