"If it wasn't for me, you'd still have 299" - Yankees ace Gerrit Cole teases Anthony Rizzo as slugger reaches massive 300th career home run milestone

Anthony Rizzo blasted his 300th career home run in a big win for the New York Yankees. It came as the final blow in a rout, but it was a huge moment for the slugger who had been struggling to get going in 2024.

His teammate Gerrit Cole applauded the achievement but wanted to make sure he got a little credit as well.

Cole took to Instagram to say:

"If it wasn't for me, you'd still have 299... glad to be a part of it!"

Cole gave up one home run to Rizzo before the two were teammates. So in theory, without Cole giving his current first baseman something to hit, Rizzo would still be stuck at the dreaded 299 number.

Ironically, the home run did not come while both were members of the NL Central. Rizzo spent almost his entire pre-Yankees career with the Chicago Cubs, and Cole came up with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

However, the home run came in 2019 when Rizzo was still with the Cubs, but Cole had moved on to the Houston Astros. It was a two-run blast, similar to his 300th, in the first inning of a matchup.

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Anthony Rizzo blasts Yankees to series win

A lot of attention is on the resurgent Aaron Judge, who paved the way for the massive series win (which included 30 runs in two games) in more ways than one by getting hot. However, Anthony Rizzo also turned things around against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Anthony Rizzo hit his 300th career home run

He hit that home run in the third game on April 28. The day before, he went three for four with another home run and scored three runs. He was 0-5 in the series opener, but he rebounded well to finish 7/8 with two home runs, four RBI, one walk and four runs scored.

It dramatically changes how his overall season looks as he continues to improve. He's up to 131 wRC+, which is his second-best mark since 2019. It's also well up from last year after he suffered that concussion.

A .277/.341/.446 slash line is also very serviceable. Rizzo usually slots in towards the back half of the Yankees' lineup, so getting that sort of production in the back five hitters is very important.