Yankees notebook: Gerrit Cole’s new catcher, added security at the Stadium

Gerrit Cole has thrown 201.1 innings to Kyle Higashioka in his career. Higashioka trails only ex-Pirates Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli as Cole’s most common battery mate.

On Sunday, the Yankees’ ace added a new person to his list of catchers. Jose Trevino got his first start in a Cole game, breaking a streak of 13 straight starts in which Cole had pitched to Higashioka. The last time Cole had someone other than Higgy squatting for him was July 23, 2021 when Gary Sanchez was behind the plate.

Aaron Boone explained his reasoning for rolling with Trevino in Sunday’s game.

“It’s just something I want to have the ability to do,” Boone said. “I feel great about both guys and their abilities behind the plate.”

Boone has spoken on the record about his belief that the Yankees do not have a traditional starter and backup at the catcher position, but rather that Higashioka and Trevino are a “tandem.” Even so, giving Higashioka — who was Sanchez’s backup last year and seemed to be Cole’s personal catcher — a day off with Cole on the mound is a bit unusual. The Yankees’ No. 1 starter was on board with the idea, according to the manager.

“I told him I was thinking about doing it,” Boone said. “I don’t expect it to be an issue.”

Most baseball players, and especially starting pitchers, are meticulous about their routines and habits on start days, almost to the point of neurotic madness. On Opening Day, for instance, Cole was visibly upset when Billy Crystal’s ceremonial first pitch delayed the game by four minutes, calling it an “unforeseen challenge.”

That happened less than three weeks ago, so it was interesting to hear Boone say Cole wasn’t shaken by newness or on-the-fly adjustments.

“One thing about Gerrit, he’s pretty flexible when things happen on the fly,” Boone offered. “He’s very detail oriented. He prepares and works in an efficient, strong way leading up to his starts. He takes a lot of notes. He’s specific about his game plan, but I feel like he does a good job as, inevitably, there’s wrinkles thrown his way.”

Cole’s 2022 game log has been incredibly wrinkled. He came into Sunday’s game with a 6.35 ERA and a tiger-striped blemish. Pitching against the Tigers on April 19, he recorded the same number of walks (five) as outs.

“We were going for really perfect pitches, I think, probably too often,” Cole said of his trainwreck in Detroit. “In certain situations, if I had just attacked the zone better, I would have been in a better spot. So, that’s what we worked on this week.”

Cole said on Saturday that when he evaluates his past mistakes and tries to figure out ways to correct them, it’s a collaborative effort between him, the coaching staff and his catchers. The problem in Detroit was very plainly his command, though, which Cole says has been a recurring thing for him when things aren’t going well.

“A common theme for when I’ve kind of fallen off track has been being behind in counts,” the $324 million pitcher said. “Then you’re forced into a position of being over aggressive.”

The second inning of that game vs. the Motor City Kitties involved Cole walking four guys, allowing a single and a sac fly, and enduring six plate appearances that lasted at least six pitches.

“Against Detroit, the stuff was there, I just feel like in that inning it kind of unraveled as it got so long,” Boone theorized. “I’m still really confident that it’s going to be a really good year for him.”

ADDED SECURITY

The Yankees confirmed there was extra security at the Stadium on Sunday in response to the heckling and trash throwing that got extremely out of hand — and frankly, embarrassing — at the end of Saturday’s game.

The club also said that they have not officially identified any of the fans who were responsible for the mess, but they are actively working on it, saying that there are cameras everywhere that should greatly assist in finding the perpetrators.

On Sunday morning, Boone responded to Myles Straw, the Cleveland outfielder who called Yankee fans “classless” and the “worst fan base on the planet.”

“That’s an emotional reaction to the moment,” said Boone, who has managed the team since 2018 and played for the Yankees in 2003. “I certainly understand that, but I’d disagree.”