The New York Yankees have made Gerrit Cole their top priority this offseason, and they are breaking out the big guns in an attempt to convince the right-hander that he belongs in pinstripes.
The Yankees sat down for a meeting with Cole this week, and ESPN’s Buster Olney says they brought legendary pitcher Andy Pettitte with them.
In the meetings with the mega free agents, teams identify ways to make the player feel most comfortable — and along those lines, Andy Pettitte was part of the Yankees' contingent that sat down with Gerrit Cole. A very familiar face in HOU, where Cole pitched the last two years.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) December 5, 2019
There are a lot of reasons speaking with Pettitte might make an impact on Cole. For starters, Pettitte pitched for the Astros for several seasons between his stints in New York, so Cole may be familiar with him from his time in Houston. Cole also grew up a Yankees fan. While he is from California, his father was raised in Syracuse. That means Cole, who is 29, would have been a kid when Pettitte was helping the Yankees win four World Series titles between 1996 and 2000.
Even one of Cole’s teammates in Houston predicted the ace would sign with a West Coast team because of his deep ties to the region, but Cole reportedly assured the Yankees during their meeting that he does not have any West Coast bias. If he truly does have an open mind about his free agency, having Pettitte pitch him on the Yankees certainly can’t hurt.
