Latest Gerrit Cole Injury Update is Major Sigh of Relief for Yankees Fans

New York Yankees fans can take a deep breath as they receive hopeful news regarding the health of star pitcher Gerrit Cole on Thursday. 

There was a fear that the Yankees’ ace could potentially miss a significant amount of time this season after undergoing an MRI on his elbow earlier this week. However, USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale reported that Cole should be able to return to the Yankees’ starting staff in 10-12 weeks. 

This latest news from Nightengale on Thursday night coincides with Jon Heyman’s report from Wednesday. The MLB Insider said that Cole would miss at least 1-2 months as he was on his way to meet with sports surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

That said, a 1-2 month timeline is completely different than 10-12 weeks, which is closer to three months. The Yankees should be able to manage without their ace, who only made one start in Spring Training because of his elbow injury.

With Cole out for the foreseeable future, the Yankees will depend on veterans Marcus Stroman, Nestor Cortes, and Carlos Rodon to carry the starting rotation. Cortes and Rodon are coming off down 2023 seasons because of an injury, but New York hopes they can turn it around this year.

Meanwhile, Stroman is making his return to the Big Apple after spending the last two seasons with the Chicago Cubs. Of the three starting pitchers, the 32-year-old Stroman is having the better spring, possessing a 1.74 ERA in three starts.

Nonetheless, the Yankees are still the favorites to win the AL East (+165 on FanDuel Sportsbook) despite not having Cole for up to three months. Therefore, they need those three starting pitchers and their star-studded offense to hit the ground running.

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