You might say that Gerrit Cole was signed to start game one of a playoff series — the ace of the AL, exactly the guy who gets the ball to start the ALDS, and then again in a possible game five. This year, with the Yankees clawing for their playoff lives, it may not be Cole’s performance in the division round that determines the Yankee season, but how the club uses him in the final nine games of the season.
By the time you’ll read this, we’ll all know how Cole did in his start Friday night at Fenway, and we know that he’ll take the mound for one of the games in the upcoming Blue Jays series.