Gerrit Cole’s first start of the spring had the Blue Jays swinging and missing, as the Yankees’ ace struck out five on Friday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

Cole's strikeout rate has declined for three straight seasons, dropping from 33.5% in 2021 to 25.4% in 2024, the lowest since his 2017 season with the Pittsburgh Pirates. His fastball velocity has also dipped, falling from an average of 97.1 mph in 2021 to 94.8 mph in 2024, with the most significant drop—1.4 mph—occurring between 2023 and 2024.

The New York Yankees have started their spring training campaign with a 1-3 record in the Grapefruit League. That seems bad, but no one will celebrate boasting the best record in spring training. It’s all about getting ready for the games that count,

And, as he did on Friday during his bullpen session, Cole had one of his childhood heroes watching from behind the mound, Roger Clemens, who is in camp as a guest instructor. “It was awesome,” Cole said Sunday. “It’s really great. Álex [Rodríguez] was in the house the other day, too. It’s good vibes.

It's that time of spring when the big boys get going. The New York Yankees will start rolling out their stars in spring training over the weekend, manager Aaron Boone told reporters. Yankees captain Aaron Judge will make his Grapefruit League debut on March 1 against the Houston Astros at George M.

Yankees ace Gerrit Cole got some spring training advice from Roger Clemens, a former No. 1 starter for New York himself.

Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young winner, witnessed some hard contact from the Yankees slugger, which left Cole, a Cy Young winner in 2023, appreciative of the chance to practice against a two-time