Inside The Pinstripes

Gerrit Cole Gets Ejected After Allowing Game-Tying Home Run Against Red Sox

Gerrit Cole was ejected as he walked off the field on Friday night, moments after he surrendered a game-tying home run in the sixth inning.

Max Goodman

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NEW YORK – Gerrit Cole was one pitch away from finishing his sixth inning of work against the Red Sox on Friday night, holding on to a 4-1 lead in front of a sellout crowd at Yankee Stadium.

Just a few minutes later, Cole was being thrown out of the game by home plate umpire Brian Knight, walking back to the Yankees' dugout in a tie ballgame. 

Cole narrowly missed on a 1-2 fastball to right fielder Alex Verdugo with two outs in the sixth and two runners on base. The right-hander thought he had strike three with the 99.4-mph four-seamer, beginning to walk toward the first-base line. 

Knight didn't give him the call.

The very next pitch was another heater, this time clocked at 99.5 mph, but Cole left it right over the heart of the plate. Verdugo capitalized, smacking a game-tying three-run shot into the Yankees' bullpen.

Boston's outfielder took his sweet time rounding the bases while Cole fumed on the mound.

Cole proceeded to strike J.D. Martinez out moments later to end the frame, but he wasn't letting that pitch to Verdugo go. As he walked off the field, the ace pointed straight at Knight behind the plate. You could hear his voice yelling f-words on the television feed. Plug your headphones in and listen to this clip if you want to hear exactly what Cole said.

Here's the 1-2 pitch that Cole threw to Verdugo earlier in that at-bat, not getting the call he wanted. 

Just like that, Knight ejected him from the game with a quick hook. Yankees manager Aaron Boone scurried out of the dugout to protect his starter, getting thrown out of the game as well. 

Cole's night was probably done regardless. He had thrown 103 pitches to that point. Still, another home run and an ejection casts a dark shadow on the right-hander's performance. 

With two more home runs allowed on Friday—Cole gave up a solo shot in the top of the first inning to left fielder Tommy Pham—the right-hander has given up 31 homers this season. Only one other pitcher in Major League Baseball has served up more souvenirs this year (Josiah Gray, 37). That also matches a career-high for Cole, who also gave up 31 jacks in 2017, his final year with the Pirates before he was dealt to the Astros. 

He won't need to worry about facing the Red Sox in the playoffs, like he did last year in the American League Wild Card Game, but man, his numbers against Boston are putrid. Cole has a 5.59 ERA (18 earned runs in 29 innings pitched).

On the bright side, as much as Yankees fans and pundits will refer back to Friday's start when asking if the right-hander can be trusted in October—Cole is now five strikeouts away from setting the new franchise record for strikeouts in a single season. Cole leads the league with 244 after eight strikeouts on Friday. Ron Guidry has the most in a single season in pinstripes with 248, set back in 1978.

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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