Yankees ace Gerrit Cole wins his first Cy Young Award in unanimous vote

When the Yankees introduced Gerrit Cole as their new ace before the 2020 season, owner Hal Steinbrenner talked about the club winning multiple championships during Cole’s tenure.

Yankees fans well know that the franchise has not won a title since Cole arrived. But Cole has lived up to his side of the deal, and on Wednesday night he was honored with his first Cy Young Award.

The 33-year-old, who finished a close second to then-Astros teammate Justin Verlander in 2019, won this year by taking every first-place vote. Cole became the sixth Yankee to win the AL Cy Young Award and the second Yankee to do so unanimously, joining Ron Guidry in 1978.

“It’s such an historical franchise with such historical players,” said Cole, who grew up a Yankees fan. “That served as an inspiration to me as a kid and obviously gave me a lid on my dream and served as an inspiration and as kind of a standard to shoot for . . . I feel that I’m holding up my end of the bargain in terms of those great players and those great legacies.”

Cole cited Guidry, who is a Yankees spring training instructor, as one of the people who helped him get to the next level in 2023.

“I think it’s fitting,” Cole said. “Ron has helped me out a lot. Getting me acclimated to the pressures and the role and the organization and, I think, the style with to pitch to maximize my contribution to the team. He was a great Yankee, a captain. Accolades up and down, and continues to represent the organization in that first-class way whenever he comes around, and he’s a great example for all of us . . . I tried to make him proud, too, so I hope he’s proud of it as well.”

Cole went 15-4 with a 2.63 ERA and 222 strikeouts in an MLB-leading 33 starts. The righthander was, for the most part, on top of his game from the start of the Yankees’ disappointing season through the end.

Cole allowed three hits in six scoreless innings in a 5-0 victory over the Giants on Opening Day and, in his final start of the season Sept. 27 at Toronto, threw a two-hit shutout.

“He’s the best pitcher in the game,” Aaron Judge said after that game in Toronto. “This is Gerrit Cole’s era, that’s for sure. He’s the benchmark for what an ace is supposed to be like, on and off the field.”

Cole started this season’s All-Star Game in Seattle, which he cited as his top moment of 2023.

“Starting the All-Star Game was definitely a cherry for me,” Cole said. “It was just such a wonderful day. That and the last game of the season that I pitched in Toronto. Those two. But] there will be more Opening Days, there’ll be more last games. I don’t know how many more starting the All-Star Game] opportunities will come around. That was pretty special.”

In games that counted, Cole allowed two or fewer runs in 26 of 33 starts. He got stronger down the stretch, going 5-0 with a 1.29 ERA in his final seven outings.

Cole signed a nine-year, $324 million free-agent deal before the 2020 season. He can opt out after the 2024 season, but the Yankees can void that option if they tack on a 10th contract year for 2029 at $36 million.

“This is a richly deserved award for Gerrit, and I couldn’t be happier for him,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said in a statement. “It’s not lost on me how fortunate I am to manage such a talented and driven player. Having the opportunity to witness Gerrit’s dedication to his craft, to the game, and to his team has been a privilege. He pours so much into this. To see him finally awarded with this honor after years of coming close is incredibly exciting for all of us who share the clubhouse with him.”

The other finalists were second-place finisher Sonny Gray of the Twins and Kevin Gausman of the Blue Jays. But there was little doubt Cole was going to win the award, which made this day a little different than other Cy Young announcement days when he had a shot but ended up short.

“It felt different in that regard,” Cole said. “The public sentiment, for sure. But I’m very proud of this season. I’m very proud of some of the other seasons where we made a pretty strong run at this award, as well. But it’s hard to say it wasn’t a little different. I mean, there was a lot of momentum going into this.”

With Erik Boland

By Anthony Rieber

anthony.rieber@newsday.comAnthonyRieber

Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.