Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery

Gerrit Cole’s 2025 season is over before it officially begins.

The New York Yankees ace will undergo Tommy John surgery, the team announced Monday.

Cole, 34, told reporters Saturday that he felt discomfort in his right elbow after giving up six runs in 2 2/3 innings in a spring training outing against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday. 

“I’m concerned,” Cole said. “I’m hoping for the best.”

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman echoed those sentiments when he met with reporters on Sunday.

“Prepared for the worst,” Cashman said. “We will see how it plays out. I’m always wired to think the worst and hope for the best.”

This marks the second straight spring training in which Cole has dealt with an injury to his pitching elbow. In 2024, Cole was able to avoid having Tommy John surgery as it was found that he only had inflammation and edema. Still, he was sidelined for the start of the season and didn’t make his season debut until mid-June.

That experience helped Cole and the Yankees emotionally prepare for what they’re dealing with now, according to Cashman.

“I was with him in Tampa. I think last year, [it was] very emotional [for Cole] because it was a whole new experience,” Cashman said. “This year now, not as emotional because he’s walked this line already. And so, I think he is mentally more prepared to deal with it because he’s already dealt with this once before. So, and that’s even the worst-case scenario. Just generally, we are all in a better position to handle something if we’ve had some experience handling it in the past.

“So, he’s already had a lot of conversations. A lot of engagement with the doctors and lived through this last year. So, less of an emotional shock this year, and now more about all right, what needs to be done here, what’s the best route for he and we.”

If the second doctor Cole visits also recommends Tommy John surgery, he’ll miss the entire 2025 season and will likely be out for the start of the 2026 season. Pitchers who undergo Tommy John surgery are typically sidelined for at least 12 months, with most needing more time than that before returning to the majors. 

Cole, who has been one of the best pitchers in the American League dating back to his time with the Houston Astros in 2018, wasn’t as effective last year as he’s been in seasons past. While he had a respectable 3.41 ERA, his 1.126 WHIP and 9.4 strikeouts per nine innings pitched were his worst in seven seasons in the AL. 

Still, Cole exercised his opt-out in the offseason before reneging, remaining on the four years and $144 million he had left on the deal he signed with the Yankees in the 2019-20 offseason. 

Cole’s injury is just one of the few New York has already dealt with in spring training. Designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton is dealing with an elbow injury that’s expected to keep him out through Opening Day, while starting pitcher and reigning AL Rookie of the Year winner Luis Gil will miss at least three months due to a lat injury.

New York signed Max Fried to one of the richest contracts for a pitcher in MLB history in December to help fortify its rotation, likely putting him in line to be its Opening Day starter with Cole out. Lefty Carlos Rodón and righty Marcus Stroman, who was initially thought to be on the outside looking in, will be expected to play key roles in the Yankees’ rotation this season if Cole is out for the year.  

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