The defending AL Cy Young winner will get back on a mound tomorrow. Yankees manager Aaron Boone told the New York beat that Gerrit Cole will throw from a mound on Saturday for the first time in his recovery from elbow inflammation (X link via The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner). The six-time All-Star has been throwing on flat ground in recent weeks.
Boone declined to provide a target for Cole getting back to major league readiness. Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported last night that the right-hander was shooting for a mid-June return. Cole is technically eligible to return from the 60-day injured list during the last week of May, but it seems he’ll need a few weeks beyond that. Cole will need to get through multiple bullpens and live batting practice sessions before he’s ready for a minor league rehab stint, which would require a handful of starts to build his pitch count.
The Yankees are out to a 20-13 start despite losing their ace. New York’s rotation entered play on Friday with the seventh-best ERA (3.48) and fifth-highest strikeout rate (24.3%) in the majors. The quintet of Marcus Stroman, Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodón, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt has taken all but one of the team’s starts. (Cody Poteet handled one spot start.) Each member of the front five has allowed between three and four earned runs per nine. That atypical level of consistency has kept the Yankees near the top of a competitive AL East.
While all of their starters have been productive, none have quite performed at an ace level. A healthy Cole should deliver that kind of production. He’s coming off a 2.63 ERA in an AL-leading 209 innings. That was the fifth sub-3.00 showing of his career. Cole punched out 222 hitters, his sixth time topping 200 punchouts.
Cole is in the fifth season of his nine-year, $324MM free agent deal. He can opt out of the remaining four seasons at the end of this year, but the Yankees could override that by triggering a $36MM club option covering the 2029 season.
1 week later: Gerrit Cole to undergo Tommy John surgery.
If I were the Yankees, I would be praying his elbow holds up the rest of the season and then let him walk. Every pitchers breaks eventually. Cole has been great for the Yankees. They should get out while they can. That TJ surgery is coming sooner or later.
He’s been so durable for so long, but that option needs to be on the table. It’s going to be an evaluation season that’s for sure. Just how damaged is he. It’s terrible to think this way because Cole is one of the best pitchers in baseball, but this is a cruel sport too…
That would be true if he actually had ligament damage in his elbow rather than the garden-variety joint inflammation pitchers often experience.
What is garden variety joint inflammation? Inflammation does not just magically happen, it is the body reacting to something. Now it does not necessarily mean ligament damage. It is in no way good though.
Agree but thats not how Cashman works. He likes to add more money for aging veterans that are ready to breakdown and hamstrung the team further. Its the Yankees way!
Walk? He is owed 36 million a year until 2029. The option is with Cole not the Yankees. He wont walk. He wants 144 million. He is no fool. If he cant pitch this yr he will not opt out and roll the dice.
I wonder if Cole will be the same when he returns, he will either solidify the yankees race to the division or potentially get hurt again
Or he’ll be mediocre, or maybe Spider-Man will fly out of his butt…wait, that was Sabathia.
Should of had surgery 2 months ago. This team’s offense is horrible
Surgery for inflammation, doc? 3rd in the AL for runs scored; 2nd in HR; 4th in OPS… I can keep going.
Should’ve, not should of
Fingers crossed !
Not sure who will get bumped from the rotation when he returns, but these things usually work themselves out.
Man, Gil has looked amazing, so I assume it will be the innings-limited Clarke Schmidt. He seems perfectly suited for the long relief role.
As a Red Sox fan I can’t wait for him to come back so Raffy can continue to own him!
TOO BAD HE CAN’T BAT
Nestor needs to pitch out of the pen.
Agree. Everyone is saying either Gil or Schmidt gets knocked out of the rotation, and knowing Boone, it may well be. But, the best idea is to keep them in and put Nasty Nestor in the pen where he will he an upgrade and has experience.
I was looking through the starting five and Nestor would be my choice. However, he’s a vet and was the OD starter so I don’t see Boone doing that. Gil has been better than Schmidt so perhaps they have him piggyback Cole’s starts intially as he ramps up to give the pen a rest.
Agreed, but much like when DJL returns, we know what choices will be made. Regardless of how well those two perform, one of them (Schmidt imo) will be relegated to the bullpen. Likewise, we will suffer through DJ’s subpar at-bats while Cabrera receives inconsistent opportunities from the bench, all while listening to Boone talk about how good DJ’s swings are looking.
Btw, did anyone see Stanton swing at the ball that started in the opposing batter’s box and sweep farther outside from there? I like Stanton, but he’s not an everyday hitter at this point.
Watching the game now. Stanton and Torres look completely off-balance with their ABs. I’m ready to move on from them both when the Martian and Peraza are ready even if they may not be productive right away.
And what in the world was Rizzo doing running into mid-RF?
These guys are not playing sound baseball, at all. I was worried with the fast start it would be like 2022 all over again, and it seems that’s the case so far.
Boone’s decision to not win the O’s game is inexcusable because of Holmes’ “80-game pace.” He’s a terrible manager.
Pretty much,
Cole returns at 100 percent= deep playoff run
Cole subpar or reinjured = 1st round exit