New York Yankees: Gerrit Cole paying dividends already

He is in a league where pitchers do not bat, but New York Yankees star Gerrit Cole has already stepped up to the plate when it comes to the coronavirus pandemic.

We like it when our baseball heroes earn their paycheck between those two white lines on the baseball field. We love it when our baseball heroes give part of their paycheck to those who need it during times of stress. Newly acquired New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole is that baseball hero.

Gerrit Cole broke the record for the largest contract ever given to a pitcher when he signed his 9 year/$324M contract this offseason with the Yankees. After breaking the bank he is now dolling out some of that coin to those affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

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New York City is currently one of the hardest-hit areas in terms of confirmed cases. Words like “hot spot” and “epicenter” are commonly mentioned when talking about the Big Apple. For that reason, Cole and his wife Amy are making a significant investment through their foundation to help New York City-area coronavirus victims.

Cole was a twenty game-winner last year with a league-best 2.50 earned run average for the Houston Astros. He led the majors in strikeouts with 326, averaging 13.8 strikeouts per nine innings. All this and he finished second in the Cy Young voting to Justin Verlander.

In the postseason Cole made five starts and allowed one run or less in four of them. Most famously he sat in the bullpen, overlooked as Astros manager A.J. Hinch chose to call upon Will Harris in a crucial seventh inning situation in Game 7 of the World Series.

Just as the decision to don the Scott Boras hat as soon as the Game 7 was over, saying he was a free agent, Gerrit Cole made the decision to open up his wallet for citizens affected by coronavirus.

Once the games get started again, Cole will earn that paycheck very quickly with his play on the field. He has already earned it off the field with his generosity in the face of pandemonium.

For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.