Gerrit Cole to undergo Tommy John surgery
I touched on this bit of news last night in my Spring Training weekly recap, but it had not been made official that the Yankees ace would indeed need to undergo Tommy John surgery. As of yesterday, it was reported that Gerrit Cole was recommended to have the surgery done, but Cole and the Yankees were seeking a second opinion. While it was wise to do their due diligence and hear it from somebody else, all signs were pointing to this happening. Cole dealt with an elbow issue early last year that kept him sidelined for a large portion of the first half, and he was never seemingly himself even after returning to the mound.
Via @JeffPassan Twitter/X
This is a big blow not only for the Yankees, but for baseball as well. Cole has been part of a dying breed of pitchers - a true work horse. He threw 200+ innings in back to back seasons which included his 2023 Cy Young campaign, and has a total of six 200+ inning seasons under his belt. Cole has been a pitcher you can rely on to take the ball every fifth day and compete at the highest level. He has been one of the more durable pitchers of this current generation of arms, but even he couldn’t escape the Tommy John epidemic.
The next couple of weeks becomes very important for the Bronx Bombers as I would imagine they will look to pivot elsewhere to fill out a rotation that is quickly thinning out. Following a World Series appearance that ended in disappointment, it would be quite the let down for the Yankees to punt the season with Aaron Judge now entering his age 33 season, but then again, punting doesn’t really exist in the Yankees organization so I’m led to believe they will scramble to make some kind of move. The trade market has gotten quiet, but with the Yankees seemingly in desperation mode to remain relevant in the American League East, potential suitors might come out of the woodworks. I mentioned yesterday that Dylan Cease of the Padres and Sandy Alcantara of the Marlins are likely trade candidates by the trade deadline at the latest, and this injury may expedite the process if the Yankees are truly all in on returning to the World Series with better fortune this year.
The typical time line for a repaired UCL is roughly 18 months but pitchers can sometimes get back on the mound within a year. There has been no time table set on Cole’s recovery yet, but it’s safe to say he will miss all of 2025 and a portion of 2026.
