March 16: Cole will be shut down for the next three to four weeks before re-evaluating his condition, the Yankees ace told reporters, including Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. He added that it is too soon to determine a date for his return (per Hoch). The reigning AL Cy Young winner is nursing some nerve inflammation and edema, which he is planning to treat with “rest and recovery.” He does not anticipate getting any PRP injections.
March 14: The Yankees and their fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Jon Heyman and Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post report that defending AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole is expected to avoid surgery after further evaluation on his ailing elbow. The recommendation is for a treatment program of rest and non-surgical rehab.
Heyman and Sanchez report that Cole is expected to be out for roughly one to two months. Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets that the timeline for a return to MLB action should be closer to 10-12 weeks. In either case, surgery isn’t on the table at present and the Yankees should get their ace back within the season’s first half.
That was the initial expectation. Team doctors reportedly identified the issue as elbow inflammation and concluded that Cole’s ulnar collateral ligament was intact. He nevertheless visited noted orthopedic surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache for additional testing today. It seems that in-person evaluation confirmed the initial indication that Cole has not sustained any UCL damage.
It’s a positive development given the concern any time a pitcher, especially one at Cole’s level, heads for an MRI on his throwing elbow. Still, the Yankees are going to have to navigate the early portion of the schedule without him. If the timeline checks in closer to 10-12 weeks, he probably wouldn’t make his season debut until June. There’s a chance he winds up on the 60-day injured list.
There’s obviously no way to replace a pitcher of Cole’s caliber, but his absence puts additional pressure on the rotation depth. Carlos Rodón, Marcus Stroman and Nestor Cortes project as the top three arms in the season-opening rotation. Clarke Schmidt is penciled into the fourth spot. There’s not a clear #5 starter at the moment. Prospect Clayton Beeter is on the 40-man roster, as are Yoendrys Gómez and Luis Gil. The latter two were optioned to minor league camp in the first week of March, suggesting they’re a bit further down the depth chart. Chase Hampton and Will Warren are not on the 40-man roster, but they’re upper level starting pitching prospects with more advanced control than Beeter has shown in the minors. Luke Weaver has plenty of starting experience and returned to the Yankees via $2MM free agent deal. He’s coming off a 6.40 ERA season.
The Yankees could benefit from adding veteran stability to the back end. They recently checked in with Michael Lorenzen, arguably the #3 starter still on the free agent market. Lorezen certainly doesn’t have the upside of either of the top two unsigned pitchers, Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery, but he’d come at nowhere near the cost. That’s an obvious concern for a franchise that would pay a 110% tax on further spending.
If New York expected Cole to miss the entire season, perhaps that’d have increased their urgency to land one of Snell or Montgomery regardless of the money. That seems less likely with the Yankees anticipating Cole’s return in late May or early June, but a mid-tier arm like Lorenzen or Mike Clevinger could remain in play.
So… now he can get surgery in 3-4 months and risk the 2025 season rather than get it now?
Maybe he’s hoping he can come back and dominate for a bit in order to opt out and get that extra year added by the team.
…then he will need surgery in earnest.
Yeah maybe he’s hoping to sucker a team like deGrom did.
I thought this was a well-written article about all the things likely going through Cole’s mind as he chose how to proceed.
nj.com/yankees/2024/03/yankees-gerrit-cole-faces-t…
You gotta post your login information. I’m not subscribing to nj.com from the opposite coast.
If you get the article to come up in Google, it should let you in from there. I don’t have an account.
@all in the suit. Thanks for the tip. That was a good read.
Google the words archive and ph then this will not be an issue
Smells a lot like boras up in here
How much of this (the injuries between Cole & Judge) are being caused by returning to play too early in the offseason to stay fresh, instead of resting?
Regardless if he dominates or not Yankees will let him walk rather than risk adding another $36 million what will be 5/180 left starting his age 35 season. Hard pass especially with Soto going to cost a ton and Yankees be better off going after a younger Corbin Burnes for virtually similar money.
Anthony,
I’d say the odds are slim that Cole will opt out of 5/$180M given his current circumstances.
Its 4/144. The 5/180 is if Yankees decide to exercise his option adding the extra year. Cole is very prideful and dont be surprised if he gambles against himself cause remember Verlander, DeGrom and Scherzewer all got 3-5 yr deals with $43 million avv at much higher age. Cole and Boras will call Yankees bluff as some team will pay him say 5/212. It all depends on how much Cole likes NY and playing for the Yankees and of course the health of his elbow.
Yanks keep him if he wants to stay, he has proven he can pitch in NY, and he was the best pitcher in baseball going into this season. Pitching wins championships in baseball.
He can’t pitch in NY or any place else with a damaged right elbow. Unless, of course, the Yankees teach him to throw 95 mph lefthanded.
@redsoxx precisely. wouldn’t it be nice to collect those paychecks not pitching for 2 years.
Joe K,
Only if Cole was a lazy bum, which he certainly isn’t to get where he is.
Bad decision. This is going to backfire. He’ll rehab, make a couple of starts, and then the TJ will follow.
Probably but you can understand not wanting to go under the knife before trying other noninvasive procedures especially for one who has never had and type of pitching related surgery.
Do you have a crystal ball?
Hey man, this has happened to how many pitchers before Cole? It always goes the same way because something is causing the inflammation– right? Just because Cole stops activity and everything calms down in his elbow it will not eliminate the issue that caused the inflammation in the first place. And once he starts pitching again it will get worse and if he needs TJ he will in fact lose the rest of this season and all of next. History always repeats itself.
Its not the appendix. You just have severe gastritis. Gee, doc, couldn’t you just remove it now?
I mean if there’s no damage and it’s just inflamed then you don’t just get the surgery anyways.
Some don’t even come back the same pitcher after the surgery. If you can avoid it you should. It doesn’t even sound like he needs it.
Card – You are absolutely right, but there’s also a lack of trust issue at play. Are they simply delaying the inevitable surgery just to wait out signing a free agent pitcher until their price drops significantly in March or April? It’s a possibility.
I guess you are a world renowned sports surgeon giving free advice after reviewing all the test results and an in person exam…..
You may be speaking above your pay grade, sir.
Rest is recommended until all of his fellow Boras’ clients are signed.
It appears it is when at all costs this year for the Yankees …. unless it means adding Spencer Jones to a trade package. Yankees prospects do tend to be vastly overrated ….. However, they somehow manage to keep most of the ones who pan out.
Which Yankee prospects have out over the past 5 years?
When or Win?
I think he went to see Tor Eckman. Eckman told him to stop using hot water on his elbow.
Next he’s got to complete the feats of strength
Yankess want a mid June return.. anyone here think this is going to happen…
are you referring to Cole, Nasty, or Rondon or …..all three!!! You know its all coming down the pike
He’d still miss most if not all of 2025 if he had surgery now.
Exactly. Especially with the investment they have in him. If he had the surgery now he would be severely limited in 2025 anyway. If he pitched at all. Might as well see if he can make it back this year.
Every time that a pitcher has elbow inflammation to one degree or another, the Light Brigade comes out in force to tell everyone that they know what should be done. “Get the surgery now” they all scream and yell from their armchairs, without any medical degree or knowledge of the individual injury in question.
The reality for almost EVERY pitcher in the game is that pitching hurts. It is a process that is managed throughout a career, and it can be difficult at times to tell the difference between “normal” pain, and something that indicates a more serious issue. There is an order of business to go through when there is an issue, and no one simply opts for surgery as a first resort.
Every pitcher has some damage in there, as the pitching motion and stresses are well beyond our normal design configuration. Rest and proper rehab are actually better choices in the long run if the damage is not too great. In short, y’all should probably watch the games, and leave the medical advice to the medical professionals, team doctors and physical therapists.
I don’t think there’s a need to question multiple medical experts who recommend against surgery, but what the hell do I know?
Without access to the sticky stuff he will never be the same pitcher without TJS surgery! 144M and 4 years left on that contract! Can’t give players contracts that run past their age 35 season! Very rarely works out for the club in the long run! This is how your payroll ends up in the highest luxury tax level hamstringing the club from making improvements! Snell, Montgomery or Clevenger!
Rest and Rehab & if that doesn’t work out—he’s probably done for 2 seasons.
Hope not though. Fun to watch him pitch.
The fact that they say his UCL is fully intact is a huge sigh of relief. It’s not uncommon for pitchers to get inflammation somewhere in the arm (shoulder or elbow) when they’ve thrown as much as Cole has. There are no surgical options to fix this issue unless there are muscle or tendon frays that are rubbing on the nerves; then they can shave down the frays to stop the irritation and swelling.
They’ll figure out the right anti-inflammatories to use and once he’s back on the mound, they’ll figure out how to treat future, minor flare ups as well. He should be able to come back 100% provided they are not lying to us about his condition. He may need extra rest from time to time but I think there’s a good chance we’ll see vintage Cole again this year provided the news released about his condition is accurate.
Your answer is too intelligent for most fans
Of course you’d say the longest recovery time for such a rehab to make it sound as worse as possible
We have two similar cases in Cole and Bradish. Will be interesting to see how each does or if they both eventually get surgery.
Bradish actually has a sprained UCL so his is more in line with Aaron Nola’s injury from 2016 which did not require surgery.
So does that mean Bradish has the worse diagnosis of the two?
Yes. Sprained UCL > elbow inflammation
Whoa, hold up! How do you opt in for surgery for “inflammation?” Is surgery a possibility? If so, for what injury it is an option? If it’s not, how is there any other option than rest and rehab?
Typical Yankees injury handling. Something is not kosher……
What’s going to happen when the two months are up, and the worst happens, his elbow keeps getting inflammation? This solution doesn’t have a lot of unfortunately…
Im not doctor, but perhaps they attributed the inflammation to his UCL and figured it would TJS or a brace would be put in.
Then when inflammation died down enough to examine the damage, they determined the damage wasn’t great enough to conclusively be treated with surgery and left the decision up to the patient?
That is the most plausible theory, Chipotle.
Chipotle: That’s as good a theory as any. The problem from the Yankees side is: there was never any indication that there was UCL damage. His imaging was “clean” and they had several doctors review it (4 total I think) who all concurred that there was “no structural damage.” In fact, they said there was never any pain, he said as just “not recovering between starts.”
So, I don’t get how he could opt for surgery, which is implied in the reports. It’s just very, very strange to me.
That is strange. Sounds like not recovering was prolonged inflammation after pitching. I would think that would be somewhat normal in spring training since it is a ramp up to the season.
Clipper: From the article I linked above:
“While Cole’s ulnar collateral ligament is still intact, a battery of tests found signs of stress. The wear and tear wasn’t acute, but the tissue isn’t pristine, either. It’s what a veteran like Cole should expect after 11 years and 2,000 innings in the big leagues.”
Suit: I missed that link, man! Thank you! So, as far as I can tell the surgical option would likely be a brace at this time, to support the ligament? Ugh, that is not a good prognosis, imo.
Thanks again, man, that’s great additional information.
@suit That article was written before the Dr. Neal ElAttrache examination. That’s only Klapisch purely speculating with no cited sources nor even an anonymous one. He’s also talked about PRP treatment and is all over the place.
Flashbacks of deGrom spring 2021.
Read again chipotle there.is.no.damage. It doesn’t say it is some degree of damage, there’s nothing to repair, it’s inflammation that requires other options rest, medication some sort of excercise etc etc
It’s going to tear.
Very strong Dinelson Lamet vibes here, geez I hope I’m wrong.
Definitely doesnt bode well.
Maybe not but the rehabbing inflammation leads to a delayed surgery so often. Not always but this is definitely concerning.
In those cases, there was some damage.
In this case, there.is.no.structural.damage.
Clipper, remember when Tanaka had a partial UCL tear in 2014? He didn’t end up having TJ so who knows.
Yeah, Craven, that’s my first thought. And with as much of an animal as Cole is, he’s the one that could come back from it.
I am soooooooo reluctant to hope for the best though. Seems like it never works out that way for the Yankees of late.
The thing is Tanaka was pretty productive throughout the rest of his Yankee career, he had occasional injuries that affected him but otherwise he had a lower WHIP than Mike Mussina did during his tenure in pinstripes.
If rest is what the Doc said, then that’s what you do, everything else is a major guess. Time to get out your 8 ball.
I mean that surgeon is supposed to be one of the best so I hope the right decision was made.
@Buzz
The real question is who is paying the surgeon.
Rest and non surgical rehab… I don’t have a lot of faith…..
Whew
That was close
Well, if Cole’s UCL is intact… Got to handle to those insurance companies boy protecting those invested millions… God lord in heaven!!!
Extra rest and some PRP chicken noodle soup for you little Garrett. It’ll be better soon.
This never results in eventual surgery….
It didn’t require surgery for Masahiro Tanaka–when internet keyboard “doctors” were calling for him get TJS. The fact is, some pitchers recover from elbow pain/inflammation without surgery but we don’t usually get stories about those.
Masahiro Tanaka, Ervin Santana, Anthony DeSclafani, & Aaron Nola didnt require surgery
I see where this is heading as Cole is motivated by his opt out and add’l $36 million he stands to gain but he better be careful cause even if he comes back healthy and finishes strong I pray that Yankees let him walk rather than risk being on the hook for 5/180 entering his age 35 season. This is going to end ugly one way or another.
This is what you don’t sign long term deals with older pitchers. 2 & 3 year deals is the way of the future
Darvish deal comes to mind. Will he hold up in to his 40s?
Doesn’t really seem like a sigh of relief moment…
So now he’s going to miss 2024 AND 2025 from TJS.
Sounds like he’ll get a few starts in this year before…you know…
Yeah Mike, kinda reminds me of deGrom last year.
Reading is fundamental.
Sometimes, there is not a conspiracy theory.
What needs to be done eventually, must be done immediately.
The beatings will continue until morale improves.
I agree totally, if everyone involved is this concerned why not “bite the bullet – sort of speak” now & have the surgery ASAP? That way the team has him back for the last 3rd of next season & hopefully the playoffs as well. But if you wait ‘til the middle of this year to only find out oops….then you’ve just lost all of next season as well. IDK who will ultimately make this decision – Cole himself? But wow, this has the potential to go badly sooner vs later. And if this does go badly, I’m not sure we can even blame Cashman …..♂️
The ultimate decision for surgery is always up to the patient. That being said, it sounds like Cole isn’t a candidate for surgery.
Even though doctors are saying surgery is not required. Ok buddy. Please tell me what state you’re licensed in as an orthopedic surgeon.
Good morning, no you missed my point completely. What I’m saying is this, in the 50ish years I’ve been a fan of this sport, I can think of only one star pitcher (Tanaka?) who was able to pitch through a similar injury. Even then, professional sports writers said he never pitched the same after that injury…
Outside of Tanaka, does this ever work? Even Tanaka suffered a loss in his overall stuff. Likely outcome is he misses all of 2025 now too. Sign Snell.
Tanaka had damage. Cole does not.
Hopefully the Yankees kept the receipt on Juan Soto, maybe they can still return him and get some of their pitching back.
The Padres foresaw buyer’s remorse and passed on the Yankees’ main chip before they could ask for him back!
The minor league pitcher of the year might out perform Cole and cease this season. Ya never know
Who on this forum is a surgeon? He went to the best Doctor for this and did not recommend surgery. Do you think he would put his reputation on the line?
Seriously though. How often does this strategy work out?
With that being said they need to sign a Starter either top or mid starter!
When there is no damage, most of the time.
@pando- Or he gave 2 options. Surgery or the brace.
He also declined having both arms removed and reattached to the opposite sides. That way, he won’t have to pitch left handed, but would have to pitch with his back to the batter.
pando8888
Who on this forum is a surgeon?
=======================
I trust the doctors, but no one on here is a surgeon, a GM, a former player etc. They are all semi-vague guesses.
I hope it works for him. I’ve never seen this approach work for anyone.
Masahiro Tanaka
We’ll see what the story is in 12 weeks.
Because doing that never comes back to bite people..
He’s gonna end up blowing it out.
What a HORRIBLE decision..
Ok a lot of naysayers and internet Marcus Welbys here, but sheesh NYY went out of their way to make sure everything was kosher here and the BEST gave him the ok to go this way at this time. Either way you need to let the swelling come down for an even more conclusive evaluation and I’m sure he’ll get tested again before doing any rehab.
More importantly, I’m almost positive the wording in these articles makes it seem like TJ surgery was on the table, but if there’s no tear present there’s no surgery necessary. I doubt ElAtrattche presented it as any choice unless it was for exploratory surgery like Walker Buehler had done–which was where his tear was finally found. Unfortunately, you need to get there first. You can’t go in guns blazing if Cole and multiple docs think it’s possible to heal up this way. Surgery is ALWAYS the last resort.
They did get a second opinion, but failed to consult all the commenter’s opinions here. Massive oversight and dangerous !
We need to get that rectified, right away oldgfan.
And it hasn’t been said that it’s his UCL causing inflammation. Joints and tendons can cause inflammation too.
Right, his UCL is undamaged from what they can see at present time and that’sthe most important piece of info. Not even a partial tear like Tanaka had. There’s no reason to go against that and no reason to not try rest and rehab.
It almost never works out, man. Betcha he blows it out this season and has to miss 10+ starts in ‘25 because of it.
I don’t claim to be a Dr..but am a life long baseball fan, and I’m going on what I’ve seen in the past.
Doesn’t matter, you always go this route. There’s no surgery to be done right now. Timetable is what it is and the results are what they are, but it isn’t unprecedented either to move past this. Again I’ll bring up Tanaka!
Salzilla. Which is why it is even more imperative they do something about the rotation in the meantime. I don’t expect an ace anymore with the luxury tax implications. but they do need bona fide major league pitchers as depth.
100%. This has been the biggest need of the offseason and Marcus “I don’t want to pitch Opening Day” Stroman wasn’t it.
You’re right about that Salzilla!
First we watched Trout waste a career, and now Judge. Poverty franchises. Maybe the Yankers can recoup 1/5th of the value they traded for Soto at the deadline.
Forget the money! Sign Snell or Montgomery and if Cole comes back then that is the cherry on top at this point!
An ominous sign. Is it possible that it worsens? We’ve seen that a million times. I hate this about pitching. The delay of TJS is the absolute worst. I pray the ligament is in full health
No need to pray. He has been examined by 4 of the worlds best and it is.
Not a Yankee fan but Cole not pitching is bad for baseball. There are very few true #1’s and when one goes down the games loses a little luster.
“Bad for baseball…game loses a little luster”…There was a time, not that long ago, when the game of professional baseball in the USA revolved around the Red Sox vs Yankees rivalry. Since then, I believe MLB has gotten deeper, younger, more balanced and has enough star power where the loss of one player, albeit a great one, does not derail the entire season. In recent seasons MLB has lost Acuna, Ohtani, Judge and Trout for extended periods of time. If MLB can withstand that, MLB can survive without Gerrit Cole for however long it takes. All that being said, I wish Gerrit Cole Godspeed in his recovery.
I got a bad feeling about this.
A bit surprised so many orthopaedic specialists are taking the time to post their prognosis here. Thank you
Again I will ask how often does this strategy work out?
Off Topic. Does anyone know when MLBTR will post the” Angels sign Blake Snell” article? Asking for Arte Moreno
Tomorrow
What are the odds he delays TJS long enough to opt out of his contract?
Do you really think he is opting out after this news? I’d say the chances were close to -0-.
I’m not a Dr. but do you need a tear to have surgery and he doesn’t have a tear? So what would they be repairing?
Pitchers have minor surgeries to remove elbow bone spurs sometimes. His visit concluded that there was no UCL damage. We don’t even know if it’s his UCL which caused the inflammation. There can be a number of other things which can cause it. Anyway, we’ll find out more with further testing once the inflammation subsides.
This does not make me feel much better bleacher creatures. I fear that it only delays the inevitable. Hope I am wrong.
And we still need another reliable pitcherin the meantime, and even after Mr. Cole gets back. And I don’t mean Cashman’s usual dumpster diving, either they better move, heaven and earth to get someone in the rotation, and now. Not wait till the Ted deadline. What are your thoughts?
@DR2020 I get it as history with other players has shown. Let’s hope it was all Cole being extra cautious covering his bases. With a better offense, at least on paper, I feel the Yankees can wait to see how Cole progresses. Besides signing and committing long-term to Monty or Snell, they can still knock on a few unknown doors for a trade.
Thanks for that sage analysis, bleacher creatures. your viewpoint, gives me some hope. I will try to look at things from your angle ,from now on with this. And yes, I agree they still need to get some major league arms as depth. I hope they will.
DR – Only three things can happen and two are bad!!!
1 – No surgery and he’s fine in two or three months.
2 – The process is strung out like it was for Sale and he loses two years of playing time.
3 – He has TJ now and loses nearly two years of playing time. but might make the 2025 playoffs if the team has that much success.
The Red Sox screwed it up with Sale and he lost two full years. Is it worth the risk of losing a second full year by waiting and hoping? Tough call.
You nailed it,Trollfree!
So I guess Nestor pitches Opening Day!
They should trade Soto for pitching
Probably as he’s no guarantee for next year. I don’t think trading for him was a good idea unless they do re-sign him.
Midway, that’s the funniest thing I have heard in a long time. It would be just like the Yankees to do it, also. That would also be like saying they should’ve traded Mr. Cole last year, when they needed hitting.
I was a joke, as a Padre fan I know the pain of having to trade Soto for pitching
Cole’s good for baseball, hope he fully recovers asap. The two sportswriters I have the least confidence in? Heyman and Nightengale. At least Heyman owns some of his clubs ie Arson Judge. Did Nightengale ever own his lousy reporting indicating that Alex Dickerson violated Covid protocol? Or apologize to Alex?
Nah, they’ll try this, it won’t work, and then it’s TJ with 2 months time lost.
So what is gonna happen is this. He will be back in 3 months. Pitch good and opt out. Make the Yankees add a year or 2. Then next spring he gonna have the surgery and basically turn into Chris Sale.
Do you not understand that Cole’s opt out is only 1/36 added as he cannot become a free agent or get more years unless Yankees decline to trigger their end of the opt in clause! I promise you if Cole is dumb enough to opt out with this injury he wont be a Yankee in 2025. No way they taking further risk as this is an opening for Steinbrenner to get out of this massive deal and get under the cap next year with addl $97 million coming off the books.
Hoping that Cole’s elbow is not that bad. He might also realized that this organization has no desire to win a World Series. Hopefully, he will end up on a team like the Dodgers who want to win! Instead of wasting his skills for a khaki bean counting owner with a trash can gm scrapping the bottom of the barrell to fill out the 40 man roster.
U deserve the post of the day!
I’m going to exit the comments now and leave things to the unlicensed internet doctors who know what’s best for a patient they have never seen and whose MRI images they have never looked at.
If surgery was on the table as an alternative option, that’s a tough spot to be in for Cole. Anyhow, good luck to him.
Its apparent, what they really need on this site is the expertise of a ….
brain surgeon.
They’re all disciples of Dr. Vinnie Boombatz
He doesn’t have a tear but still needs medical treatment and rest, so what exactly is the issue that a winter off didnt seem to prevent?
Seesm like something does not add on the Cole timeline.. If he is shut down for a month. will there not be a get in MLB playing shape time.. At least a month…He was off all winter.. He came to training camp with this issue? Fantasy baseball.. Do not draft…
What’s the point of leaving Trevor Bauer off of this list when most Yankee fans that have been commenting or calling into talk radio shows have brought his name into the conversation? Not all are singing his praises but seems like majority of those callers on wfan want the Yankees to sign him. Like him or not he has not been charged with anything and players with much worse reputations have not been treated like he has.
Bauer whistled blowed the STICKY STUFF and who was one of their best known users? Gotcha. Cole’s good 4 BB then any treat to that is bad 4 bb. Sorry Trev you’ve been blackballed,the Canseco Treatment..and this coming from a yankee’s follower since 1975 that would love to have Terror Bauer on the mound every 5th day.
Cynical and desperate,
I’m a cardinal fan and I’m happy he’s not out. The game is just better when the stars are playing.
Just get the surgery you need it there just telling you to rest for 2 months. Then you come back and it happens again and you just wasted another season get it now
I think a six man rotation should be in order once Cole’s back, sign one of the 5 best remaining guys, listed in order of excellence, Snell, Bauer, Monty, Lorenzen and/or Clevinger. Or be spicy and sign two. These range from league minimum to break the “bank”, now I don’t expect them to sign anyone, they’ll test their depth and realize all their depth is starting elsewhere in the league on recent lopsided trade deals or acquisitions. Seeing as no one penciled into the projected starting 5 has exceeded 190IP LY and that was only one of the guys, to expect these starting 5 to carry you into Oct is asinine or brilliant as they’re all refreshed from less of a work load last year. It sure seems though they’re all trending in the wrong direction. We shall see, I keep refreshing the site, hoping for a signing.
Ok ready guys he will need surgery I am calling it now and iam not a dr.
But you play one on tv. Right?
Manoah looks like he has gone the way of Rick Ankiel pitching. Bradish and Cole look like land mines. Orioles still have a ton and should win the division but man has the door opened up for the Rays.
All the NYY haters are absolutely gutted that the Empire caught a huge break. Six weeks rest and a little PRP and Cole is gonna be just fine. If his UCL hasn’t popped after the number of innings this guy has thrown, it ain’t gonna pop. Like the idea of grabbing Michael Lorenzen as an add-on. Put him with Matt Blake, (aka The Pitch Whisperer) and he’s a solid 3-4. And their offense is gonna score tons of runs. Giddy-up.
“Wildcard, here we come!!!!”
“32… 32… 32…” The number of times the Yankees have been booted from the playoffs. The last 2 times they were swept. Going for the Three-Peat!
I’m still skeptical and have been since the Yankees signed that mega contract. I hope he comes back fine, but we’ve seen time and again where discomfort after discomfort leads to TJS.
You got that right evil empire.
Despite the obvious issues with the Yankees pitching, which I am sure they will address at some point during the season in someway, their offense is going to be incredible this year, and could very well carry them.
And if you wish to put a positive spin on it, Cole will miss a few months of the season, he will return towards the middle of the year, and he will be fresh for the postseason.
If Stanton and Rizzo raise their averages,I agree, but time and time again, the all or nothing homerun approach does not work.
2024 Yankees focusing on the 3rd best pitcher available at the time… remember the days of George Steinbrenner? He would have had Snell and Montgomery in the rotation as soon as Cole walked off the pitcher’s mound.
So all the actual doctors determined that Cole’s ligament isn’t torn and he doesn’t need surgery, but all the non-doctors on here say he should get the surgery over with. That’s like having a cavity and telling the dentist to do a root canal just to get it over with.
Nailed it prov456z.
For this recommending surgery, if he does that, he misses 2024, more of 2025, and probably wouldn’t be effective to 2026.
If he takes three months off, decides he needs surgery, nothing much about that changes. Maybe his return is delayed until Sept 25 instead of July.
Rehab seems like the least risky option.
I’ve been a Bluejay fan all my life and always disliked the Yankees. However I do like some of your players. Aaron Judge is great and I always liked Juan Soto and Marcus Stroman. You guys have a pretty good team this year. Good luck
I like them adding some left handed hitters in Verdugo, Soto and Grisham. They should never have been so thin on corner OFers… that was a shame. If Rizzo can stay healthy… Wells performs for them… the lineup should be solid. Defense is decent also. The rotation is worrisome. Cole, Rodon, Stroman and Cortes is a solid rotation… but with Cole out, it really weakens it. They need a top starter like Snell. Then when Cole comes back they would have 2 aces and 3 very solid starters.
I agree with you, but with the luxury, tax implications, and knowing the Yankees, they’re not going to spend the money or prospect capital on a top of the picture. Maybe at the trade deadline if one is available that they can acquire since they would be much cheaper at that point the best we can hope for is they get a depth piece.
Not ideal obviously, but it will help. I suspect the offense will have to carry them this year.
Melchez17, now it looks like they have a lot of lefty hitters, but Grisham is not a good hitter, i’ll put Wells over Verdugo in the batting order and Rizzo is looking as the player he was before Tatis crashed unto his head. Yanks will be fine, there’s a long season ahead of us and all the top teams have a great chance to go to the dance, so enjoy it as it comes, injuries are part of the game.
Defense looks bad. League worst range at the infield corners and the OF defense looks weak.
This is not a great sign. Maybe he makes a full recovery, though I’ve seen time and again where inflammation leads to TJS. Happened to Chris Sale too after he came back from an injury.
I agree, it’s not a good sign. This merely delays what will probably be a Tommy John surgery anyway.
Yanks better get some pitching or they will be watching the postseason from the couch
Seeing them fail to make the playoffs again would be sweet.
I dont feel sorry for the pitchers or owners as the past 5-7 yrs we have seen an alarming trend with a significant amount of pitchers getting TJS due to their high velocities. This can be avoided by going with a 6 man rotation to allow starters 5 full days rest in between starts and less wear and tear on their arms. Increase the 26 man roster to 27 to allow another bullpen arm and the pitchers must lower their demands when it comes to salaries since their workload drops from 32 to 25 starts. No mlb pitcher with that high risk worth $35-45 million, it’s ridiculous and their careers likely be prolonged with these changes.
Best of luck for Cole, he is one of the best pitchers I have seen. I put him in the class with Koufax, Seaver, Maddux, Gisbson, Spahn, Carlton,Johnson, DeGrom, Verlander, Clemens, Martinez, Scherzer, and Kershaw.
Cole is an ace, and seems to be on a trajectory that leads to the HOF, probably first ballot.
But he ain’t Pedro Martinez. He ain’t Randy Johnson. And he sure as hell ain’t no Sandy Koufax.
Cole cheats as much as Clemens, so there’s that.
I’d like someone to go through the past 20+ years and count the times “rest and rehab” has worked for elbow inflammation, and how often it has just postponed TJS a few months and a few starts. It feels like rest and rehab never works, but I suspect there’s a lot of confirmation bias at work in that feeling. I would assume that the medical professionals wouldn’t recommend it if it doesn’t actually work.
Nerve inflammation from irritation is about as low grade as you can get. No structural damage or tears. The biggest issue now is they don’t have Cole for a couple months. If only Hal could figure out some way to address that.
Great news for everyone!
Boone had already announced Nestor, Rodon, Stroman, and Schmidt. I expect them to rotate guys like Gil, Beeter, and Warren in the fifth spot which isn’t really what we want.
@bleachercreatures, to quote a famous philosopher”
You can’t always get what you want,
But if you try, sometimes
Well, you might find
You get what you need”
That same famous philosopher also said “you make a grown man cry, you make a dead man come (with a u)”
Mick Jagger a philosopher. I love it !!!
Adam Levine has the moves like him
the injury might just end up being a long-term positive if any of those 3 are for real. cole’s absence will force them to find out what they have (i’m especially interested in watching gil)
Don’t hold your breath, Lord.
Until all tickets are sold then ooops Cole will need Tommy John, smdh at the sheeple fans that believe their BS every year. All in is all propaganda, Hal would’ve made a great politician, lol!
He will sit and about the ASB they will do the surgery and cross off 24 and 25
I don’t think the non surgical route works very often if ever. He should probably just have surgery so he’s ready for next year.
Surgery on what?
He has inflammation.
Unless everyone is lying, the is no structural damage to repair.
And I realize that because it’s the Yankees, they might be lying about the injury.
But would Cole lie?
He lied about using spider tack
So did every pitcher who was using it.
Others admitted using it.
He’ll get 2 starts in June and then undergo TJ surgery, thus wiping out this season and next season.
Been a Yankees fan all my life. I read all these comments and bottom line is history is always the best teacher. He will need surgery at some point. Get it now Gerrit and Hal sign Snell!
Nerve surgery? For inflammation?
Judge and Cole are shopping, cars, new houses etc. Stanton soon to join after playing RF today….
Cole speaks to the fans who think they know more than he does or the doctors do
nypost.com/2024/03/16/sports/gerrit-cole-reveals-h…
“I mean, it’s not a common experience for me,” he said. “I haven’t really dealt with anything like this before. Anytime you’re going through something for the first time, there’s a little bit of uncertainty. But I have a lot of arrogance.”
Breaking news, in 6 weeks Cole will experience pain in his elbow and will require Tommy John’s surgery
If the money even at +110% is ‘relevant’ to Steinbrenner, he’ll continue to drive the franchise in public estimation ever lower.
Cashman has dealt away pitching the way a fat men devours a plate of bacon, and the Yankees’ rotation is now thin as razors going into the season for which they traded great pitching value for Soto+.
They need Montgomery. Durable, reliable, good postseason guy if they get there,keeps as many as those current (with Cole down) #5s and worse off the mound.
Hal – sign a pitcher or two – inevitable there will be other pitcher injuries
He won’t pitch again till 2026, watch. We’ve all seen this before. He’s gonna rehab, it will fail like it does for EVERYONE, then towards the mid-season he’ll go under the knife. After TJ surgery he’ll miss all next season. That’s too bad, the Yankees are done for the season.
this may be a bit off the subject ,but i have an idea after this season ,shut mlb down in 25.get every pitcher including minor leaugers then by 26 start baseball again.another suggestion is put a speed limit on pitchers,any pitch thrown over 99 mph is an automatic ball.
What does any of that solve? Hard throwing isn’t hurting g pitchers. Nolan Ryan was never hurt. Neither was Yom Seaver, Bob Gibson, Mickey Lolich, I can go on and on.