Yankees' Gerrit Cole tries to avoid pitching to Red Sox's Rafael Devers, still can't get him out

Gerrit Cole continues to be haunted by Raphael Devers.

The New York Yankees ace has had difficulty striking out the Boston Red Sox third baseman over the past four seasons. Going into Saturday's game, Devers was hitting .333 with a .974 OPS and nine home runs against the American League Cy Young Award winner.

Cole hasn't given Devers much to hit in their first two matchups. In Devers' first plate appearance, he was hit by a cutter that went too inside. This was probably not Cole's intention. (Red Sox manager Alex Cora disagreed, saying after the game that he thought Cole hit Devers on purpose.)

However, in the fourth inning, the right-hander avoided Devers entirely, choosing to intentionally walk him leaving the bases empty. Cole obviously didn't want to risk giving up a 1-0 lead by pitching to his nemesis, despite not allowing a hit at that point. However, Masataka Yoshida's brace ended the day. Cole then drove in two more runs on Willier Abreu's single.

The intentional walk was highly unusual for Cole, who has not allowed a free pass to a hitter since 2017. And according to the Boston Herald, he had only done it six times before. Yet Cole said it was always part of the plan if he struck out Jarren Duran before facing Devers.

The third time Cole faced Devers on Saturday, he had no choice but to pitch to the Boston slugger in the fifth inning because the bases were loaded. Cole has demonstrated a good pitch, throwing a curveball low and away. But Devers lined it to center field for a two-run single and a 5-1 Red Sox lead. Boston won, 7-1.

That boosted Devers' batting average to .350 (14-for-40) against Cole with 19 RBIs. Perhaps Cole can take some solace in not serving up his 10th home run to the hitter who dominated their matchup.

If there was any doubt that Cole sees Devers in his nightmares, it was made clear by how quickly the Yankees pitcher answered a question posed to him by a reporter on Wednesday. For Hispanic Heritage Media Day, Cole was asked which Latin hitter gave him the most trouble. Cole didn't hesitate to answer, “Raphael Devers.”

A funny moment, perhaps, for a pitcher like Cole to admit that he has the upper hand on a hitter against him. But it does indicate how strong Devers was when he faced Cole. The Yankees right-hander confirmed that — and underscored the idea — by intentionally walking Devers with no runners on in Saturday's game.