The Game 5 pitching plan, in short: the big dogs are back.

It’s Gerrit Cole vs. Jack Flaherty, the World Series Game 1 starter, back for a second-round matchup in Game 5. The Yankees did what they had to do Tuesday night, beating the Dodgers in a bullpen game to give Cole – the Californian now pitching for his favorite childhood team – another chance to catch the ball in this World Series. Now he has to make it count. Cole, the 2023 AL Cy Young winner, has a 2.82 ERA in four starts this postseason.

Behind him, the Yankees’ bullpen has been taxed the past three games, as Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil haven’t played more than four innings. Reliever Clay Holmes has pitched in every game of this series; Luke Weaver, Tim Hill, Jake Cousins ​​​​and Mark Leiter Jr. have appeared in three of the four matches. A long start from Cole would be a relief, but manager Aaron Boone doesn’t have the ability to give anyone, even his ace, a long leash.

Flaherty, another Californian now pitching for his favorite childhood team, pitched well in Game 1, throwing 5 1/3 innings with two runs. However, his overall numbers in these playoffs – a 6.10 ERA in four starts – are soured by a blowout start against the Mets in Game 5 of the NLCS. The Dodgers acquired the rental right-hander at the trade deadline to be their guy in big games this fall, so this is exactly the right spot for him – starting opposite Cole with a chance to close out the World Series.

Because Tuesday’s bullpen game went sideways so early, with Daniel Hudson serving a grand slam in the third inning, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was able to give the rest of his “A” bullpen the night off. That’s a luxury the Yankees haven’t had. The Dodgers will have the more rested bullpen in Game 5.