MLB
Gerrit Cole’s contract with the Yankees: Salary, opt out clause and years left for the pitcher
The Yankees star is among the highest-paid pitchers in MLB history, let’s take a closer look at the fine print of his lucrative, long-term contract.
In December 2020, the New York Yankees made Gerrit Cole the best paid pitcher in franchise history and four years on, the 34-year-old remains one of the MLB’s top earners. Cole is now in the fifth year of the massive nine-year contract which is valued at $324 million.
But for all of the chatter, the reality is the franchise has failed to give the 2023 Cy Young Award winner proper cover. With speculation growing that Cole could opt out of the remainder of his contract and leave the Bronx Bombers this winter, his future will be decided one way or another before the year is out.
The lowdown on Gerrit Cole’s contract
As mentioned, New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole is currently just past the halfway point of his more than lucrative nine-year contract which he signed in 2020. Cole’s contract has seen him earn $36 million annually to date. Where ROI is concerned, the right-handed pitcher has started a total of 125 games and thrown 758 innings with an ERA of 3.08 and 915 strikeouts. After receiving Cy Young votes in all four of the seasons that he has played since putting pen to paper, the right-hander finally won the award last year by a unanimous vote, after leading the American League in pitcher WAR (7.4), ERA (2.3), innings pitched (209), and WHIP (0.98).
This of course brings us to the eye-brow-raising part of Cole’s story: The opt out clause. If you didn’t know, the pitcher essentially has a “get out of jail free” card following the 2024 season which allows him to test the free agency market.
At this point, we can assume that should Cole avoid any serious injury, he will do exactly that given where the Yankees are at. The team ended the regular season top of the AL East (94-68) then edged past the Royals and the Guardians in the postseason. But the World Series has been a disappointment, after going 3-0 down in the series, Aaron Boone’s men managed to pull a game back to keep their hopes alive. Whether they can miraculously turn it around by winning the next three is another matter.
So, what comes next for Cole and the Yankees? That’s a tricky question. On one side, if he does choose to opt-out, the Yankees do in fact have a mechanism with which they can void his choice.
Frankly, it would be in the best interest of the franchise to offer Cole a 10th year, regardless of the cost (presumably at the same rate he is on now - $36 million). Such a move would see him stay in New York through to 2029 at which point he would be 38 years old. Yet, this is essentially the best pitcher in baseball that we’re talking about and he has shown no signs of decline.
On the other hand, it’s no secret that pitchers struggle once they cross the 30-year-old mark. With that in mind, it may be time for the Yankees to cash in. Ultimately if the right-hander does choose to leave, expect to see the Yankees and general manager Brian Cashman getting creative as they seek to make whichever team takes him pay for the remaining years.