New York Yankees: Cole Shines In Second Spring Start

New York Yankees, Gerrit Cole
Feb 12, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Gerrit Cole (45) throws during a bullpen session as pitchers and catchers report for spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

In his second spring start with the New York Yankees, Gerrit Cole yet again shined. It didn’t even look like spring training the way he pitched.

Cole went 2 and 2/3 innings, striking out three. He threw just 30 pitches and allowed two hits.

Yankees skipper Aaron Boone stated that Cole would not exceed 35-40 pitches on Saturday, but removed him after two quick outs in the third despite being under his pitch limit.

He never really allowed any hard contact. The singles he allowed were pretty weakly hit and got some pop-ups and weak ground-balls.

Cole was able to deal with a little bit of everything during his start. He pitched to guys from the stretch and from the wind-up, dependent on if someone was on. He got some guys out quick, while others he had to fight to retire them. It’s super important in spring that he sees all types of situations against guys that aren’t on your team.

And the velocity was there again. His fastball was still touching 96-98 mph, and that’s a good sign for the spring. But on the other hand, you don’t want to throw too hard too early and tire out your arm.

Cole is now expected to be on a somewhat normal rotation. He will pitch again next Thursday or Friday, dependent on what Aaron Boone decides with an off-day on Monday.

The Yankees are playing Detroit and Boston on Saturday as they are rolling with a split-squad. They will face the Tigers again on Sunday and Boston on Tuesday. The Boston game will actually be televised on both YES and ESPN.