Yankees: Gerrit Cole Praises Gary Sanchez in Big Way Amid Disastrous Slump

Yankees RHP Gerrit Cole praised catcher Gary Sanchez for his game-calling behind the plate.

The New York Yankees proved that their unexpected layoff wasn’t capable of hampering their hot start as they improved to 3-1 on the season after Wednesday night’s convincing 9-3 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

However, while their offense has lived up to expectations through the first handful of games, there’s a major cause for concern regarding Gary Sanchez, who remains hitless and without a real approach whenever he steps into the batter’s box.

The 27-year-old catcher has rightfully taken a ton of heat from Yankees fans, but if there’s one thing both sides can feel good about, it’s how much Gerrit Cole enjoys throwing to him. After the win, the club’s new ace had high praise for Sanchez’s ability to call pitches and game plan effectively.

“Gary and I were on the same page a lot, we were executing a lot more pitches than not and we were keeping a steady mix, too,” Cole told reporters. “I think Gary was a huge help knowing the Orioles really well. It was my fourth or fifth time working with him, and our communication was flowing well. I thought that we were able to kind of stay one step ahead of them sometimes. So I leaned a lot on Gary’s familiarity.”

It’s unclear whether Cole is performing some damage control on Sanchez’s behalf here, but something tells us the $324 million hurler genuinely enjoys working with him. Fans in the Bronx need any reason possible to stop harping on the two-time All-Star’s hitting woes, and this provides them with that opportunity.

With that being said, we’re not sure how much more patience they can demonstrate before officially turning on him.

After finishing 0-for-4 with three strikeouts against Baltimore, Sanchez is now 0-for-12 with eight strikeouts and zero walks through four games. That’s right, folks. As impossible as it sounds, the Kraken has yet to reach base this season.

Perhaps Cole picking up Sanchez will help the slugging catcher get out of his own head because he looks beyond lost at the plate right now. The Yankees obviously have the talent to overcome his struggles, but he’s going to have to break out of this slump at some point. There’s only so much the superstar right-hander can do to weather the storm.