Cole joins Judge as Yankees on All-Star team

ST. LOUIS -- For the sixth time, Gerrit Cole has been named to an All-Star team, an honor that he says will never get old. Yet, the Yankees ace has his eyes set upon an even loftier assignment: he’d love to pitch the first inning for the American League.

“One of these days, I would really like to start it,” Cole said. “I’ve got to check that one off. I’m not sure how that shakes out over the next week. I know there’s a lot of deserving guys out there.”

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Specifically, Cole mentioned the Rangers’ Nathan Eovaldi and the Angels’ Shohei Ohtani as deserving candidates. Even Cole acknowledged that Astros manager Dusty Baker might be powerless to resist the spectacle of having Ohtani both pitch and hit near the top of the lineup.

“Hey, if I don’t like it, I’ve got to pitch a little bit better,” Cole said.

Throughout a campaign where little has seemed to come easily for his club, Cole has been a constant for the Bombers to rely upon. The 32-year-old was rewarded for those efforts on Sunday, notified that he had been selected to the AL’s All-Star team.

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An official announcement came after Cole made his 18th start of the season against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, tossing six innings of two-run ball in a hard-luck loss.

With one start remaining until the All-Star break, Cole is 8-2 with a 2.79 ERA (109 2/3 IP, 34 ER) in 18 starts, with 118 strikeouts.

“He has continued to just be such a rock for us,” manager Aaron Boone said. “We’ve been able to lean on him, the consistency. He’s definitely an All-Star. Hopefully he can continue to have the year we expect, and I’m sure he will.”

Cole joins outfielder Aaron Judge as the Yankees’ representatives for the July 11 Midsummer Classic at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park; unable to play due to injury, Judge said on Sunday that he was “not sure yet” if he would attend the event in person.

“It’s an incredible honor,” Judge said. “I wish I was still playing right now instead of on the injured list when this came out, but I never take a moment like this for granted, especially with all the hard work that gets put in the offseason to get to this point.

“There’s a lot of sacrifices your family makes to play this game, so getting the chance to be an All-Star and representing the New York Yankees is something I truly do not take for granted.”

This is Cole’s third All-Star selection as a Yankee (2021, ‘22); he also represented the Pirates as a National League All-Star in 2015 and the Astros in the AL in 2018 and ‘19.

“I’m very humbled,” Cole said. “I always think it’s special as a pitcher, because you’re voted in by your peers. It’s a tremendous honor from people across the league who voted for me. At the same time, I don’t deserve all the credit. [Catchers Jose Trevino and Kyle Higashioka] have been outstanding for me this year.

“Our defense has been outstanding, the analytics guys, the coaching staff, the trainers preparing me to go take the ball. Everybody has got to be operating at a high level for the player to have success, so I’m thrilled. I’m excited. I love to go represent the Yankees and everything we’re about.”

Those Yankees, meanwhile, own a 13-5 record in Cole’s starts this season, making him just one of three Major Leaguers to have his team win at least 13 of his starts, alongside the Rays’ Shane McClanahan (14-3) and the Braves’ Spencer Strider (14-2).

Cole has allowed two runs or fewer in 14 of those 18 starts, tying the Cubs’ Marcus Stroman (14) and McClanahan (14) for the most in the Majors.

“That’s what this guy does day in and day out, year after year,” Judge said. “He continues to produce. He posts every year, 30-plus starts. I saw him from afar for so many years, and getting a chance these past couple of years to watch him up close, how he prepares, how he works. … He’s a leader. I’m excited he’s over here. He’s comfortable. He’s really grown into himself.”