Following the report earlier today that Gerrit Cole would face live hitting for the first time since the Yankees‘ announced he tore his UCL during 2025 Spring Training, there are even more positive news.
The right-hander faced a star-studded lineup including Aaron Judge, Trent Grisham, and Jasson Dominguez where he proceeded to pick up a strikeout and hit 96 MPH.
Cole, who missed all of 2025 rehabbing after undergoing Tommy John Surgery, is expected to return at some point in May or June.
He could feature in a Grapefruit League game later in camp, but was adamant to reporters last Friday that his return timeline remains 14-18 months, which would in theory rule out an April return.
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Gerrit Cole Flashes Good Velocity, Yankees Continue Seeing Positive Signs
With the Yankees’ rotation weakened early on due to the rehabs of Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon, a watchful eye will be placed on how these two look in live bullpens throughout Spring Training.
Both pitchers are key cogs to their rotation, with Rodon having an excellent 2025 campaign to help mitigate the loss of Cole and the latter being a former Cy Young winner with a real chance at making the Hall of Fame.
The question is not whether this staff could be excellent with everyone healthy, but rather if all five starters will ever be healthy at the same time and how the injured veterans will look after surgery.
Chris Kirschner of The Athletic posted the full at-bat against Trent Grisham in which Gerrit Cole picked up a strikeout on a 95 MPH fastball while Gary Phillips noted on a separate tweet that he reached 95-96 MPH consistently.
If Cole is sitting around that range he would be throwing about as hard as he did in 2023 and 2024 where he pitched to a combined 2.87 ERA with a 3.33 FIP.
The Yankees believe in their long-time ace to rebound after tearing his UCL and undergoing reconstruction surgery, and he remains on the right track to returning to this rotation as a frontline arm.
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