I’m Here, I’ve Always Been Here

Sports means something different to everyone. Everyone has their own favorite team, their own memories of “where I was when…”, and that’s what makes sports great. No one person will feel the same about any one sporting event. We relate sports to our own lives, in our own way. It’s that uniqueness of experiences that brings all sports fans together, breaks down all barriers; white or black or brown, male or female, rich or poor, young or old — we are just sports fans. Each year, we at GoingFor2, give our writers a chance to share that experience, that emotion, that ‘one thing’ that stood out above all else in the past year. The sports story that mattered to them — big or small. The following is one such story. Enjoy…

The following is written by GoingFor2 Live’s own James Ferretti… “I’m Here, I’ve Always Been Here.”  It was the evening of October 30^th, 2019. Game 7 of the World Series had just ended. One part of me was sad that there was no more baseball to watch, but another part of me was excited about the offseason to come; the free agents to be, the potential call-ups, the trades, all of it. I love baseball. In fact, I’ve loved baseball since my dad got me a glove and took me out for my first game of catch (and that was despite the fact that on his first throw, the ball bounced off the heel of my glove and hit me in the face). I’ve loved the Yankees for almost as long. Now, before you judge me too harshly for that, keep in mind that my love for the Yankees began in the late 1980’s – well before the rejuvenation of the historic franchise we all know today. This was a time when the infield was manned by Randy Velarde, Alvaro Espinoza and Steve Sax and anchored by the post injury shell that used to be “Donnie Baseball,” Don Mattingly. The beautifully manicured grass of “The House That Ruth Built” was patrolled by the likes of Roberto Kelly, Jesse Barfield and Claudell Washington in those days. No Yankees front runner here, that was a baseball experience NO fan should have to endure. But I digress, back to the World Series post-game. The man on the tv spoke. “I’m not an employee of the team.” The man was Gerrit Cole. One of the best pitchers on the planet. 3 days earlier he had pitched the Houston Astros to within one game of their second championship in 3 years. Today, after watching from the bench as the Astros lost Game 7 of the World Series – never getting a chance to affect the outcome (he had warmed up several times but never entered the game). He was being pressured to talk to the media by the Houston PR folks.  Eventually, he relented. “All right, as an affiliate of myself” he said as he walked to the media podium, sans Astros cap and instead of wearing one with his agent’s logo on it. Going into the 2019 World Series, I thought that should the Astros prevail (as most expected), Cole would likely take his first World Series ring and head back home to California as a free agent. Maybe go to Anaheim and try to achieve legend status by helping Mike Trout win a ring. Maybe join some really exciting young talent in San Diego. Maybe I was wrong and he’d fallen in love with Houston. Maybe he would decide to stay, to help keep the Astros dynasty alive for at least a few more years, and to be worshiped like a king… Then again, maybe not. “Well, so much for that happily ever after in Houston,” I thought.  My next thought was… “This offseason just got a whole lot more interesting.”

The Yankee courtship of Gerrit Cole was well documented. After drafting him in 2008 and losing him to UCLA, the Yankees were so close to successfully acquiring him from Pittsburgh via trade in 2017, that it was being reported as “when, not if” the trade would be completed…Until it wasn’t. While deep in negotiations with the Yankees, the Pirates suddenly pivoted and took a much less attractive package of players in return and traded Cole to one of the Yankees’ top-rivals, the Houston Astros – fresh off a World Series title and an ALCS victory over the Yankees. Talk about a gut punch. Sitting there and thinking about that in October of 2019, it STILL stung. Cole’s domination of the Yankees in Game 3 of the ALCS didn’t help. Yankees GM Brian Cashman felt it too, I’m sure. He referenced how he thought often about how those events had played out and how he considered Cole his “white whale,” the object of his obsession. What is much less well known, is my own personal history with Gerrit Cole. I almost drafted him in the first round of my home league minor league draft way back in 2012. I went back and forth and ultimately settled on the “safer” pick of Eric Hosmer, the 1B prospect from the Kansas City Royals. Hosmer didn’t even make it to the trade deadline on my team that year before I traded him away. Like Frank Sinatra would say, “regrets, I’ve had a few…” Cole progressed rapidly through the minors and looked really good doing it. I sent a few trade offers to the team that took him (with the very next pick after mine). No dice. I couldn’t pry him off their roster with a crowbar. Cole fell off my radar for a few years after that, but was squarely back on it in 2017 and 2018; after the failed trade to the Yankees and what he did with Houston in his first year (over 200 IP – 15 wins 2.88 ERA 1.03 WHIP 276K 64BB). In my 2019 draft, Cole was back on the market and I finally had another shot at him. I had just taken Jake deGrom in the first round and already had my eyes set on my second round pick. 4^th round ADP be damned, I wasn’t waiting. I loaded “Gerrit Cole – SP – HOU” into the queue and I watched and waited. The picks ticked by in the rest of the first, then we hit the turn. So far, so good. Three before my turn, still there. Two picks, someone else got taken. One. More. Pick. “Someone else isn’t going to jump 2 rounds on ADP and take him here, will they?” Well, like you probably have already guessed – someone else did. Unreal. If Cole and his Cy Young worthy 2019 season would have lasted one more pick, we would have run away with the title together. As it was, I finished second that year. It was a small consolation. Gerrit Cole’s dad was from Syracuse, NY and was a Yankees fan. Gerrit himself was a Yankees fan growing up in California. I didn’t know that, I found out as the contract negotiations dragged on over the winter. I wondered if any of it really mattered. It wouldn’t be the first time a player used the Yankees to leverage other teams into a higher offer. Maybe that’s all this ever was, Cole was going back to Cali – probably with an extra 20 or 30 million in his bank account thanks to the Yankees. If he did, who could fault him?  Could I really expect any sympathy as a Yankee fan when it did happen? Not a chance. Happy trails, Gerrit. You’re welcome, don’t forget to buy sunblock. In December, the news broke. Cole had finally made up his mind and signed. I watched as the announcement came across the ticker on the bottom of my tv, moving left to right. “Gerrit Cole agrees to record-setting contract – 9 years, 324 million dollars with the…” (I braced for impact). “…New York Yankees.” Wow. They did it. They ACTUALLY got him this time. WE GOT HIM. All of the emotions. Joy. Excitement. Relief. How long until pitchers and catchers report to spring training? Too long. At his welcome press conference, he had just gotten done putting on his pinstriped jersey. He got up on the podium to speak to the media and he took out the sign, the one he made as a kid, the one we have all surely seen by now – the sign that says “YANKEE FAN TODAY TOMORROW FOREVER.” Then he spoke, to me and to anyone else who doubted his authentic desire to be in New York and play for the Yankees. “I just want to say, I’m here, I’ve always been here.” I’m sure the 324 million dollars helped, but he wanted to pitch for the Yankees as much I wanted to see him pitch for the Yankees. He didn’t have to head to California to go home – he was home. He always was. The Yankees got a third shot at Gerrit Cole and they didn’t miss – and spoiler alert, you can bet that if he’s still on the board when I pick in the first round of any drafts next year, I won’t miss either. Stay safe this winter Gerrit, there’s one more homecoming in store for you in 2021 – don’t forget to bring the sign.