The New York Yankees believed they dodged a bullet when it was revealed Gerrit Cole would miss around one-two months of the season with his elbow injury, as opposed to the entire 2024 campaign. Is there still a chance that Cole could end up not pitching in 2024, however? Well, it still appears likely that Cole will pitch again this season, but there's reportedly a chance his injury could be season-ending, per Bob Klapisch of nj.com.
“He’s (Cole) in Los Angeles this week seeing Dr. Neal ElAttrache,” Klapisch wrote. “He’s the king of the Tommy John procedure, no doubt offering Cole a well-reasoned Plan B. Which is: a fraying of the UCL, no matter how minor, even if it’s undetectable in an MRI, is the beginning of a much more serious problem. A rupture is likely to happen, is what Cole would be told by such a specialist. Head it off now and you lose only one season, instead of parts of two should a blowout occur later this summer.”
There is a no-surgery option. Klapisch is expecting Cole to go in that route and return “by late May.”
Gerrit Cole's injury timeline
The Yankees need Gerrit Cole to win. The same can be said for Aaron Judge.
Judge was dealing with an injury as well, but he's expected to return Saturday. After missing time due to injury in 2023, Judge is looking to have a healthy 2024 campaign.
But the Yankees pitching rotation is going to miss Cole without question. They were reportedly interested in Dylan Cease before he was traded to the San Diego Padres on Wednesday. Perhaps New York will try to sign Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery with Cole injured.
Or, the Yankees will plan on Cole opting to return in either May or June instead of undergoing season-ending surgery. In that scenario, the Yankees would be getting baseball's best pitcher back ahead of mid-season.
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