Any dreams of a speedy return to the mound for reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole were dashed Thursday when the New York Yankees moved the right-hander to the 60-day injured list due to elbow inflammation.
On March 16, Cole said he wouldn’t throw for three to four weeks in an effort to heal his ailing throwing elbow, telling reporters that nerve irritation and edema were the source of his problem, with rest and recovery the prescription.
The Yankees finalized their Opening Day roster Thursday morning, also moving right-handers Tommy Kahnle (right shoulder inflammation) and McKinley Moore (right knee bursitis) to the 15-day IL and infielders DJ LeMahieu (right foot contusion) and Oswald Peraza (right shoulder strain) to the 10-day IL. All four moves were retroactive to Monday.
New York also added newly acquired infielder Jon Berti to the active roster, recalled right-hander Luis Gil from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and signed right-hander Nick Burdi to a major league contract and selected him to the roster.
Cole, 33, pitched just twice this spring, once in a Grapefruit League game on March 1 and then in a simulated game six days later. He subsequently was shut down and underwent medical tests.
The UCLA product has been one of the majors leagues’ most durable pitchers, making at least 30 starts in every season since 2017 except for the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.
Cole is coming off a season in which he went 15-4 while leading the AL in ERA (2.63) and innings pitched (209). He struck out 222 and walked 48.
The Yankees open the 2024 season at the Houston Astros. Nelson Cortes will start for the Yankees against Framber Valdez in a matchup of left-handers.