Yankees’ Gerrit Cole Admires Red Sox Great’s All-Star Performance

Gerrit Cole is making his sixth All-Star appearance but it will be the first time the New York Yankees ace will start the marquee exhibition event.

It's an opportunity Cole has coveted since he was a kid and watched Boston Red Sox legend Pedro Martinez take the mound to start the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park and dominate.

Now, Cole gets his shot to create a memorable moment at the midsummer classic.

"Some of my fondest memories growing up, one of them is watching Pedro in the All-Star Game, starting it," Cole told reporters Monday, per league-provided video. "I've been to a few of them and had the pleasure of watching some future Hall of Famers do it. And I've always been like, 'Man, I really hope I can do that one day.'"

Martinez's performance still lives in All-Star Game lore. With the National League sending a murderer's row of hitters to the plate in the first two innings at Fenway Park, Martinez struck out five of the six sluggers he faced, including Barry Larkin, Larry Walker, Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Jeff Bagwell. Sosa and McGwire combined for 128 home runs alone that season.

Cole, who has gone 9-2 with a 2.85 ERA in 19 starts this season, hasn't been able to match Martinez's career to this point. The 11-year pro has yet to win a Cy Young Award, something Martinez did three times in his career.

But even though Cole is on the other side of the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry, he still admires Martinez.

“I loved his change-up and I loved how he was able to create so much velocity with such a small frame. He really was quite unique," Cole told reporters. "His stuff was so explosive and most of all, he always was just fearless. That was something I enjoyed watching the most about him."