Fans hoping to see Gerrit Cole make his debut at Yankee Stadium will have to wait until later this year – or beyond – they’ll have to settle for a video of him throwing a pitch in the bullpen for now.
The right-hander, who signed a nine-year, $324 million free agent deal with the Yankees in December, posted a video on Instagram Monday of him throwing a bullpen at the Stadium.
It’s unclear when the video was taken, but Cole has been there several times over the past few weeks, according to a team spokesman.
The 11-second clip, captioned “Baseball state of mind,” includes footage from a car driving up to Yankee Stadium and then Cole, in shorts and a T-shirt, throwing a pitch in the bullpen.
It’s hardly what the 29-year-old or the Yankees had in mind when Cole signed the richest deal for a pitcher in MLB history during the offseason. But after spring training was shut down because of COVID-19, the start of the season has been further delayed by MLB and the players association in a lengthy battle over finances.
As of Monday afternoon, there was still no agreement between the two sides after Saturday’s back-and-forth ended with the MLBPA saying it was done negotiating and awaiting the league to impose a shortened season, with as few as 48 games.
Commissioner Rob Manfred even placed doubt on that plan Monday, telling ESPN he’s “not confident” there will be a 2020 baseball season.