Set the clock back seven or eight years and this is the premier game of the weekend. Neither Gerrit Cole nor Chris Sale are fully the Cy Youngs they used to be, and yet they’re both still quite good in 2026. After a nailbiter of a win yesterday, Cole will look to give the Yankees another victory today, albeit one that doesn’t raise our collective blood pressure in the same way.
Let’s start with Sale, who is 37 with a 2.08 ERA and has been worth four wins already this season. The 15-year vet should be familiar to Yankee fans after stints with the White Sox and Red Sox, and indeed that back-foot slider to right-handed hitters is as good as it ever was. This is a tough assignment for MLB teams at the best of times, and the Yankee lineup isn’t much to brag about now. Scratching a run or two across against Sale is particularly important today.
Cole, meanwhile, has bounced back nicely after a few shaky starts in June. His last three outings, against the Pirates and both Chicago teams, have seen him post a 1.93 ERA and 2.82 FIP, and while we can’t necessarily expect that kind of pitching full time from the veteran, one more start along those lines would certainly be appreciated. A big part of Cole’s game was always controlling home runs — he fills the zone with so many pitches that fly balls are inevitable, but keeping those fly balls in play largely determines how his start will go. If he can avoid some of the thump in Atlanta’s lineup, he should be a good match against someone like Sale.
I was a little surprised to see Ben Rice in the lineup; I thought today would be a great excuse to give him what seems to be a much needed day off. Instead, he’s at DH, with the club rolling out their lefty specialist lineup of Paul Goldschmidt at first, Amed Rosario at third, and rookie George Lombard Jr. all the way up to sixth in the order.
It’s Old-Timers’ Day and the festivities are in full swing, coverage is on YES.
Location: Yankee Stadium—Bronx, NY
First pitch: 3:05pm Eastern
TV broadcast: YES, BravesVision
Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280, 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan, La Mejor 1600/1460/1130 AM
