New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole appeared to be in midseason form on Tuesday in the team’s intrasquad scrimmage, though he did give up a home run to Miguel Andujar. Considering that was the only hit Cole allowed and the exchange that took place before it happened, it seems pretty fair to blame the ball.
Cole began his outing by striking out outfielder Mike Tauchman on four pitches. Catcher Gary Sanchez then threw the ball around the infield, which meant Cole couldn’t use it again due to coronavirus health and safety protocols. The right-hander wasn’t pleased about having to switch balls, and you could clearly see him say “I liked that ball,” referring to the ball he used to strike out Tauchman.
Andujar was the next batter, and Cole surrendered an opposite-field homer to him on the very first pitch of the at-bat. Here’s the entire exchange, but beware that the video contains some inappropriate language:
Gerrit Cole cant reuse a ball he likes due to corona, has to use a ball he doesn't like and gives up a homer , a breakdown pic.twitter.com/GR9M4b798R
— Jomboy (@Jomboy_) July 7, 2020
Baseball players are creatures of habit, and there will likely be a lot of protocols in place during the shortened 2020 season that they don’t agree with. Cole ended up striking out six in five innings and allowing just one hit, so the ball situation couldn’t have bothered him that much.
One former Yankees star believes Cole is already facing added pressure to perform this season. The 2019 MLB strikeouts leader is better off getting used to the new rules now.
