Thursday, September 24

NEW YORK -- When Gerrit Cole walks to the Yankee Stadium mound on Friday evening against the Rays, it will have been 569 days since his most recent pitches against Major League competition, emptied in a deciding World Series contest he’d rather not revisit.

Months later, Cole boarded a commercial flight in Tampa, Fla., fearing the worst about his ailing right elbow. The rehab is now complete, and as Cole returns with triple-digit velocity in the holster, he looks every bit the part of an ace ready to impact a pennant race.

“I’m most looking forward to just competing at the highest stage,” Cole said. “We have a first-place club coming in. They have the best record in the American League, divisional opponent, so it’s pretty high-stakes for a Friday night in May.”

As the Yankees continue this important homestand, here are five more observations from the clubhouse:

The short story
It has “always been the plan” for Anthony Volpe to return as the starting shortstop; general manager Brian Cashman confirmed during the club’s April series at Tropicana Field. Then José Caballero earned more playing time, an offensive sparkplug who ranked among the league’s best defenders.

Caballero’s fractured right middle finger opened the door for Volpe’s return, and now the Yankees have a pleasant issue to handle -- beginning with the Subway Series against the Mets, Volpe has been getting on base, delivering hits and playing well in the field.

How will the Yankees accommodate Caballero’s return, potentially as soon as Friday? Based on manager Aaron Boone’s comments Wednesday, it doesn’t sound like the Yankees plan to return Caballero to the 10th man role they initially envisioned -- at least, not right now.

“He’s earned the right to be out there at shortstop more often,” Boone said Wednesday. “The first [41] games that he played in the season, I think he was playing the best shortstop in the league and doing a lot of things to spark us offensively. It’s important to acknowledge that, but there’s no question that his versatility is a real asset, too.”

To date, the Yankees haven’t approached Volpe about playing other positions. If they carry both Caballero and Volpe, Spencer Jones or Max Schuemann could be optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Stamp of approval
You’re probably familiar with a classic commercial for men’s clothing that included the slogan, “You’re going to like the way you look. I guarantee it.” Jazz Chisholm Jr. is enjoying his fresh on-field fashion, and Giancarlo Stanton seems happy to serve as his teammate’s designated outfitter.

Since the Subway Series, Chisholm has been borrowing a pair of Stanton’s uniform pants to replicate a vintage bloused look. His performance has spiked, and Stanton -- who remains on the injured list, awaiting a cleaner MRI on his strained right calf -- said Chisholm is welcome to keep borrowing his pinstripes.

“They’ve got homers in them,” Stanton said. “So if I’m not using them now, I think he can get them out.”

Austin’s showers
Asked to evaluate his performance at the plate thus far, Austin Wells didn’t mince words: “It’s terrible. You can read the numbers. It’s not good.” Wells was out of the lineup earlier this week, benched in favor of J.C. Escarra while he works through his struggles.

Wells’ reputation coming through the Minors was that he would hit but might have difficulty remaining behind the plate. That scouting report has flipped, with Boone saying, “I expect more out of him offensively.”

Entering Wednesday, Wells was fourth in the Majors in catching framing runs (3), but with a .170 average and .552 OPS, including just five RBIs.

“As a catcher, my No. 1 goal is to be out there for the pitchers,” Wells said. “I pride myself on being able to separate those. I want to be out there and get on base every single time when I’m at the dish, but there’s nothing good that comes from me taking that onto defense.”  

Holding ‘pen
David Bednar blew a save on Sunday at Citi Field, escaped in dramatic fashion on Monday against the Blue Jays, then Camilo Doval followed suit on Tuesday. It makes for entertaining theater, but it’s not sustainable over a 162-game schedule, underlining bullpen issues that shouldn’t be much of a surprise.

Even in the spring, scouts and industry voices believed the Yankees might have issues locking down leads. Their early success prompted Boone to say, “I think they’re just better than everyone thinks,” back on May 5. Since then, cracks have shown.

Most problematic, Bednar has dealt with high traffic and isn’t as reliable as he was last year, when he had a 2.19 ERA and 10 saves in 22 appearances after being acquired in late July.

“The guys need me to do my job,” Bednar said. “There’s definitely plenty of things to work on, but at the end of the day, it’s, ‘Did I get it done or not?’ And that’s how I feel.”

There’s no simple in-house fix. Carlos Lagrange could be electric in a relief role, but the Yankees want to continue building him up as a starter. If Max Fried were healthy, a starter like Ryan Weathers could shift to the bullpen, but Fried’s projected return from a left elbow bone bruise is still weeks away.

One potential name to know: Eric Reyzelman, who has been a strikeout machine at Double-A Somerset and was recently promoted to Triple-A.

‘Not messing around’
Finally, eagle-eyed observers might have noticed that Cole carried a quad-espresso Starbucks into PNC Field before taking the mound for his sixth and final Minor League start, when he touched 99.6 mph for the RailRiders against the Syracuse Mets.

“We’re not messing around,” Cole said that day.

Back in the Bronx, Cole laughed when asked about the java order. He said the espresso is a pre-start staple; when asked how long he’s been doing that, Cole replied, “Oh, about 15 years ago.”

That rolls the clock back to his college days at UCLA -- and yes, that’s an awful lot of strong coffee. With Cole back in The Show this weekend, the baristas of Pittsburgh, Houston, New York and elsewhere should all offer a salute.

Cam Schlittler entered Wednesday’s start against the Blue Jays having permitted one earned run or fewer in six consecutive starts -- tied for the sixth-longest streak by a Yankee since ERs became official in 1913 (excluding openers). Who has the longest streak?

A) Spud Chandler

B) Whitey Ford

C) Luis Gil

D) Michael King

Hours after the medical cart disappeared through Yankee Stadium’s loading dock, Jasson Domínguez had undergone a CT scan and MRI on his aching left shoulder. The Yankees outfielder finally got a chance to watch his exceptional catch, which would send him to the 10-day injured list.

What did “The Martian” think?

“It was scary to see how I hit the wall, but I definitely watched it. It was a great catch,” Domínguez said. “I felt the ball when I caught it, but then I just went to the ground. I could feel it was still in my glove, so that was a relief.” 

May 21, 2014: Blanked through eight innings at Wrigley Field, the Yankees scored twice in the ninth to tie the game, then posted a 4-2 victory in 13 innings when Brendan Ryan scored on a wild pitch and John Ryan Murphy delivered a run-scoring single.

The decisive rally featured a sacrifice bunt by pitcher -- and current Yankees assistant pitching coach -- Preston Claiborne in his first (and only) Major League plate appearance.

B) Ford

“The Chairman of the Board” permitted one earned run or fewer in nine consecutive starts from Aug. 24-Sept. 28, 1963.

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