Gerrit Cole has reportedly been recommended to undergo Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, a procedure that would rule him out for this season (and then some).AP
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman admitted Sunday morning that he’s bracing for bad news with Gerrit Cole and the ace’s ailing elbow.
“I’m prepared for the worst,” Cashman told Newsday before the Yankees’ spring loss to the Cardinals in Jupiter, Fla.
That worst-case scenario has arrived.
Cole has been recommended to have Tommy John surgery, Jim Bowden of The Athletic reported late Sunday night.
Bowden added that the right-hander is waiting on a second opinion to confirm he needs surgery, a procedure that would rule him out for all of this season and a chunk of next year as well.
The particulars of Cole’s elbow injury haven’t been disclosed yet, but if he’s being recommended Tommy John surgery, that would mean his UCL (the ulnar collateral ligament) needs to be repaired.
Last March, Cole was shut down with nerve inflammation and edema in that same elbow. He ended up making his regular season debut on June 19, posting a 3.41 ERA over 17 starts. Cole pitched in five games (29 total innings) in October.
While discussing the injury and his concerns about needing surgery on Saturday, Cole mentioned that he would be seeking out second opinions in the coming days. Any hope the Yankees were holding onto about Cole dodging a season-ending procedure for the second spring in a row is down to a glimmer.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post also reported Sunday night that Cole is expected to consult with surgeon Neal ElAttrache before making a final decision. Cole wouldn’t be visiting with ElAttrache if Tommy John surgery wasn’t on the table and a real possibility. Shohei Ohtani had both of his Tommy John procedures done by ElAttrache.
It’s hard to overstate how big of a loss this would be for the Yankees.
Their rotation was supposed to be their biggest strength, a unit that featured multiple ace-caliber arms.
Now, the Yankees won’t have Cole and they’ll need to fill in for reigning Rookie of the Year Luis Gil for the first three-plus months as well. Gil has a high-grade lat strain and is in the early stages of a six-week shutdown. It’s possible his season will be derailed from this injury as well.
That leaves Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt, Marcus Stroman and prospect Will Warren in the Yankees’ rotation with less than three weeks to go until Opening Day.
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Max Goodman may be reached at [email protected].
