Before Yankees brass convened in Tampa this week to begin their organizational deep dive in earnest, Gerrit Cole did not “know what to expect, to be honest.”
Fortunately for the soon-to-be AL Cy Young winner, he is expected to have a voice in it.
“I think the players need to be represented,” Cole said over the weekend in Kansas City. “Between Aaron [Judge] and I, that will happen.”
The Yankees have more money invested in Cole and Judge than anyone else on the roster.
In return, the two pillars of the organization (both in money and performance) are equally invested in the future of the Yankees as they each try to chase down their first World Series title.
Cole and Judge met monthly with Hal Steinbrenner during the season so that Steinbrenner could get a regular pulse of the clubhouse.
But Cole said the talks did not get too deep into some of the more “philosophical” conversations that are set to take place this offseason — with Judge, who became more outspoken once the team was eliminated from playoff contention, recently referring to “some bigger-picture ideas and philosophies that maybe need to change.”
In that regard, Cole was open-minded to finding out how the audit could improve the organization.
“Our M.O. is always trying to be competitive and always trying to get better,” Cole said. “So it doesn’t surprise me that, hey, if they think this is going to get us better and we might learn something from it, then they’ll do it.”
Cole said Boone, who was expected to meet with Steinbrenner and Cashman on Wednesday in Tampa, had his support and that of the clubhouse. Judge has echoed that sentiment.
Asked what the Yankees were missing this year, Cole pointed to not having enough depth to overcome key injuries.
“We weren’t able to sustain losing Aaron and [Anthony] Rizzo,” Cole said. “Obviously those are two big chips in [our lineup], and we weren’t able to overcome the rotation challenges [either]. Those are obviously big production spots and really a lot of talent, especially Aaron and Rizzo.”
The Yankees lost Judge on June 3, when he ran into the right-field wall at Dodger Stadium and tore a ligament in his big right toe.
A few days before that, Rizzo was in a collision with Fernando Tatis Jr. at first base that derailed his season with post-concussion symptoms that led to a shutdown in August.
“We should be able to do a better job with those guys not playing,” Cole said. “We should be able to do a better job there as a group, producing more wins without those guys in the lineup. Those are guys that are going to be part of the engine when they’re in there every day, but you want to have more foundation than that.”
The Yankees entered spring training with the potential to have the best rotation in the game.
Cole held up his end of the bargain, but that was about it.
Carlos Rodon, Luis Severino and Frankie Montas were all injured by the end of camp, and Rodon and Severino both posted ERAs over six when they did come back.
Nestor Cortes suffered a hamstring strain on the eve of camp, and though he started the season on time, he was never the same and believes it eventually led to the shoulder issues that ended his year early.
By the end of the season, Yankees starters had an ERA of 4.44, which would have been 5.06 without Cole posting a 2.63 ERA across 209 innings.
The Yankees were left to lament they were not able to have Cole’s special season extend into October.
Instead, they will use the month to evaluate how they can improve — everywhere from their use of analytics to keeping players healthier — to ensure Cole will be pitching in the playoffs next year.
“We certainly have a lot of horsepower in every department that we have,” Cole said. “But we got to get better. They’re going to try to figure out how that is and look at everywhere, I guess, to see how we can elevate our game.”