The Yankees are playing their ace to begin the World Series.
Gerrit Cole will get the ball in Game 1 against the Dodgers on Friday in Los Angeles, manager Aaron Boone said Monday, confirming the obvious.
Had the Yankees not wrapped up the ALCS in five games on Saturday, they would have needed Cole to start Game 6 on Monday. Instead, he will be on extra rest to start Game 1 of the Fall Classic against an imposing Dodgers lineup.
Boone did not want to announce the order of his rotation for the rest of the series just yet, as the Yankees were only having a voluntary workout in The Bronx on Monday and were just starting their preparation for the World Series.
But he did say there was a “good chance” they would roll out the same order as they did in the ALCS, which would mean Carlos Rodon in Game 2, Clarke Schmidt in Game 3 and Luis Gil in Game 4.
Cole was in the middle of a rehab assignment coming back from his elbow injury when the Yankees hosted the Dodgers during the regular season, so he has not faced them since last year, when he tossed six innings of one-run ball at Dodger Stadium.
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In three starts so far this postseason, Cole has a 3.31 ERA, allowing six earned runs in 16 ⅓ innings while striking out 12 and walking six.
Cole has two previous starts in the World Series, both coming in 2019 as a member of the Astros, giving up six runs across 14 innings against Juan Soto’s Nationals.