Yankees cruise to Game 1 win after Gerrit Cole escapes jam

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Cole could have lost his mind. Cole hit Amed Rosario with a pitch and gave up a double to Jose Ramirez as the Guardians scored three times in the third to take a commanding lead in the series.

The game was going to get out of hand fast. Cole was facing a fork in the road. Cleveland could put the game out of reach with a few swings and drive the Yankees ace out of the game in his first playoff start, or he could help New York lock down the first game of the ALDS.

Cole stood on the mound with the bases juiced and tried to visualize the situation when runners reached base. While emptying his mind of the high stakes of playoff baseball, he leaned on how he reacted in those situations.

I was ready for traffic. Cole had a lot of experiences with traffic this year. You do what you're used to doing. We knew what we wanted to do in those situations.

Cole got Oscar Gonzalez to ground into a force out on a 88.4 mph Slider before getting Andres Gimenez to strike out on a nasty 88.4 mph Slider in an at-bat that featured just one pitch. The moment was crucial in keeping the Cleveland offense in check.

"That may be the at-bat of the game right there, he executed, and that may be the reason for that," the Yankees' manager said. He kept making pitches even though he was in trouble.

The Yankees' offense began to come through in the second half of the game. In the bottom of the third baseman Harrison Bader hit a solo home run to tie the score, before catcher Jose Trevino knocked in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly. The Cubs first baseman hit a two-run home run in the sixth to give his team a 2-0 lead.

Cole was the one who got out of the third-inning jam.

The type of stuff that fuels the offense is that. You don't want to put more pressure on the starting pitchers, but they are paid the way they are because of their energy and ability to make big pitches in big situations.

Cole settled down as he threw just eight pitches in the fourth, 13 in the fifth, 13 in the sixth, and four more in the seventh, as he recorded one out and allowed a single.

Cole mixed up his pitches to keep the Guardians on their toes.

Terry Francona said that he can have a lot. He speeds you up and then spins it. It can become difficult.

Cole waved to the fans as he left the game in the seventh in front of a sold out crowd. Cole absorbed it all as he looked out into the crowd before descending down the steps.

Cole was a fan of the Yankees when he was a kid and dreamed of a Yankees game on Tuesday night.

Cole paused to catch his emotions after saying that it was very special for him. It was very nice. The game is still going on. I appreciated it even though it was not the most comfortable time to acknowledge the crowd. They were behind us tonight and it was a wonderful experience.