AL DIVISION SERIES: GUARDIANS VS YANKEES

October 10, 2022

Gerrit Cole

Yankee Stadium

New York Yankees

Workout Day Press Conference

Q. What do you think of the responsibility of being the Game 1 starter?

GERRIT COLE: Yeah, it's always special, I think, any time somebody gets selected to lead the team into battle. And I think what comes with that responsibility is preparedness, poise and to be on the attack.

Q. How much do you think about legacy and excelling this time of the year for you personally?

GERRIT COLE: I haven't put much thought into legacy. All my focus is towards preparing to pitch well tomorrow.

Q. With the way you finished the season, do you just dismiss the last few starts where the home runs might have been a problem? Is that something you've tried to attack in preparation for this game?

GERRIT COLE: I feel like after every start, you evaluate what you could and could not have done better, and you prepare yourself for the last one -- or for the next one, rather.

I think we've thrown the ball really well lately, and our process has been crisp in between in identifying what we need to do better based on successes and failures.

Q. Does anything change for you in terms of preparation for your team as you head into the postseason, or is it important for you to stay with what you feel has given you success throughout the regular season?

GERRIT COLE: Yeah, every game that you pitch during the regular season is an opportunity to fine-tune your process and the way you go about your business so that it becomes automatic in situations like this.

Q. Is there anything you change about your mindset approach when you are going into a playoff situation where so many key people and pieces are coming back from injury?

GERRIT COLE: I would say I just try to take care of myself, and that's where my focus is.

Q. It's the first time you're pitching as a closer for the Yankees here after -- I think, your third year you pitched against them. What are you looking forward to in that sense tomorrow night?

GERRIT COLE: Sleeping in my own bed.

Q. The temperature tomorrow is supposed to be in the high 40S. Usually people think that's advantage pitcher on cold nights. How does cold weather affect you?

GERRIT COLE: The conditions here at Yankee Stadium often fluctuate throughout the year. We often have a lot of cold games and windy games early in the season and that seems to come full circle by the end of the year. On your best nights, probably doesn't affect much. And other nights, sometimes it can be challenging not just for you but for everybody else on the field if it's cold.

But I think the objective is to control what you can control, prepare yourself for the cold and prepare yourself in between innings to be able to go out and physically do what you need to do.

Q. You came close a few years ago to winning a World Series. How much does that specific goal drive you?

GERRIT COLE: Yeah, I mean, Brian McCann said it to me best when he called me after I got traded to Houston. He was one of the first players who gave me a call, and I don't know if he stole the line from the Hurt Locker, but he said, "You know the postseason is a drug, right?"

I said, "Yeah, it is. It is." You just can't get enough of it.

Q. Given how loud it will be tomorrow, do you have to have a plan to go to hand signals if suddenly you can't hear?

GERRIT COLE: Yeah, we had a pitch call failure in Texas. Worked the multiple signs and the regular signs. That was a good experience. I missed the pitch count call for the first time in Toronto in a loud moment with -- it was either runner on first and second and runner on first.

So experiencing those, the failure of the pitch count and the failure of myself to not correctly hear the pitch called, we'll just have to be vigilant in those situations and just be prepared to adapt.