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Gerrit Cole is finally ready for his return to the New York Yankees since undergoing Tommy John surgery.
Cole will make his 2026 season debut on Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays, his first start for the Yankees since 2024.
Cole, 35, missed the entire 2025 season after undergoing surgery to repair a torn right upper ligament.
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Gerrit Cole pitches for the Hudson Valley Renegades during Thursday’s game against the Brooklyn Cyclones on April 23, 2026. (Patrick Oehler/Poughkeepsie Journal/USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)
The Yankees’ starting pitching staff has been a stellar group to begin the 2026 campaign, but Cole’s return comes at a perfect time, as fellow ace Max Fried is on injured reserve with an elbow injury. He is expected to miss about a month.
Manager Aaron Boone, who announced Cole’s move Tuesday before the team’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays, said Monday that the Yankees were considering sticking with the original plan to have Cole make a seventh and final rehab start before his season debut with the team.
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“We’ll see,” he said before the Yankees won the series opener against the Blue Jays. “We’re talking about it here today, tomorrow, and we’ll make a call one way or another.”
The writing seemed to be on the wall, however, as the Yankees sent Elmer Rodriguez, who started in place of Fried against the New York Mets over the weekend, back to Triple-A. They called up reliever Yovanny Cruz instead of getting another starter in the clubhouse.
Gerrit Cole of the New York Yankees stands for the national anthem during a game against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium in New York on April 16, 2026. (New York Yankees/Getty Images)
Cole hasn’t pitched for the Yankees since Game 4 of the 2024 World Series, making this a great return for the franchise ace. However, the Yankees have seen quality pitching elsewhere since then, including an unexpected spot this season.
Cam Schlitter, the 6-foot-6 flamethrower, is in the early race to win the American League Cy Young Award. He currently leads the league in ERA (1.35) in his 10 starts, six of which are considered quality starts. He has 68 strikeouts and 11 walks in 60 total innings, establishing himself as the ace of the staff at the moment.
Schlittler’s big moment came for the Yankees in Game 3 of their Wild Card series against the Boston Red Sox last postseason, but he continued to prove that it wasn’t a one-time moment. Instead, he has been the Yankees’ most consistent starter in a group filled with elite talent like Fried, Carlos Rodón and now Cole.
Now, Cole hasn’t had the best numbers in his rehab starts, with a 5.28 ERA in 29 innings over six outings. However, his metrics have fit the bill, including a fastball that peaked at 99.6 mph last Saturday in what was his best rehab outing. He allowed only one run and six hits.
Gerrit Cole #45 of the New York Yankees warms up before a game against the Boston Red Sox at George M. Steinbrenner Field on March 18, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. The Yankees beat the Red Sox 1-0. (Photo by Leah King/Diamond Images via Getty Images) (Leah King/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
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“It looks great,” Boone added. “I think this [latest] The start was a little bit more probably with the competition in mind, like getting guys out and stepping on them as far as things.”
Cole won the American League Cy Young in 2023 and has been the Yankees’ ace since signing with the franchise in 2019 to a nine-year, $324 million contract.
