Google News Gerrit Cole reacts to having season-best performance after Yankees change catcher
by DZEVAD MESIC | VIEW 1950
Gerrit Cole didn't enjoy much success in his first three starts of the year so the New York Yankees decided to change his batterymate in his fourth start. Jose Trevino caught Cole for the first time in the Yankees' 10-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians, while Kyle Higashioka watched from the bench.
Cole has been with the Yankees since 2020 and Higashioka has been his trusted catcher for good part of his tenure in The Bronx. “It was seamless,” Cole said after throwing 6 ²/₃ scoreless innings, per The Post.
“We got kind of a two-headed monster back there right now. That fluidity throughout the entire series, both with Higgy and Jose just communicating, there was a lot of continuity on what we wanted to do with the hitters.
Everybody was in a good spot based on our preparation”.
The Yankees proposed the idea and Cole agreed
Yankees manager Aaron Boone let Cole know about his intentions and the pitcher agreed. “Just something I want to have the ability to do,” Boone said.
“I feel great about both those guys and their abilities behind the plate. Just felt like today was the day to do that”. Higashioka started nine of the first 12 games of the season but Trevino has gotten the start in three of the past four games.
“Going over scouting reports [with Cole] before the game and going over what our plan was, it was pretty similar from the start,” Trevino said. “So being on the same page throughout the game was pretty good”.
Prior to Sunday's big performance, Cole opened about the support he has been receiving. “There’s a lot of people that have watched me for a long time, my folks and my wife and my teammates. People have offered some advice or … like a hug or something,” Cole said with a laugh.