The New York Yankees on Monday confirmed the worst-case scenario for ace pitcher Gerrit Cole.
The Yankees announced that Cole will undergo Tommy John surgery on Tuesday. Cole’s diagnosis was confirmed on Monday by Dr. Neal ElAttrache. The pitcher will miss the entirety of the 2025 season.
This was the outcome the Yankees feared, though they had been hoping the surgery might somehow be avoided. Cole had elbow issues in the spring of 2024 as well that cost him the first two months of the regular season, but that was certainly preferable to surgery. Any hopes of a similar outcome this time have been dashed.
The Yankees are left with a big hole at the top of their rotation, and the situation is even worse with reigning AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil set to miss at least the start of the regular season. New free agent signing Max Fried will likely have to pick up the slack, as will Carlos Rodon and potentially even Marcus Stroman.
The injuries have not even been limited to the pitching side of things for the Yankees, as there are concerns about Giancarlo Stanton’s health as well.
Cole posted strong numbers for the Yankees in 2024 despite being limited to 17 starts. He posted a 3.41 ERA and has clearly established himself as the team’s ace, a status punctuated by his AL Cy Young season in 2023.
