The New York Yankees narrowly held on to a win in Anaheim, with Gerrit Cole leaving the game abruptly but still earning the victory.

In today's game, Gerrit Cole's five-inning performance was exactly the stabilizing presence the Yankees needed as they embarked on a crucial road trip.

However, with a powerful swing from Christian Moore, the game—which the Yankees were winning 7-3 against the Los Angeles Angels—took a sudden turn. The comfortable four-run lead quickly evaporated, and Cole's night came to an abrupt end. The veteran ace right-hander walked off the mound with frustration written all over his face, his final stats failing to fully capture the complexity of the outing.

On paper, Cole's line—5.1 innings, 8 hits, 3 earned runs, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts, 90 pitches—looks like a typical grind for a mid-rotation starter. But for the Yankees, who are currently 4.5 games behind the Rays in the AL East, the significance of this start weighed far more heavily than the numbers suggest.

This was Cole's 18th start since returning from Tommy John surgery, and he provided a reliable anchor for a rotation that had just welcomed Max Fried back from the injured list. However, despite early offensive support, Cole struggled all night with deep counts and runners on base, ultimately unraveling in the sixth inning.

In the early innings, the Yankees' offense provided Cole with the road support he could only dream of. Spencer Jones launched a two-run homer to center field in the top of the first, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. followed with a back-to-back blast, quickly giving the Yankees a 3-0 lead.

In the third, Ben Rice scored on a double play, giving Cole a 4-0 lead, and it seemed he would cruise through the rest of the game.

But things didn't go as planned. Cole spent most of the night navigating constant base-running threats.

Cole relied on his off-speed pitches to generate swings and misses, grinding through tough situations. However, whenever he tried to use his four-seam fastball, Angels hitters consistently made contact, keeping runners on base and preventing him from finding a rhythm.

The Angels constantly harassed the 35-year-old right-hander with soft contact and aggressive baserunning, collecting 8 hits and two stolen bases. Nearly every inning required a high pitch count to record outs, a heavy toll for a pitcher in his first full season after major surgery.

The breaking point came in the bottom of the sixth. With a 4-1 lead, Cole first allowed a leadoff single to Wade Meckler, then Moisés Ballesteros lined an 85-mph knuckle curve to center field, putting two runners on. Next, Moore jumped on a 93-mph slider and drove it hard to right field for an RBI triple, cutting the Yankees' lead to 4-3, with the tying run on third base.

Manager Aaron Boone immediately walked out of the dugout to pull his ace. Cole, clearly frustrated, slowly made his way back to the visitors' dugout, while reliever Brent Headrick came in from the bullpen.

Headrick struck out pinch-hitter Jose Siri and got Oswald Peraza to fly out to right field, preserving the Yankees' lead.

In the final two innings, the Yankees added three insurance runs, while the bullpen combined for 3.2 scoreless innings to seal the victory.