Gerrit Cole was rather cold to the Houston Astros organization immediately after the team lost Game 7 of the World Series to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night, but the star pitcher took a much more pleasant tone after taking a night to sleep on it.
On Thursday, Cole issued a statement thanking the Astros organization and their fans for being “overwhelmingly friendly” and making Houston feel like home after just two seasons. He did not, however, openly express a desire to re-sign with the team.
To Houston: pic.twitter.com/1gzVByOUWI
— Gerrit Cole (@GerritCole45) October 31, 2019
Cole will be a free agent this offseason, and he was hesitant to speak with the media after Game 7. He noted less than an hour after the game that he is “not an employee of the team,” and he even distanced himself from the team with the hat he chose to wear.
Cole, a Scott Boras client, will be the top starting pitcher available on the free agent market this winter. He went 20-5 with a 2.50 ERA and 326 strikeouts during the regular season and was even better in the postseason, going 4-1 with a 1.72 ERA. One of his Astros teammates has even indicated that he knows where Cole might wind up, and it isn’t in Houston.
