NY Times · Jun 10, 2021
Facing a Critic, Yankees’ Cole Lets His Pitches Do the Talking
Gerrit Cole was solid in six innings against Minnesota on Wednesday. He struck out nine and allowed two runs, both of which came on solo homers.Credit...Jim Mone/Associated PressMINNEAPOLIS — Ever so briefly, Gerrit Cole stared at Josh Donaldson, a player he had struck out in each of his first two at-bats Wednesday night.
Over the weekend, Donaldson, a third baseman for the Minnesota Twins, had obliquely accused Cole, the ace of the Yankees’ rotation, of using sticky substances to boost the spin rate of his pitches to make them more effective. On Wednesday, facing the superstar pitcher he had accused, Donaldson appeared overmatched.