Rain holds off, Cole dials in for final ST start

LAKELAND, Fla. -- Gerrit Cole scowled at the morning forecast, displaying large green blobs moving slowly across Florida’s belt buckle. There was always the option of staying back at Yankees camp, emptying his bullets from a covered bullpen mound or -- if the skies cleared -- with a helpful teammate or two standing in the batter’s box.

No, Cole told manager Aaron Boone; the ace right-hander needed competition. So Cole braved the Sunshine State’s wet and congested Interstate 4, then navigated more heavy traffic on the basepaths in the Yankees’ 6-2 Grapefruit League victory over the Tigers on Friday afternoon. End result: Cole said he is ready for his Opening Day assignment Friday against the Red Sox.

“I just wanted to get the adrenaline going a little bit,” Cole said. “You end up putting more force on the ball; you want your tissues to get adapted to that. That was important. We had a little bit of stuff to work out of, and had some good success. I got beat a couple of times and responded well.”

Cole threw 64 pitches (42 strikes) over 3 1/3 frames, allowing a run on two hits and two walks in a five-strikeout performance. After six breezy outs to start the afternoon, the Tigers made Cole work in the third, as Riley Greene led off with a long triple that carried over Joey Gallo’s head in center field. Cole loaded the bases with back-to-back walks, then recorded a strikeout and a popout.

Javier Báez followed with a hot smash to DJ LeMahieu, which the third baseman snared, but it went as a run-scoring fielder’s choice when his throw pulled Gleyber Torres off second base. Cole handed the ball to Boone, then returned for two more outs in the fourth inning, taking advantage of the spring re-entry rule for pitchers.

“I thought he was pretty sharp overall,” Boone said. “All the pitches were good. It made me think how glad I was that the rain held off and we got him out there in a game, got him in some traffic. He should have been out of the jam. I was really encouraged by what I saw.”

Cole tossed his full arsenal at the Tigers, with his fastball sitting 97.3 mph and touching 99.5 mph.

“The velo is there, and the stuff looks good,” catcher Kyle Higashioka, who homered in the fifth, said. “You always like to see how a guy can work himself out of a jam early in spring. It’s a good gauge to see where he’s at. Everything we were throwing was in the general vicinity of where we wanted it.”

Cole mixed in 14 sliders, eight knuckle curves and six changeups, flashing five cutters -- a pitch that has been a secret project for Cole this spring.

“I think it looks pretty good,” Higashioka said. “Do people know about this pitch?”

Well, Statcast did, so now we all do. Because of the abbreviated spring, Cole pitched just twice in game competition, bypassing one other turn to avoid facing the Blue Jays.

With 5 1/3 spring innings under his belt (6.75 ERA), Cole said he’d accept one more start to build stamina if the calendar allowed it, but he feels ready for the challenge of taking on the Red Sox with an 80-to-85 pitch leash in New York.

“I would rather have maybe another start or two, but it is what it is,” Cole said. “I made enough good pitches. We’re in a good spot.”