Life served New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole some lemons early in 2025. So he decided to make a heaping pitcher of lemonade.
After declining an early opt-out option early in the offseason, Cole approached season six of his nine-year, $324 million contract eager to do his part to get the Yankees back to the World Series.
The American League Cy Young Award winner in 2023, Cole had missed the first half of 2024 with elbow inflammation but returned to make 17 regular season starts, plus another five in the postseason. A durable pitcher who had made 30-plus starts in the previous six non-Covid seasons, Cole arrived at spring training on the heels of a modified offseason throwing program that he hoped would yield positive results after dealing with his first arm injury since 2016.
“I’m in a really good spot [compared] to years past and probably slightly ahead of where we were last year,” Cole said in mid-February.
But the optimism wouldn’t last. A few weeks and a couple tests later, Cole would undergo Tommy John surgery on the elbow of his pitching arm, ending his 2025 season before it had even started.
“I defeated the odds for so long,” Cole said. “It did catch up to me.”
Surgery Allows Gerrit Cole to Enjoy ‘Magical’ Family Time
But instead of dwelling on the negative, Cole chose to focus on what the unfortunate injury has actually allowed him to do.
In a July interview with the New York Yankees Official Podcast, Cole talked about being able to spend quality family time during the summer months, something he hasn’t been able to do much of since getting married to his wife Amy in 2016. Cole said that sharing special moments with sons Caden and Everett has been an unexpected blessing.
“That’s been a real silver lining, and it’s been a special summer in that regard,” Cole said.
“Taking kids to school, and then it turns into taking them to after-school stuff; hearing about their day on a daily basis, like what’s important to a 4-year-old and a 2-year-old. I’m thankful to be a part of it, and thankful that I was able to take Caden to chess, watch his first tee ball game, start to get him into some piano lessons. They both tag along with each other and have a good time together, so watching that relationship unfold is magical too.”
Gerrit Cole Continues Making Contributions to Yankees Pitching Staff
But even though Cole hasn’t been able to pitch, he is still a pitcher, he is still a member of the Yankees pitching staff, and he is still committed to doing whatever he can to helping the team reach its ultimate goal. Which has meant supporting Max Fried and Carlos Rodón during their All-Star campaigns, and mentoring young hurlers like Will Warren, Ryan Yarbrough and Cam Schlittler as they navigate through the challenges of the major leagues.
“They’re a good group, and they’re fun to watch,” Cole said. “I can’t say enough about how good of a job Max and Carlos have done, and it’s been really fun to watch Will get some rope. My goodness, we’ve got an opportunity to develop an organizational prospect at the big league level to a certain extent, and the Yankees don’t often have that opportunity. Will has taken it and grabbed it by the horns and done the best job he can with it. And I think it’s going to really pay dividends for him down the road.”
As for the rest of this season, Cole will continue to do his work to get him back as quickly and as effectively as possible, while doing all he can to contribute to the team’s success.
“I care about my teammates. I care about my organization. I care about our city and our fans,” he said. “At heart, I’m just the same old kid that’s holding up the sign. We want the Yankees to win a World Series this year. There’s absolutely no doubt about it. And we have a team that can put us in a position to do that. But we’ve got to play better than we did last year. We’ve got to play better than we are playing right now. But we’ve got plenty of time to keep working toward that and continuing to sharpen our game.”
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