The lesson Cole learned about himself while on IL

Before facing the Mets in the Subway Series this week, Yankees ace Gerrit Cole had a recent chat with MLB.com and answered a wide range of topics, from the biggest thing he learned while being sidelined with a right elbow injury to his oldest son, Caden, getting attention on TV.

MLB.com: You have reached the six-inning plateau in your last two starts. What is the goal the rest of the way from a pitching standpoint?

Gerrit Cole: Get deeper in the game. I have to be more efficient. There are opportunities to get outs quicker. In this game, sometimes you get one shot to execute a pitch. If you don’t, it takes two or three more pitches to get the job done. So being crisp with every opportunity the game presents you is what ultimately allows you to get deeper in the game.

MLB.com: The one thing I noticed about you is, you are very hard on yourself. Why? You are not going to be perfect all the time.

Cole: I think it’s just part of my drive. I do work on not being quite as hard on myself, I will say that. I give myself some grace from time to time. It is part of what I enjoy, striving to be as good as possible. It’s part of who I am.

MLB.com: With you being back on the mound, we also get to see your son, Caden, on TV when the Yankees are at home. How good is it to see him back in the spotlight?

Cole: He loves coming to games. He is very happy that I’m back. But, to be honest, he was happy I was home a lot, too, while I was rehabbing [my elbow]. Leaving for the first couple of road trips was kind of a change for both of the boys’ worlds for a little bit. They got used to the way of life for a few months there. But in the end, Caden loves coming to games. He loves seeing Volp [Anthony Volpe], [Aaron] Judge and all the players really. He is thrilled.

MLB.com: Caden is 4 years old. He is bright. I saw him on TV singing “God Bless America.”

Cole: It’s one of his favorite songs along with the national anthem. When he comes to games, it’s an impactful moment where everybody stands and a lot of people around him are singing. I think, probably initially, he just wanted to fit in. But he genuinely loves the songs. He sings the songs at home, and he knows the words. Sometimes, for a lullaby, he will ask for “God Bless America” instead of “Rockabye Baby” or “Brahms' Lullaby.” He enjoys the songs. He likes singing. He wears a full uniform, so he takes his hat off and puts it over his heart.

MLB.com: What has impressed you the most about him?

Cole: His emotional intelligence is really high. He seems to be able to get along with kids younger and older than him. When he comes into the locker room, he is respectful of the guys. … It makes him comfortable dealing with a lot of things.

My mom has told me he is more emotionally intelligent than I was at that age. He is wonderful to travel with. He is very helpful to his mom with the little bro. Those are probably the most impressive qualities.

MLB.com: I noticed you are a little emotional when you talk about Caden. I see the welling in your eyes.

Cole: Yeah, I love him. That’s my guy.

MLB.com: Can you talk baseball lingo with him?

Cole: My wife spends more time watching baseball games with him than I do. To be honest, most of his baseball lingo comes from her. She is proficient, obviously, with her brother [Brandon Crawford] being in the Major Leagues for 14 years and her playing softball [at UCLA]. She does most of the education. If he says anything about baseball, it comes from his mom.

MLB.com: When you were out for those 2 1/2 months, what did you miss the most about the game of baseball?

Cole: I think just playing and the team camaraderie -- being in the flow of the season and feeling like you are contributing. That’s probably what I missed the most.

MLB.com: What did you learn about yourself during the period you were on the injured list?

Cole: I came to the field often with a different perspective than I normally had in years past. When the club came back from the road, I was removed from the highs and lows of winning [and losing]. … I was waking up at 10 a.m. doing rehab, putting kids in bed and things like that. So I came in with a fresh perspective than I normally would when I was playing all the time and you are in the thick of it. … It was more important for me to relax for recovery. In that sense, taking that mindset and watching some of our great players -- I’m not going to say taking it for granted, but it was like, today, I got to watch Aaron hit from 25 feet away, then Juan [Soto] and big G [Giancarlo Stanton]. Then I have my rotation mates -- my five guys -- asking me for help. They are making me feel like -- in some way -- I’m contributing to something. I learned I need to keep that perspective a little more often while I’m in the cycle of pitching and getting ready for the next game and feeling the emotions of the wins and losses. There is an appropriate time to be relaxed and just enjoy what you are doing and where your feet are. I think it has a positive effect on other people, too.

MLB.com: Everyone was talking about how you were coaching your teammates, especially the pitchers. After your playing career is over, do you want to coach?

Cole: I want to coach my kids. I don’t know if I want to coach in the Major Leagues. It’s a lot of travel. I miss my kids a lot already. I’m not really trying to coach. I’m trying to be a sounding board or just be another resource. Like I said, I have this wealth of experience and I can recall situations and different viewings, how I’ve navigated those things successfully and how I failed. If there is something that could be helpful to somebody else, regardless if it’s a pitcher or anybody else, I want to make sure that people feel that the ability to communicate with me on those types of things are there. Some of it is solicited. Some of it is unsolicited. Our coach at UCLA always talked about how good teams communicate. Good teams have each other’s back and they are always on the same page. I try to take that throughout my entire career. I just had nothing else to do for 2 1/2 months but just talk. I’m very glad to be throwing and throwing more [now]. So the talking and throwing ratio has balanced out.

MLB.com: You will be pitching in the Subway Series against the Mets on Wednesday. What will you do differently? The first time you faced them wasn’t good. You were just coming back from your injury at that time.

Cole: I’m going to be in the strike zone more, for sure. We didn’t give up any runs in the first inning, but the first one was extremely taxing and that was the cause of not having many quality pitches. I’m going to try to keep the same trend the last couple of weeks in terms of throwing quality strikes -- executing in those situations where you can be as efficient as possible.

MLB.com: How good are the Yankees and how far can they go in the postseason?

Cole: I think we are one of the top teams in the league. Inside of this room, we are a little more bullish, but we are very respectful of some of the other great teams out there. I think we deserve to be in that boxing ring with them. I think we can take it as far as we want to take it. We have great players in the middle of the lineup. Our rotation has been healthy and solid all year. We obviously struggled. Learning from those struggles, I think it’s going to be key to how far we can take it. I think our destiny is in our hands.

MLB.com: You grew up a Yankees fan. Is it everything you thought it would be in your five years with the club?

Cole: It’s a special place to play. I think the Steinbrenner family surrounds us with the best resources in the league. Every year, we are pushing to compete. We are pushing to put the best product on the field. Even last year, we didn’t want to finish under .500. I know it wasn’t anywhere near what our goal was. But we are not OK with quitting. We are not going to quit.

The standard that the fan base sets and the energy that they bring, it’s on another level compared to everything else. As a player, once we get used to it, you become really grateful and thankful for it, because you go to other places and you see your fans show up and you see the other team’s fans and you wonder what this environment is like when they are not playing a good team. How blessed are we to come to Yankee Stadium and go on the road and have people surround us and love us? It’s a very special experience. Humbling when you think about it in the perspective of all the great players and all the numbers retired and all the dynasties that have come through here. To be affiliated with that is special.

MLB.com: Since you revealed how you feel about the Yankees, you have a chance to opt out after this season. Obviously, you want to stay?

Cole: As far as the future, I don’t have all the information -- yet -- in order to make a decision. I can’t predict what’s going to happen in the next couple of months. I’m not going to get ahead of myself in terms of that decision. I’m enjoying where my feet are right now. Most of my focus is on the Mets. I kind of owe them one.