PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – As Pittsburgh media members, we weren’t even sure if Gerrit Cole would talk during the two games the Yankees are visiting PNC Park. There were a lot of stories about his feelings about the Pirates.
Not only did Cole talk, sometimes emotionally and reflectively, he did so for 23 minutes.
It turns out there was a lot to unpack for Cole making his first appearance in Pittsburgh since he was traded to Houston.
“Pretty special feeling,” Cole said Tuesday of being here. “Amy and I were walking around town with Caden and it’s a bit surreal. The last time we left we felt like we were just kids and now we have a two-year-old.
Cole made his major league debut in this ballpark June 11, 2013 with all the anticipation, and more, of a first overall pick. He was to be the ace for a rotation that was not only going to end the 20-season losing record streak, but get the woeful Pirates in the playoffs.
The first thing Cole remembered about that night was the crowd. Over 30,000 fans on a Tuesday against the Giants. He specifically recalled it was a late arriving because he said it was the first game they were using security wands at the ballpark entrances.
“Everyone was coming in late and a little hot and a little edgy,” Cole said. “We had the World Champs in the house. My family was on edge and my brother-in-law (San Francisco’s Brandon Crawford) was hunting for a hit.”
He said a shot of adrenaline that went through him after his first strikeout and again after he was taken out of the game with one out in the seventh. The 6’4” right-hander from Southern California went six-and-a third innings giving up seven hits, no walks and two strikeouts. He also went one for three at the plate and drove in two runs.
“The crowd kept getting louder and louder and louder,” Cole said. “The standing ovation was loud and we won the game. It was a pretty sweet, pretty sweet day.”
“We had a great rest of the summer culminating in the Wild Card game, which I will never forget.”
Cole says he stays in touch with a bunch of his old Pirates teammates. He says Andrew McCutchen and Neil Walker exchange kid stories and he just saw Josh Harrison and Charlie Morton.
“The elation we were able to share with the fans and the Wild Card banner,” Cole said. “Those three-four years pressing for the division. That window was special for us.”
Surely, he had some ill feelings after being traded away. He may, but none of that surfaced on Tuesday.
It’s not that he didn’t have a few regrets, mentioning he wished the team would have gotten better after 2015. He noted injuries and players not executing also affected them.
“I would take that slider back to (Kyle) Schwarber,” Cole said of the 2015 Wild Card game against the Cubs. “That was a dagger for us. I think we faced three complete game shutouts in the last three playoff games here (Adam Wainwright, Madison Bumgarner and Jake Arrieta).”
“I would like to have seen us get one series deeper. When you get eliminated in that game it sucks. At least get to the division series where you are scrapping it out against magical Carpenter and Freese doing his thing. At least you are trading blows back and forth.”
“I wish we would have gotten out of the Wild Card one more time. We played so much good baseball in what was one of the toughest divisions in the NL at the time.”
“I took the ball as much as I could. I learned some things along the way-got hurt and changed some routines. I left it all out there every time I played. I know my teammates did. I think that’s why we have the relationships we still do, it’s pretty unique.”
Those relationships helped shape him as Cole said Morton, AJ Burnett, Francisco Liriano and Russell Martin allowed him settle in. Cole said he would watch them all go about their work and what the older guys had to do to prepare to continue to play at a high level. He said he’s copied some of their examples for the process he uses now.
He sat there wearing a Yankees warm-up and talked about the tradition with the Pirates. How he cherished the interactions from his earliest days with some of the Bucco greats.
“I can remember them in Spring Training-Maz (Bill Mazeroski), Kent (Tekulve), Manny (Sanguillen), Bill (Virdon) all in their underwear on the little stools in Bradenton talking shop and Spanky (Mike LaValliere) is passing out cigars. That’s how I broke in.”
“I’m not going to forget those things. It’s special to be back.”
Cole said he was scheduled to pitch on Tuesday night. He had it circled on his calendar, but a rainout changed the pitching rotation.
“It would just be special,” Cole said. “First RBIs, first base hit, first pitch, first strikeout, first win, the Wild Card win here. A lot of great baseball that we played on this field. A lot of hard work. It’s hard to sum it up into words.”
“I do hope to pitch here again.”