Yankees' Gerrit Cole to begin rehab assignment in Double-A on Friday
Cole missed all of the 2025 MLB after undergoing Tommy John surgery last spring.
Gerrit Cole is beginning his path back to the New York Yankees’ starting rotation. The 2023 American League Cy Young Award winner will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Somerset on Friday, Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters on Thursday. Cole, 35, missed the entire 2025 MLB season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last spring.
But he had an encouraging performance during spring training , topping out at 98 mph with his fastball. In two appearances, Cole allowed one run and three hits in 2 2/3 innings with three strikeouts. [ Watch Yahoo Sports Network ] Boone said that Cole will throw approximately 40 pitches against Double-A Reading, a Philadelphia Phillies affiliate.
The decision to begin his minor-league rehab assignment was made after his throwing session on Wednesday went well with no concerns. A late May or early June return to the major-league roster is the timetable the Yankees are laying out. “We’re looking forward to him starting on Friday, and then we’ll build him from there,” Boone said, via MLB.
com . “Even when he gets back to us [in the majors], we’ll probably be conservative with him. ” Cole last pitched for the Yankees in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series , allowing five unearned runs ( due to errors by Aaron Judge and Anthony Volpe) on four hits with six strikeouts and four walks.