The New York Yankees have been having a dominant season as they have answered all questions throughout the first 66 games of the season. The Yankees have gotten excellent pitching, clutch hitting and solid defense since opening the season. The pitching appeared to be an issue when ace Gerrit Cole was sidelined with nerve inflammation early in spring training.
Cole has been rehabbing his injury and is close to returning to the New York rotation. He finished his second rehab start Sunday at Double-A Somerset, and he threw 4.2 innings while allowing just one run. Cole gave up two hits, one walk and struck out four batters. He retired the last eight Hartford hitters he faced before he came out of the game.
It is expected that Cole will make at least one more rehab start on normal rest before the Yankees are likely to elevate him to major league status. If they do bring him up after his next start, he could face the Baltimore Orioles when they come to Yankee Stadium for a three-game series from June 18 through June 20.
Cole had no shown no ill effects from his first rehab start when he threw 45 pitches in 3.1 scoreless innings. If Cole does not report any problems, he is expected to start again Friday.
A healthy Gerrit Cole is the ace of the Yankees staff
Gerrit Cole has pitched five seasons for the Yankees and is coming off a season in which he won the Cy Young Award. He was 15-4 in 2023 with a 2.64 earned run average while pitching 209.0 innings. He struck out 222 batters while allowing 157 hits and 48 bases on balls.
Cole has been an All-Star six times in his career, and he has a lifetime record of 145-75 with a 3.17 ERA. He won 19 games for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2015, and he made the All-Star Game for the first time that season. Cole won a career-best 20 games in the 2019 season while pitching for the Houston Astros. He led the American League with a 2.50 ERA and 326 strikeouts while hurling 212.1 innings that season.
Yankees pitching has picked up the slack
The Yankees entered play Sunday with a 45-21 record and they led the second-place Orioles by 2.5 games. The pitching staff has been led by Luis Gil and Carlos Rodon. Gil has an 8-1 record with a 1.82 ERA and he has fanned 85 hitters in 69.1 innings. The left-handed Rodon is 8-2 with a 3.08 ERA and has struck out 71 batters in 73.0 innings.
The New York bullpen has also gotten the job done, and that includes closer Clay Holmes. He has 18 saves and a 1.27 ERA while striking out 41 batters in 28.1 innings.
The Yankees bats have returned with a fury this season, and the team's power and clutch hitting have supported the pitching. Aaron Judge has been on fire as he has slashed .298/.432/.685 while hammering 23 home runs and driving 57 runs. Newcomer Juan Soto has blasted 17 homers and driven in 53 runs, while Giancarlo Stanton has 15 long balls and 36 runs batted in.
The return of Gerrit Cole to the starting rotation will likely make the Yankees even tougher during the last 3-plus months of the season.
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