Gerrit Cole's Pre-Game Delay Leads to Early Setback in Yankees' Loss

Gerrit Cole faced a challenging outing during Game 2 of the Subway Series as the New York Yankees fell 12-2 to the New York Mets. Scheduled to pitch at 13:38, Cole delayed his first pitch by one minute, resulting in a leadoff home run by Francisco Lindor.

Despite retiring the next three batters, Cole struggled throughout his 4.1 innings, allowing five earned runs on nine hits and recording four strikeouts without any walks. This marked his ninth loss of the season, with a current ERA of 3.67 over 20 games.

The Yankees' offense also faltered, with Zac Thornton keeping them scoreless until the fourth inning. Cody Bellinger managed to score with an RBI single, but the Yankees could not capitalize on other opportunities. The Mets continued to dominate, scoring multiple runs, including a grand slam from Lindor in the eighth inning. Following this defeat, the Yankees' record dropped to 85-63, trailing the Tampa Bay Rays by four games.