3 years agoNew York Yankees starting pitcher Gerrit Cole took the loss in a 14-0 rout at the hands of the Rays. Cole ran into trouble in the first inning, allowing four earned runs before getting one out, the first time such an instance has occurred in his career. He later retired nine batters in a row. Cole's final line reflects the highs and lows he experienced in this outing- a season-high seven earned runs allowed but 10 strikeouts and an eye-popping 23 whiffs in 5 1/3 innings of work. Cole's strikeout rate has jumped from 25.4 percent in June to 37.2 percent in July, meaning he's figured out a different way to fool hitters despite lower spin rates. While these poor outings are frustrating, it's encouraging that the strikeouts are back, which should lead to an ace-like performance more often than not moving forward.--Tim Capurso
Source: Baseball Savant