Gerrit Cole allowed more first-inning runs on Wednesday afternoon than any other time in his career, surrendering six in total, along with three home runs, in a 7-3 loss in the series finale against the Marineers.
Cole has now allowed 15 runs in his last three starts.
“Just gotta dive into the film, really,” Cole said. “I have a pretty vivid recollection, and I think it’s sometimes easier to remember the bad stuff than the good stuff. But I think there were some bad pitch selections, some bad pitches, and we got punished for it again.”
The Yankee ace allowed home runs to Eugenio Suarez, Carlos Santana, and Jared Kelenic in a disastrous opening frame that suffocated any of the good he turned in during his final five innings of work.
“The second batter, I think between Winker and Santana, there were some non-competitive pitches, but a handful of pitches that were very close that weren’t getting reactions I think we were anticipating,” Cole said. “Then with Winker, we didn’t deviate from the plan and we probably should have, because we just didn’t get in the strike zone enough. Santana, similar situation where we got backed into the corner, and Suarez I think had just had enough of first pitch sliders for the series, and it wasn’t the best one I threw. I threw some good ones later in the game…but he obviously was looking for that pitch for one reason or another and put an A swing on it.”
The Yankees, having just given up Jordan Montgomery while placing Luis Severino on the 60-day IL, need their ace to start pitching like one, but first, they have to find a way for Cole to avoid disastrous innings like the top of the first on Wednesday.
“That’s what we gotta dive into a little more,” Aaron Boone said. “That’s what’s kind of hurt him is the big inning. Even in those gams like today where he had a bad inning and it hurts him…it’s on all of us to be sure we limit the damage while we’re finding our way.”
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