Acce s the Yankees beat like never before Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees. TAMPA Max Fried and Gerrit Cole are two very different pitchers on the mound but alike in their talent and drive to succeed. So the two new rotation mates have hit it off so far at spring training, each hoping to learn from the other to ultimately help the Yankees in the long run. To be able to sit and watch him work and his routine and the way he goes about his preparation, Im going to do as much as I can to soak up as much as I can, Fried said Thursday at Steinbrenner Field. At the end of the day, were here to win. Anything I can learn from him Casey Legumina Jersey that I can add to my game, Im all ears. Fried is a lanky left-hander who pitches to contact, while Cole is a righty who for much of his career has overpowered hitters with a dominant fastball as a strikeout artist (though his strikeouts per nine have gone down in the past two seasons). Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post But they also are two of the top pitchers in the game and now are owners of the two biggest contracts given to pitchers by the Yankees which should make them teammates at least through 2028. Cole is in the midst of a nine-year, $324 million contract, while Fried inked an eight-year, $218 million deal this offseason. Explore More As soon as Fried signed with the Yankees in December, Cole reached out to a friend who was teammates with the lefty on the Braves to get a snapshot of him before the two began talking. Just an excellent addition, Cole said. Really unique talent and a lot of things he can do with the baseball. An outlier in several regards and a highly regarded teammate as well. Its been fun to get to know him through texting and talking on the phone through the offseason and then the five or six days Ive been here as well. Its just been a pleasure to watch him go about his work. Gerrit Cole throws live batting practice during the Yankees Feb. 13, 2025 workout at Steinbrenner Field. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post Fried arrived in Tampa a few weeks early to start getting familiar with his new organization and teammates, and has been pleased with his early impre sions. The Yankees, likewise, are encouraged by what they have seen so far. Whats been exciting for me is to see how engaging hes been, manager Aaron Boone said. Hes been really open to a lot of different things since he got over to [the player development complex] a couple weeks ago. Hes made it a point to really engage and interact with his teammates and get to know everyone. Its been how you hope a big free agent acquisition coming in [would be]. He seems happy and comfortable, and certainly the talent shows. Tony Perez Jersey