Yankees' Gerrit Cole strikes out 5 in first spring start

Gary Phillips, New York Daily News on Feb 28, 2025

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — Gerrit Cole’s first start of the spring had the Blue Jays swinging and missing, as the Yankees’ ace struck out five on Friday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

The right-hander, using a six-pitch mix, induced nine whiffs over 46 offerings and 3.1 innings. Cole allowed three hits and one earned run — courtesy of a Will Wagner double in the third — but his fastball topped out at 96.1 mph.

Cole, aided by first-inning homers form Austin Wells and Cody Bellinger, turned to his changeup more than any other pitch, throwing it 15 times.

While exhibition games are nothing to get overly excited about, Friday was a solid start for Cole after shoulder inflammation derailed his spring — and the start of his season — last year. The 34-year-old, fresh off the first Cy Young win of his career, didn’t debut until June.

Cole went 8-5 with a 3.51 ERA over 95 innings and 17 starts in the regular season. He then recorded a 2.17 ERA over five playoffs starts, though Cole’s failure to cover first base in a decisive Game 5 World Series loss to the Dodgers left a stain on his postseason.

With Cole’s spring debut out of the way, Aaron Judge is expected to make his on Saturday against the Astros. DJ LeMahieu could join the Yankees captain or make his own debut on Monday against the Pirates.

Max Fried, the Robin to Cole’s Batman atop the Yankees’ rotation, will make his spring debut on Monday.

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