The New York Yankees are having a solid season so far, as they're currently 19-15 and No. 1 in the AL East. The Yankees have been able to have a lot of success, and they're doing it without right-hander Gerrit Cole, who will be out this entire season. Cole underwent Tommy John surgery in March, which ended his season before it even started.

Two months later, Cole was open to speak with reporters for the first time since undergoing surgery, and had three simple words for how he was feeling.

“I miss playing,” Cole said via The Athletic's Chris Kirschner on X, formerly Twitter.

Cole expects to begin throwing in August if everything goes well from then to now. The right-hander started two games in the spring and gave up seven runs across six innings. In a game against the Minnesota Twins, he said that he felt some pain going into the next morning, and after notifying the team, they revealed a torn ulnar collateral ligament.

Last year, Cole was dealing wth elbow pain and was diagnosed with nerve irritation and edema, but he didn't need surgery for that injury.

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Cole still believes he has a lot left in the tank, but he also knows when to give flowers to others around the league. Just a month ago, he shared his thoughts on Paul Skenes and thinks that the second-year player could be something special in his career.

“Skenes has the foundation to match that — and exceed it,” Cole said via ESPN's Jeff Passan. “He's got more horsepower than me. He's asking better questions early. Questions about diet and sleep. He's asking questions about mechanics, he's tracking his throws.

“He has his own process with people that he surrounds himself with that are not only looking out for his performance right now, but his performance long term. That's important for guys to have advocates in their corner, not looking out just for this year. It's really tough to find the right people.”

It's cool that Cole sees greatness in Skenes, and he probably sees a lot of himself in the young player. Hopefully, Cole can come back sometime next season and get back to playing at the level that he's used to.