Yankees’ two aces Max Fried, Gerrit Cole establishing working bond: ‘I’m all ears’

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, I’m 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, we’re here to win. Anything I can learn from him that I can add to my game, I’m 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).

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.