Yankees’ Ace Gerrit Cole Addresses Elbow Injury & Return Timeline  

Gerrit Cole “felt pretty good” after his visit with Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles earlier this week, as the audience as a whole held its breath.

Yankees’ Ace Gerrit Cole Addresses Elbow Injury & Return Timeline

The Yankees ace was diagnosed with elbow edema and inflammation of the nerve, which will prevent him from throwing for three to four weeks while he works to rebuild his strength. Despite the possible outcomes, he appeared optimistic about his prognosis.

Cole saw surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Thursday, and the surgeon apparently concurred with the team’s medical professionals that Cole’s UCL is not torn. Heyman and Sanchez estimate that the 33-year-old will be out for one to two months, “or perhaps just a bit more,” before he can make a comeback.

Gerrit Cole meets with @JustinShackil and discusses how he's feeling, all the emotions from this week, the recovery process, and so much more.#YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/Rgcb8PGo8D

— YES Network (@YESNetwork) March 16, 2024

“I think we’ve determined that we just got a little too hot a little too quick in spring,” Cole said Saturday at Steinbrenner Field in his first comments since undergoing a battery of tests on his pitching elbow. “We progressed through the normal recovery cycle, but at a certain time, we didn’t get back to our baseline, which was kind of our target. At that point, it was time to see what was going on.”

During spring training, Cole first disclosed that he was having trouble recovering after outings, which was causing him to experience some soreness in his throwing arm. On March 1, he gave up three earned runs in two innings while striking out one and facing the Toronto Blue Jays. Cole never again showed up in a game.

Gerrit Cole said his elbow pain was caused by inflammation and edema. He won’t throw for 3-4 weeks, per @BryanHoch

“I think we determined that we just got a little too hot a little too quick this spring.” pic.twitter.com/wb5TN5id0o

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) March 16, 2024

The 33-year-old, who is now the AL Cy Young Award winner, stated that during the next three to four weeks, he will “just rest and recover” rather than get PRP injections in his elbow.

“We’re going to keep the arm live though,” Cole said, referring to plyometrics and arm movements. “It’s not like we’re not doing anything. That was the term that the doctors described – you’re going to keep the arm live for the next three-four weeks and then hit the ground running.”

New Gerrit Cole ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/m9wdBppFT4

— Yanksenjoyer (@MLBenjoyerNYY) March 16, 2024

The fact that Tommy John surgery looks to have been averted will undoubtedly relieve everyone in the organization, but New York will still be missing the 2023 American League Cy Young winner come opening day of 2024.