The New York Yankees have desperately needed their ace in the starting rotation to deliver good performances, and it looks like he is finally back into form after missing the first two months of the regular season.
Gerrit Cole has returned to dominance in recent weeks
Gerrit Cole was outstanding Thursday afternoon against the Cleveland Guardians as the Yankees went on to win 6-0. Cole pitched a strong six shutout innings and allowed just one hit, which was a leadoff single by Steven Kwan in the top of the first inning. He struggled with his command a tad (five walks), but he limited any damage and logged two strikeouts.
The win was Cole’s 150th of his career, and is now one of just four active pitchers to reach that milestone, strengthening his case for the Hall of Fame down the road.
The reigning Cy Young award winner has finally found his footing after starting off shaky since coming back from the injured list in June. He has allowed just one earned run over his last 17.1 innings pitched and is 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA and 24 strikeouts in his last four starts. Prior to that, he was 3-2 with an ERA sitting at 5.40 through his first seven starts of the season.
- Yankees get tough break as key reliever exits game with pec injury
- Yankees’ Aaron Boone doubles down on ‘snakebitten’ closer
- The Yankees have a wild late-season position battle unfolding
The Yankees will need Cole to continue pitching well down the final stretch
Cole getting back to ace form is huge for the Yankees, especially after losing promising rookie Luis Gil to a back injury and getting overall up-and-down seasons from the rest of the rotation. New York will be heavily relying on Cole during the postseason given the question marks that surround the other starting pitchers, so his turnaround is coming at a great time with about a month left to play.
When Cole is on his A-game, the Yankees are in good shape, and with them looking to nail down a tight division race with the Baltimore Orioles, they will hope that this recent trend with their ace will continue the rest of the way.
