Yankees star opts out of contract; team has chance to keep him, but it’ll be costly

Gerrit Cole opted out of his contract with the Yankees on Saturday, but it doesn’t mean he’s necessarily headed to free agency.
It’s up to the Yankees now.
The team can void Cole’s opt-out decision by adding a 10th season to the end of his nine-year, $324 million deal.
By doing so, the Yankees would owe the right-hander $180 million over the next five years, paying Cole $36 million each season through 2029.
That would take Cole’s overall contract up to $360 million over 10 years, giving him the crown for the biggest deal ever for a starting pitcher back. Yoshinobu Yamamoto took that away this past winter when he signed his $325 million contract with the Dodgers.
It would be a huge surprise if the Yankees elect to let Cole walk into free agency. He means too much to this team, on and off the field, so $36 million in 2029 is the price to pay.
There is an argument, albeit a controversial one, for the Yankees to part ways with their ace and let him go.
That would give the Yankees more financial flexibility to target a younger top-shelf starter this winter. Factoring in Cole’s age (34) and the elbow injury he suffered earlier this year — sitting out for the first few months of the year with elbow inflammation — there is risk involved by committing to five more years. They could use that money to re-sign Juan Soto and snag an ace-caliber starter on the open market like a Corbin Burnes.
That said, Cole is only one year removed from a Cy Young performance and even if he didn’t win games in the World Series, he stepped up and pitched like an ace on the biggest stage. His biggest issue was failing to cover first base in the Yankees’ disastrous fifth inning of Game 5, a fundamental flop that led to five unearned runs on his final line (mixed in with a few other errors behind him).
The Yankees were willing to pay Cole $36 million each year through his age-37 season when they agreed to his initial contract a few years ago. Adding one more year to that deal would allow them to keep a face of the franchise around and solidify one top spot in the rotation.