The game Hal Steinbrenner gave Gerrit Cole an ocean of money in December to pitch will be played Friday night in San Diego’s Petco Park.

Yankees-Rays in a deciding Game 5 of the ALDS, with the winner facing the Astros in the best-of-seven ALCS that starts Sunday.

Does it get any tastier than two teams that dislike each other with the winner getting the chance to face the Astros and all their baggage from the cheating scandal that rocked baseball?

Adding Tyler Glasnow starting on two days’ rest for the Rays against Cole working with three days’ rest for the first time ever in his career makes it even more delicious. Add in the possibility that Blake Snell could follow Glasnow and it gets better.

Yet, without a bus full of teammates turning in almost a perfect game Thursday night, Cole and the other Yankees would be headed into winter.

So precise were the Yankees in copping Game 4 with a 5-1 victory that Jordan Montgomery allowing one run in four innings to give the Yankees a chance wasn’t the biggest highlight, though it was part of the masterpiece.

“We did a lot of really good things tonight,’’ Aaron Boone said. “Got a couple of big hits and add-on runs. Couple of big home runs, Gleyber [Torres] that gave us breathing room later in the game. That home run by GT was huge. It was good to see the guys play the way they did.’’

Luke Voit opened the second inning with a 453-foot homer to left-center and DJ LeMahieu added a sacrifice fly against Ryan Thompson. Torres’ two-run homer in the sixth off Ryan Yarbrough made it 4-1, and Kyle Higashioka’s second single of the night drove in a run in the ninth.

After Montgomery left, Chad Green, Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman provided five scoreless innings out of the pen, with Chapman pushing the speed guns to 101 mph in his first appearance of the series.

“Tonight was the best job they can do,’’ Torres said of the bullpen.

While you won’t find it in the box score, Higashioka blocking three straight Montgomery pitches in the dirt to Mike Zunino in the third inning with runners on second and third was immense.

So, after using Deivi Garcia for one inning and bringing in J.A. Happ in Game 2 ended badly, the Yankees not only have a chance to get back to the ALCS for a second straight year, they hand the ball to Cole.

“I have spoken to a few guys who have done it before. It is not something that is sustainable for the whole season but the human body is certainly capable of doing it,’’ Cole said of working on short rest. “We saw the [2008] Brewers ride CC [Sabathia] on that magical run. It is what it is, you have to go out there and do your job. When the lights turn on it doesn’t matter if it is three, four, five, six or seven days you have to do your job.’’

Game 4 was a must-win for the Yankees to stay alive. Game 5 is bigger because they are nine innings away from reaching the final step to the World Series, a place the Yankees haven’t been since 2009 when they won it.

“We are going to win it,’’ the always confident Voit predicted about Game 5. “Obviously plan on having Gerrit on the mound and that is the best situation possible for us. We are locked and loaded. Big game for them, too, and we know we are going to get their best. We know what we are going to get and come out fighting.’’

In a baseball season like no other, and hopefully never again, Yankees-Rays for a trip to the ALCS makes for wonderful theater.