Pitching for Yankees' October lives at Fenway Park, Gerrit Cole takes center stage

BOSTON — “Bucky Dent, right?’’

As a Yankees fan today, tomorrow and forever, Gerrit Cole arrived in New York already somewhat versed in Yankees-Red Sox lore.

Cole’s personal point of reference is more Pedro vs. Clemens, but the Yankees’ current ace is aware of that famous 1978 playoff game and how Dent’s homer sank the Sox.

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Forty-three years later, Cole gets the ball in a one-game elimination at Fenway Park, and he can already hear the non-stop roar of the fans and feel the tension riding with each pitch.

“You’re dreaming about putting yourself in that position and coming through for your team,’’ Cole said Monday. “And here we are.’’

Pay day

Despite the chaos of their final regular season week, the Yankees ultimately got to the AL wild card game with Cole lined up to start against Nathan Eovaldi.

Sure, this is exactly why Hal Steinbrenner authorized a $324 million contract for Cole, who spoke about winning multiple championships over the lifetime of that deal.

And it’s not like Cole hasn’t been battle-tested in such spots. He has.

A year ago, Cole pitched gamely on short rest, for the first time in his MLB career, only to watch the Yanks lose a deciding Game 5, 2-1, to the eventual AL champion Tampa Bay Rays in the Division Series.

Now, Cole gets the ball with one extra day of rest, a fully stocked bullpen waiting in the wings and a live audience to feed his adrenaline.

During last year’s COVID postseason, it “was a little different without fans being able to engage in the atmosphere,’’ Cole said. “But, man, Fenway has been rocking this whole year, every single time we come.

“The atmosphere has been unbelievable, and we’ve been playing each other tight all year.’’

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Close calls

Talk about tight.

This year’s season series was won by the Red Sox, 10-9, outscoring the Yankees 75-74.

Boston won their first seven meetings and the Yankees won nine of the last 12, including a Sept. 24-26 sweep at Fenway that helped save the Yanks’ fading postseason hopes and damaged Boston’s chances.

It also exposed the Red Sox’s bullpen flaws, but everything starts Tuesday with Cole vs. Eovaldi.

This year, Cole has opposed the Red Sox four times, going 2-2 with a 4.91 ERA. At Fenway, he’s 1-2 with a 6.19 ERA in three starts.

The right-handed Eovaldi is 2-2 with a 3.71 ERA in six starts this year against his former team, and “Nate’s got some magic,’’ Cole said. “He’s a high-stakes performer.’’

Shaky September

At a critical time, Cole has not been at his best lately.

Since coming out of a Sept. 7 start due to a tight left hamstring, Cole has pitched to a 6.35 ERA over five starts.

Cole has not completed seven innings since Sept. 1, and he’s coming off five-run, nine-hit, six-inning no-decision against the Blue Jays – the only game the Yanks lost in a crucial six-game trip through Boston and Toronto.

Against a potent Red Sox’s lineup comfortable hitting at home, “I’m just going to have to be on top of my game,’’ Cole said. “I’m going to have to locate pitches in big spots.’’

As personal catcher Kyle Higashioka can attest, Cole “can elevate his game when it’s a big situation,’’ such as the July 10 game at Houston, still throwing 100 mph at the end of a 129-pitch, 1-0 complete game victory with 12 strikeouts. 

Final countdown 

Cole gave a clipped "it's good'' response to a question about his hamstring before going out in the rain for his normal flat ground session the day before a start.

At Fenway, where Monday's workout washed out, Yankees manager Aaron Boone insists that Cole's stuff is not far off from being at its peak in 2021.

"Everything's there for him to put it together (Tuesday),'' Boone said. "It's just about executing in the right quadrants against a good team.''

The technically precise Cole would approve of that statement. The only thing that seemed to agitate him was waiting for 8:08 p.m. Tuesday. 

"You're chomping at the bit to get out there,'' Cole said. "Excited for the challenge ahead of us.''

Pete Caldera is the Yankees beat writer for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to all Yankees analysis, news, trades and more, please subscribe today and download our app.

Email: caldera@northjersey.com Twitter: @pcaldera