Gerrit Coles nine-inning gem, Juan Sotos late heroics lead Yankees to thrilling win

OAKLAND, Calif.— The last time Gerrit Cole took the mound before Friday, he was unhittable early and then issued the Intentional Walk Heard ’Round the World, which sent his outing into a tailspin. After having to wait five long days to pitch again, with plenty of second-guessing in between, Cole finally got a chance for redemption — as much as it can be gained facing one of the worst teams in the league. The result was his best start of the season, pitching into the seventh inning for the first time this season — then the eighth and ninth, too. And only after Cole completed nine innings did his offense finally wake up — with some heroics from Juan Soto — to reward him with the win. Soto, who was scratched roughly two hours before first pitch with a sore left knee, played a key part in the Yankees’ three-run rally in the top of the 10th inning that lifted them to a 4-2 win over the A’s in front of an announced crowd of 23,426 at the Coliseum. After Cole threw his 99th and final pitch of the night to finish off a two-hit gem across nine innings, the game was still tied 1-1. But the Yankees (90-64) quickly went ahead in the top of the 10th.

Anthony Rizzo led off with a single that advanced automatic runner Jasson Dominguez to third, setting him up to score the go-ahead run on a passed ball. That came during an at-bat by Soto, who pinch-hit for Trent Grisham after starting the night on the bench because of swelling and soreness in his left knee from slamming it against the right-field wall making a catch Thursday in Seattle. But Soto delivered by slicing an RBI double to left field for the 3-1 lead, at which point he was replaced by a pinch-runner. Anthony Volpe added an RBI single — his third hit and second RBI of the night — to make it 4-1 and give Luke Weaver some more breathing room as he closed it out in the bottom of the 10th.The A’s (67-87) scored the automatic runner with a single off Weaver, but he struck out the next three batt...