Gerrit Cole Joins An Exclusive Club After Game 1 Win

It was a bit of a rocky start for Gerrit Cole on Tuesday night, as by the third inning of Game 1 of the ALDS, the New York Yankees ace had already thrown over 60 pitches.

But Cole settled down and ended up giving the Yanks 6.1 innings of one-run ball, which was enough to earn him the win as the Yankees got a leg up on the Cleveland Guardians.

It was Cole’s ninth postseason win, dating all the way back to 2013.

The right-hander joined an all-exclusive club as well, becoming the third pitcher in baseball history to win nine of his first 15 postseason starts, joining Orlando Hernandez and Chris Carpenter.

NY #Yankees ace Gerrit Cole became just the third pitcher in #MLB history to win nine of his first 15 career postseason games, joining Chris Carpenter and Orlando Hernandez. He is now 9-5 with a 2.83 ERA, permitting two or fewer runs in 10 of the games in his postseason career.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) October 12, 2022

Cole Settles In, Makes Postseason History

After a rough beginning, Cole settled back in and gave the Yankees the quality start they needed in order to take a 1-0 lead in the ALDS.

And so, Cole finds himself in some legendary company with two of the greatest starting pitchers in postseason history.

Backed by Anthony Rizzo, Harrison Bader, and Jose Trevino, Cole also struck out eight batters, allowed just four hits, and only walked one batter in his dominant effort.

Jonathan Loaisiga, Wandy Peralta, and Clay Holmes did the rest, holding the Guardians down and securing a 4-1 win for the Yankees.

Cole’s only blemish was a home run hit by Guardians rookie sensation Steven Kwan in the top of the third inning.

This was what the Yankees needed in order to take early command of the ALDS.

On Thursday, they’ll send left-hander Nestor Cortes to the hill for Game 2 as they try to go to Cleveland with a 2-0 series lead.

Shane Bieber will get the start for Cleveland.