After Gerrit Cole tests Aaron Judge in live BP, Yankees insider shares performance insights

Two stalwarts of the Yankees were up against each on opposite sides of the plate. Before the Yankees' spring training game on Sunday, former Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole faced some of the best hitters, including Aaron Judge, in a live batting session.

Cole has yet to start a spring training game for the Yankees, but after a positive BP session, he's in line to make that happen soon. Yankees beat writer Greg Joyce shared a positive update about Cole from his latest live batting session.

"Before the game, Gerrit Cole threw three innings of live batting practice," Joyce said (2:35 onwards). "It sounds like that’s going to be his last live session before getting into a game this coming weekend — probably either Friday or Saturday if everything goes well.

"He faced a group including Aaron Judge, DJ LeMahieu, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Trent Grisham. Cole said everything felt good, and his velocity was where he wanted it to be—94-96 mph. I think he threw 45 pitches."

Last season, Gerrit Cole suffered an elbow injury just before the Opening Day. This rendered the pitcher out for couple of months, but Greg Joyce said that there's nothing to worry right now.

"So far, everything is going well for Cole," Joyce added. "We’ll see how things progress once he gets into games. It was last March when he dealt with an elbow issue, but at this point, he seems to be steering clear of that. So, good steps forward here for Cole."

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Watch: Gerrit Cole vs Aaron Judge live BP showdown

Before signing with the Yankees, Gerrit Cole only faced Aaron Judge once during his stint with the Houston Astros. According to Statmuse, he allowed a walk to Judge and retired him once.

On Sunday, under the Florida sun, the two locked horns in a friendly setting. Bryan Hoch reshared the intense BP on X.

Talking about facing the two-time MVP, Cole said (via MLB.com):

“I enjoy it. I’ve done this for a long time; I’ve seen my fair share of line drives and gotten my fair share of line drives.

"There’s always that uncertainty with guys who can just really hit the ball so hard, so that’s not comfortable. But it’s fun to compete against him, and then to be able to talk about it afterwards - that’s special.”

Cole has been enjoying his time in spring training, even soaking in advice from the great Roger Clemens at the camp. He's expected to play a major role if the Yankees have a shot to the World Series.