After Aaron Boone named Gerrit Cole the Yankees’ starter for Game 1 of the World Series, the Dodgers named Jack Flaherty his opponent. The right-hander signed with the Detroit Tigers in the offseason before being dealt to Los Angeles at the deadline, and he enjoyed a return to dominance. He posted a 3.17 ERA and 29.9% K% across 28 starts for both teams, and an interesting storyline here is that the Yankees nearly acquired him from the Tigers at the trade deadline. His stuff has regressed a bit towards the end of the season, with a 7.04 ERA and 6.23 FIP in the postseason.
Postseason struggles aside, he has been an incredible starter this season, and is a tough task for this Yankees’ offense to crack in Los Angeles.
After Almost Being Dealt to the Yankees, Jack Flaherty Gets the Ball in Game 1
It’s been a return to dominance for Jack Flaherty, who was one of the most highly sought-after pitchers at the deadline after putting up excellent numbers with the Tigers. The right-hander has been excellent for both the Dodgers and Tigers, but one of the biggest question marks as the season has gone on is his decline in pitch velocity, as his fastball is sitting at just 92.3 MPH since September 19th.
Over that stretch, he has a 6.15 ERA and has struck out under 16% of batters faced as well. The decline in fastball velocity has made him a firmly below-average pitcher, but his secondary pitches have remained excellent and the Yankees will still have their work cut out for them. In Game 1 of the NLCS, we saw what Flaherty can do when he’s sharp, tossing seven innings of scoreless work.
The Yankees have only seen Flaherty once in his MLB career back in 2023 when he blanked New York across six innings of work. Going up against the impending free agent is Gerrit Cole, who will take the ball in the World Series for the first time since 2019 with the Astros.
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He went 1-1 in his two World Series starts against the Washington Nationals, pitching to a 3.86 ERA with 15 strikeouts across 14 innings pitched. Cole did not pitch against the Dodgers this season as he was on the IL when Los Angeles came to town earlier this season.
Across three playoff starts, he has a 3.31 ERA, striking out just 16.7% of batters faced and failing to complete five innings in his most recent start against the Cleveland Guardians. Game 1 begins on Friday night at 8:08 PM EST, as these two teams square off for the 12th time in the World Series as the Yankees look to win their first title since 2009 and the Dodgers hope to win their second title in five years.