The inclination indicates that Gerrit Cole is likely to stay with the New York Yankees. Despite having the possibility to prolong the tenure of the former Cy Young Award-winning right-handed pitcher by appending an additional year at $36 million to his current contract, ESPN has reported that Cole will maintain the existing four-year, $144 million deal remaining from his initial agreement with the club. ESPN further disclosed ongoing discussions between the team and the pitcher regarding a prospective contract extension.
At 34 years old, Cole exercised a clause allowing him to opt out of his original nine-year, $324 million deal with the Yankees, a pact inked before the 2020 season commenced. He opted for this route three days after the Yankees succumbed to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, which culminated in a five-game defeat. The club had until 5 p.m. ET on Monday to respond to his decision.
Cole’s involvement in the World Series culminated in dissatisfaction following a sequence of errors in the fifth inning during Game 5 at Yankee Stadium. These errors erased New York’s 5-0 lead, resulting in the loss of the game and subsequently, the series.
With two outs, Cole struck out Gavin Lux and Shohei Ohtani with the bases loaded, then a ground ball from Mookie Betts towards Anthony Rizzo ensued in confusion. Instead of charging the ball and stepping on the base, Rizzo hesitated, while Cole failed to cover first base.
Reflecting on the incident post-game, Cole mentioned, “I approached the ball poorly. I misjudged its speed, and by the time it got past me, I was out of position to cover first base, neither of us were.”
Following Betts’ safe play and a run, Freeman’s two-run single and Hernandez’s game-tying double followed, resulting in a series of events unfavorable to the Yankees.
Subsequently, Cole threw a season-high 108 pitches and was substituted before reliever Tommy Kahnle relinquished the Yankees’ narrow lead in the eighth inning.
The Yankees have opted not to exercise the $20 million club option on Rizzo, thereby permitting him to become a free agent.
Cole underwent a challenging season, encountering inflammation in his right elbow during spring training. Fortunately, no surgical intervention was required, but his rehabilitation process proved to be lengthy and cumbersome, spanning close to three months. His first start post-injury occurred on June 19.
Throughout Cole’s 17 appearances, there were fluctuations, yet he appeared to reach a crescendo just before the playoffs. With an 8-5 record and a 3.41 ERA over 95 innings, a significant decline from the 209 innings of the previous season when he won the American League Cy Young Award, he made a noteworthy impact during the playoffs, particularly in the World Series.
In Games 1 and 5 combined, he conceded only one earned run from eight hits, achieving 10 strikeouts while issuing four walks.
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