Cole remembered the initial frustration from his second consecutive spring training injury in 2025. “There’s a part where you’re a little angry at the game,” he said.
He recalled how difficult it was to manage simple domestic routines while recovering.
“As opposed to just getting in and [physical therapist Joe Bello] is tearing my arm apart and that’s all I gotta do for the day, and I can’t watch the game, and my kids are at home after school, waiting for me,” Cole said.
Cole described the intense focus required before throwing his opening pitch. “Everything up to that point, you’ve controlled.
Then, within like 15 seconds, the ball is going to leave your hand and you have zero control over what’s going to happen,” he said.
He detailed how elite athletes use specialized routines to regain composure.
“There are different things you can do in any competition, and most elite athletes will tell you the same thing,” Cole noted.
Sensory triggers help re-anchor his focus.
“There’s a way to grab control back and get focus back to the things that you can control,” he said.
Team and Coach Reactions
Yankees bullpen coach Preston Claiborne stated that Cole exceeded performance expectations during his recovery in Florida.
“If we gave him an assignment or goals to hit, he would do it,” Claiborne said.
The coaching staff noticed Cole advanced through rehabilitation benchmarks rapidly. “And so he was able to accomplish things at a faster rate [than we expected],” Claiborne added.
UCLA head coach John Savage noted that Cole possessed exceptional physical tools as an 18-year-old freshman but needed to mature psychologically.
“Physically,” Savage said.
Savage observed that managing routines and emotions was the final step in Cole's development.
The sports psychology textbook “Heads-Up Baseball” by Ken Ravizza and Tom Hanson emphasizes adaptability over absolute perfection.
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