Gerrit Cole to Remain with Yankees on Four-Year, $144 Million Deal

New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole will stay with the team after opting to honor the four-year, $144-million contract he had initially opted out of on Saturday, according to general manager Brian Cashman.

Had the Yankees chosen to void Cole's opt-out, his contract would have been extended to five years and $180 million. Cole originally signed a nine-year, $324-million deal with the Yankees in December 2019.

"During our conversations we were having, it was something, at the moment, we weren't necessarily comfortable doing, but we wanted our player and our ace back, and he certainly didn't want to go, either," Cashman said, as reported by SNY's Andy Martino.

Cashman explained that while Cole initially exercised his opt-out, he reversed his decision following discussions involving team owner Hal Steinbrenner and president Randy Levine. Cashman emphasized that all parties were eager to have Cole stay with the team.

"Maybe the grass isn't always greener," Cashman said. "I think he's happy where he's at. I think he likes our setup. I think he likes playing for who he's playing for and working for, and I think he likes his teammates. They give him a chance to win, and sometimes the grass isn't always greener. And so that goes for us, too. I know we'd prefer not to be trying to look at how we're going to replace our ace."

Cashman also confirmed that no talks for a contract extension are currently underway.

"Ultimately, we currently have in place ... the contract that we signed him to that takes him through, I think, what, 37? His Yankee career hopefully will finish with the Yankees," Cashman added. "Whether that's at the end of this contract or anything in the future, we can still talk through that. But the most important thing is, the biggest first step is, we have our ace back, and we're excited about that."

Cole, 34, made 17 starts this season, posting a 3.41 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings over 95 innings pitched. He had missed the beginning of the season due to an elbow injury but returned in mid-June.

Since joining the Yankees, Cole has a 3.12 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 915 strikeouts in 759 innings across 125 starts. The 2023 AL Cy Young Award winner has made three All-Star appearances with New York.