For the first time in 569 days, Gerrit Cole will step onto his sanctuary Friday night: a major league mound.
It will be the same one he last pitched on, in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series at Yankee Stadium, with Tommy John surgery following four and half months later and a long, painstaking, 14-month recovery process after that.
But the 35-year-old Cole will make his highly anticipated return on Friday against the Rays, potentially giving the Yankees another front-line starter to add to an already strong rotation, a former AL Cy Young winner at that.
“I’ve missed it quite a bit,” Cole said Tuesday after throwing a bullpen session that was the final hurdle to get the OK for Friday.
It remains to be seen exactly what version of Cole the Yankees are getting back, but the right-hander checked every box during his rehab assignment while building up to 86 pitches in his last start on Saturday with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. His command has been sharper than many pitchers coming back from the same UCL surgery while he hit 99 mph in his last start, providing further evidence that he need not waste any more bullets in the minor leagues.
“We just feel like he has done everything he needs to be ready to compete now at this level,” manager Aaron Boone said.
The Yankees will likely still have some restrictions on Cole upon his return, but he and the team have followed the rehab process to a T at this point, getting him back about a week earlier than initially expected. Cole stuck to a 14-to-18 month timeline for a return all along, and Friday will mark 14 months and just under two weeks since he went under the knife on March 11, 2025.
“Just didn’t rush anything. It’s funny, you almost take an extra day here early, an extra day here early, oh an extra week early and then you think, ‘Oh, this is never going to end,’ but then you end up showing up right on time,” Cole said. “It’s funny how it works out that way, because it didn’t feel very quick, yet it’s been very efficient and optimal.”
