Yankees ace Gerrit Cole set to undergo MRI on pitching elbow

New York Yankees star righty Gerrit Cole will be undergoing an MRI on his pitching elbow, according to manager Aaron Boone. Boone told reporters on Monday morning that the reigning AL Cy Young winner had been having trouble recovering from pitching sessions, akin more to how things feel in between starts during the regular season than how things should be feeling in early March. That’s obviously a concerning sign, although it’s tough to say just how concerning right now.

With less than three weeks to go until Opening Day, any setback in Cole’s progression at this point will likely force him to start the season on the IL. That’s something the Yankees can ill-afford, considering how committed they are to contending this season — and how iffy their rotation is behind Cole right now. Carlos Rodon and Nestor Cortes are both coming off disappointing 2023 seasons, and both bring plenty of injury concerns of their own. Marcus Stroman and Clarke Schmidt are solid back-end options, but neither of them should be relied upon to anchor a rotation.

After missing out on Yoshinobu Yamamoto this winter, Cashman declined to go big for Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery, instead opting to sign Stroman to a two-year deal and rely on bounce-back seasons from Rodon and Cortes. That strategy was largely predicated on Cole, who’s been the most reliable pitcher in the game over the last few seasons. It’s not just that the righty has been great; he’s been incredibly durable as well, with at least 180 innings pitched in each of the last six full seasons. He’s been the sort of ace you can set your watch to, and it’s hard to imagine Cashman being as passive on the starting pitching market — and giving up as much pitching as he did in the Juan Soto trade — if he weren’t extremely confident in another 200 innings or so from Cole in 2024.

Now that durability has been thrown into serious question. It’s too early to sound the alarm just yet — it’s possible that an MRI will come back showing no structural damage, and Cole will just need a bit of added rest. But any significant injury to Cole is a worst-case scenario for a Yankees team looking to make the most of its one guaranteed season with Soto on board, and will likely prompt Cashman to reconsider a major move. Will he finally come up and meet Montgomery or Snell at somewhere near their respective asking prices? The answer likely depends on how Cole’s tests come back, because New York can’t afford to go into this all-important season with a rotation of Rodon, Cortes, Stroman, Schmidt and someone like Minor Leaguer Clayton Beeter.