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The New York Yankees, on the verge of a disaster American League Divisional Series exit to the Cleveland Guardians, turned to one of their stars on Sunday.
New York trailed Cleveland 2-1 in the series and faced elimination in Game 4 on the road. So they handed the ball to their $324 million man.
The Yankees signed Gerritt Cole to a massive nine-year deal in 2020, and while he hasn’t always lived up to that price tag, he came up big in a big spot on Sunday.
Cole got the start in the elimination game and was downright filthy. The right allowed just two runs on six hits to go along with eight strikeouts and just one walk to pick up the desperately needed win. But he wasn’t completely without incident.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Cole delivered a 2-2 fastball to Guardians’ designated hitter Josh Naylor. Naylor promptly turned on the pitch and sent it 405 feet to right-center for a solo home run that cut the Yankees’ lead to 3-2.
The hefty 25-year-old then celebrated in a big way, celebrating and yelling at Cole as he rounded the bases.
Looks like he’s telling Cole “you’re my son” while rocking a baby, then says “he’s my little fucking son” to his dugout lmao Josh Naylor rules pic.twitter.com/SDjlqCwLab
— Ben Porter (@Ben13Porter) October 17, 2022
Naylor is known for wearing his heart on his sleeve. But it was Cole who would get the last laugh.
Gerrit Cole Has Perfect Response To Josh Naylor’s Taunting
Ultimately, that would be the last run that Cleveland scored in the game. Cole’s shutdown performance sent the series to a fifth and decisive game that will take place Monday in Yankee Stadium.
When asked about Naylor’s shenanigans, Cole didn’t seem too bothered.
Gerrit Cole on Josh Naylor’s celebration:
“Yeah. Whatever. Cute.”
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) October 17, 2022
That’s ice cold.
Yankees fans absolutely loved his response.
Man versus boy https://t.co/CQKkg6XzzQ
— Benevenstanciano (@buckhugh2) October 17, 2022
OWNNNN AAHHHHH CLEVELAND ARE SUCH CLOWNS 🤡🤡🤡🤡WIN TOMORROW @EpicRacismHater https://t.co/YYF5Wf4LB6
— CyLouie (@CyLouie__) October 17, 2022
MY ACE!!! https://t.co/N2oCURpF0R
— Dan Rourke (@DanAlanRourke) October 17, 2022
LMAOOOO THE SLIGHT YET HUMBLE SHADE BRO 😂😂😂 THATS MY MF ACE SPEAKING!!! 😎😎😎 #RepBX https://t.co/jenpwyQ3Jp
— Victor Gonzalez 🇲🇽🇺🇸 (@victor_g3491) October 17, 2022
Jameson Taillon will take the mound for New York in Game 5. He’ll square off with Aaron Civale of the Guardians as both teams look to advance to the ALCS against the Houston Astros.
It’s the sixth-consecutive ALCS trip for Houston, setting an American League record.