Gerrit Cole, who is in the fourth year of his nine-year contract with the New York Yankees, made a start against a strong lineup of Baltimore Orioles On Tuesday. However, it just wasn’t his day on the mound. The Orioles put Cole under early pressure by scoring two runs in the first inning. Further, the ace ended up leaking three more before getting pulled up in the sixth inning. Fortunately, Aaron Judge, the captain, was able to save the day by punching a tying homer.
While Gerrit’s outing was kind of underwhelming, he did manage to make some headlines with a unique and rare record. The ace could strike out only two batters in as many as five innings. But that was enough to instill his name in the books of MLB history. At just 32, Gerrit Cole has achieved a milestone that many could not pull off even in a full eternity. With still five years more to go in the pinstripes, the ace is destined to achieve greatness,
Gerrit Cole Becomes The Third Fastest Pitcher To Clock 2K Strikeouts
On a sunny afternoon at the Yankee Stadium, the New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was destined to achieve a mega milestone. In his five-innings outing against the Baltimore Orioles, Cole struck out two hitters, which helped him breach a career-high 2000 strikeouts. Not only that, the ace has become the third fastest pitcher in the history of the league to do so. It took 278 game appearances for the Yankees ace to join the elite company of Randy Johnson and Pedro Martinez, two of the most dominant pitchers of their generation.
Despite leaking five runs, Gerrit Cole ended up on the winning side thanks to late heroics by captain Aaron Judge. Cole was up for a chat after the game and said recording 2000 strikeouts was a special accomplishment. However, he remained grumpy and depressed until Judge’s ninth-inning homer as the game was slipping away. Regardless, while the pitcher took pride in his accomplishment, it was the ultimate win that made Cole the happiest.
Cole Still Has A Lot Of Steam Left In Him
Gerrit Cole revolutionized MLB after becoming the first pitcher in the history of the illustrious sport to fetch a contract value as high as $325 million. It’s been four years since the iconic day, and the ace is still going stronger than ever. By clocking 2000 strikeouts, Cole has added another feather to his golden hat. But with still five years left on the deck, how much more can Gerrit add to his tally?
Brendan Kuty of the Athletic did some math for us and noted that Gerrit’s average stands at 245 strikeouts per year. At this rate, the ace could have 3,225 strikeouts at the end of his contract with the Yankees, which could also possibly be the end of his phenomenal career. Clocking 3000 strikeouts is not a joke. Only 19 pitchers in the history of MLB have been able to do so. Hence, the ace has the chance to record his name in history books in the near future.
