Gerrit Cole has been with the Yankees for four years, and during this time, he has not suffered any significant injuries. Although he had a minor hamstring injury and contracted COVID-19 in 2021, the team’s ace has mostly remained healthy, despite continuing to throw his fastball at nearly 100 miles per hour.
How much damage would an injury to Gerrit Cole do to the Yankees? It’s too terrifying to contemplate the matter further. When asked about it once, the ace said, “That’s something I don’t let myself think about.”
Instead, Gerrit Cole dwells on his good fortune in avoiding serious harm and avoiding significant physical issues while playing with the Bombers.
Aaron Boone on Gerrit Cole’s secret
Aaron Boone’s pre-game press meet always seems to focus on one thing – injuries. The Yankees seem to have more injuries than any other team, with players like Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton as well as three of their starting pitchers being sidelined. As a result, it’s natural to wonder which player will be the next to fall victim to injury.
The Yankees’ greatest starting pitcher, Gerrit Cole, who is irreplaceable and invulnerable to injury, was never discussed throughout these negotiations.
Boone attributed Gerrit Cole’s continuing health to his year-round training, preparation, and nutrition. The Yankees ace, despite being 32 years old, appears younger than his age, which he attributes to a mix of healthy lifestyle choices such as getting 8-10 hours of sleep per night, staying hydrated, and focusing intensively on his profession.
Yankees teammates are in awe of Gerrit Cole
The rest of the Yankees‘ pitching staff think Gerrit Cole’s delivery is so good that it should be included in an instructional video.
“If there’s one word I’d use about Gerrit’s mechanics, it’s “perfect,” said Michael King. “I wish I could throw like him. Very clean. It’s a beautiful thing to watch.”
Gerrit Cole’s work is featured on YES every five days. There are four components to each pitch, all of which he executes flawlessly. His pitching motion starts with lifting his leg to a 90-degree angle, then he rotates his hips outward while pushing off the pitching rubber. He takes a stride of almost five feet, which is around 77% of his height, and keeps his elbow at shoulder level when his front foot lands.
It may be challenging, yet Gerrit Cole routinely engages in it. He compares the intensity of legendary pitchers like Juan Marichal, Luis Tiant, and Sandy Koufax to his own “pretty boring, kind of vanilla” windup.
Gerrit Cole’s efficiency has been much appreciated by the Yankees. He has been worth every penny the organization has spent on him this year since he is the finest pitcher in the American League. Cole has earned every penny of his nine-year, $324 million contract.
Considering that the total yearly salary for MLB pitchers is over $1.5 billion—five times more than the total annual salary for NFL starting quarterbacks—that’s no little assertion. Even still, more than 50% of pitchers spend time on the Injured List during the season. One in four of them have had arm-repair surgery. Almost a third of that $1.5 billion is lost every year because of injuries.
Since Gerrit Cole’s current contract expires when he is 37 years old, everyone is curious as to how much further he could maintain throwing at this level without being harmed.
This question is especially important currently with several veteran pitchers like Max Scherzer, Jacob deGrom, and Justin Verlander either injured or aging.
What does Gerrit Cole think?
“The longevity of my career probably depends on my kids (two sons, ages two and three months) and my family,” Gerrit Cole once said. “As they get older their opinions are going to matter more. For now, I’m trying to keep my feet where they are.”
Gerrit Cole isn’t a fan of looking forward, but he is fascinated by baseball’s history, particularly the great players who came before him. When Koufax threw, his throwing hand would literally scrape the ground as he went forward, making him the epitome of the “rear back and throw” approach.
Marichal had the same ability, and it was maybe the most bizarre move in sports history since he could lift his leg higher than his head. Gerrit Cole recognizes this.
“The main component of Koufax and Marichal is that even though they were really high with leg or the shoulder, they wound up pulling their arm down and through, which is what you want.”
He is also a follower of Jim Palmer, who was known for his big, funky delivery, but still managed to pitch 4000 innings, indicating that despite the unique way of throwing the ball, it was highly effective. Gerrit Cole admires Pedro Martinez’s change-up when he was a child. According to him, when he was young, he threw many arm-side run change-ups like Pedro. Cole added that Pedro had elite hip-shoulder separation, which allowed him to maximize his velocity, and he had great genetics, making him very rubber-bandy.
The Yankees ace loves to copy pitchers like Roger Clemens and Greg Maddux as a kid. According to him, Clemens had a good base and utilized his legs well, while Maddux had a repeatable delivery.
On Sunday, the last game of a three-game series, he will apply all of this knowledge when he pitches against the Rays at Tropicana Field. The Yankees’ playoff hopes rest on the speed with which Judge, Stanton, and Carlos Rodon can return to action.
And, of course, if Cole continues to do the things, such as researching his opponents, getting enough sleep, eating properly, being hydrated, and so on, that have made him the Yankees’ untouchable star thus far,.
Boone was correct in stating that Gerrit Cole takes great pride in being on the mound every five days. The manager didn’t complete his statement, as the question he implied is one that nobody is willing to express openly. Without Cole, the Yankees would be in a much worse position. He is the main reason they are still in contention, and his consistent performances have been crucial for the team’s success.
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