Gerrit and Gary will be reunited

DUNEDIN, Fla. — The Gary Sanchez-Gerrit Cole battery was unplugged late last year, but the Yankees are planning to give it another run to open the new season.

Manager Aaron Boone confirmed Sunday that he expects Sanchez to catch Cole on Opening Day against the Blue Jays in The Bronx.

Kyle Higashioka, who became Cole’s personal catcher down the stretch last season and even supplanted Sanchez for nonCole starts in the playoffs, caught the Yankees ace for the second time this spring Sunday afternoon against the Blue Jays at TD Ballpark. But Boone said that was a by-product of wanting Sanchez to catch backto-back games coming out of Thursday’s off day instead of a signal of what was to come.

“I would expect Gary to be behind there Opening Day,” Boone said.

Sanchez, who has only caught Cole in one Grapefruit League game this spring — Cole’s spring debut on March 1 — has been lauded throughout camp for the work he put in both offensively and defensively this offseason. The muchmaligned catcher is seeking redemption this year after a season that general manager Brian Cashman termed as “horrible.”

The last time Sanchez caught Cole in a game that counted was last Aug. 31, before Higashioka — whose experience catching Cole dates back to their high school days as Southern California summer teammates — partnered with him the rest of the way. Cole posted a 3.91 ERA in eight games with Sanchez last year and a 1.79 ERA in seven games with Higashioka — including all three starts Cole made in the playoffs.