Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees appear to have avoided a worst-case scenario.
The Yankees ace and reigning Cy Young winner will avoid Tommy John surgery and instead go with a rest and rehab routine for his throwing elbow after meeting with surgeon D. Neal ElAttrache, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand. Cole’s timetable is reportedly hoped to be around 10-12 weeks.
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The decision affirms previous reporting around Cole’s health, which indicated he could miss one or two months. A 10-week timetable starting Thursday would mean a return around mid-May for Cole, who will begin the season on the injured list.
Worries around Cole’s elbow grew steadily over the previous few days as the Yankees had him go through a series of medical consults. It’s not hard to understand why the Yankees would be cautious with the right-hander, as there might not be a team in MLB that could less afford to lose its top starting pitcher for a significant amount of time.
With Cole out, the Yankees will enter 2024 with a rotation containing something along the lines of Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodón, Marcus Stroman, Clarke Schmidt and Clayton Beeter. That’s not exactly a group that screams AL East contender, despite the Yankees’ upgrades elsewhere.
The Yankees finished 82-80 with a fully healthy Cole last year, 19 games behind the division champion Baltimore Orioles. The team could still theoretically sign a free agent pitcher like Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery, but that would require a significant reversal of how they’ve approached those players this offseason.
