The New York Yankees made a splash this week by signing pitcher Gerrit Cole to a nine-year, $324 million contract. While we can debate whether they overpaid or whether Cole will still be worth this type of money by the end of the contract, the fact of the matter is that the Yankees are a better team right now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
BetOnline.ag has already posted props both on the Yankees and Cole, so let\u2019s take a look at all of the new lines:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Yankees regular season win total has opened at 99.5, which is a massive number. Consider this: the biggest number on the board at open last year was the Houston Astros, who were at 96.5. The Yankees are 2.5 games above that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, it\u2019s easy to see why the Yankees\u2019 number is so high. We\u2019re talking about a team that won 103 games last season and just added the best pitcher in the game. Of course, they are going to be expected to be as good \u2013 if not better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At the same time, while it might be hard to believe, the Yankees team last year had room for improvement before Cole. Now 100 wins seems like it could be a breeze. Remember that Giancarlo Stanton only played in 18 games last season and Aaron Judge played in just 102. Miguel Andujar also only played in 12 while Aaron Hicks played in 59. As far as the pitching staff is concerned, Dellin Betances missed virtually the entire year while Luis Severino pitched in just three games. If this team is just healthier next season, they\u2019ll be in great shape to push for 100 wins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We have a whole host of Cole props to examine but most of these suggest that his numbers will dip compared to what he did last season. Cole finished the 2019 season going 20-5 with an ERA of 2.50 while striking out 326 batters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the reasons a decline is expected is that last year was a great year for him. His ERA over the three years prior was 2.88, 4.26 and 3.88. Last season was just the third time in his career that he had an ERA under 3.22, so it looks like the oddsmakers are expecting a deviation back to the norm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The same goes for the strikeouts as Cole made 326 batters whiff last season but that was a sizable jump from his norm. Prior to that, he had never surpassed 276 in his career in a full season. Entering last season, Cole averaged 0.97 strikeouts per inning in his career but last season, that number jumped up to 1.53, so that appears to be a bit of an aberration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Often times players over-deliver in a contract year and under-deliver after the ink has dried on their contract. We\u2019ll see if that\u2019s the case with Cole as he heads to Yankee Stadium to be the team\u2019s ace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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