The Yankees returned from their extended break in a bit of a slump. Even with Gerrit Cole on the mound, the Yankees never stood a chance. The Braves knocked several homers over the walls of Truist Park while the Yankees bats were mostly silent in a 5-1 loss to Atlanta.
The Braves gave Cole a challenge from the jump. In the first inning, working a 3-2 count, he gave up a solo home run to lead-off hitter Ronald Acuna Jr. It didn't get any easier from there.
Cole was tagged with two more homers in the third inning. Braves' shortstop Dansby Swanson launched Cole's 90 mile per hour slider over right field for a two-run homer. Two batters later, Cole gave up a solo home run to Marcell Ozuna and the Yankees found themselves in a 4-0 hole.
Cole was pulled after five innings, five hits, five earned runs, two walks, nine strikeouts and those three homers.
On the other side, there was Braves' rookie starting pitcher Ian Anderson, making his major league debut in mind-blowing fashion. The Atlanta prospect, who grew up closer to New York than Georgia, shutdown the Bronx Bombers until the sixth inning _ Luke Voit, the Yankees' lone scorer, knocked a home run off Anderson, who looked nothing like a rookie.
The Bronx Bombers had five days off when they got to the ballpark for Game 1 of a double-header against the Braves on Wednesday. The game was a makeup of the rained-out one originally scheduled for Tuesday.
