MLB

Yankees decide on Gerrit Cole’s season debut

By
Social Links for Jared Schwartz
Published June 17, 2024
Updated June 17, 2024, 5:49 p.m. ET

MLB’s best starting rotation is finally set to have its ace.

Gerrit Cole will make his season debut Wednesday night against the Orioles in The Bronx, Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced on the “Talkin’ Yankees” podcast.

It’s a big test for Cole to slot right into, as the Orioles entered Monday with the second-highest scoring offense in MLB — behind only the Yankees.

Gerrit Cole, New York Yankees pitcher, making a rehab start for the Somerset Patriots, pitching against the Hartford Yard Goats at TD Bank Ballpark.
Gerrit Cole during a rehab start for the Somerset Patriots on June 4, 2024. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

Cole, who had been sidelined since spring training with elbow nerve inflammation, threw a bullpen session Monday morning, and has completed three successful rehab starts recently.

“It was a good bullpen today,” Cole said Monday afternoon while participating in the Yankees’ first Hope Week event. “It was very good.”

Cole tossed 4 ¹/₃ innings and gave up one unearned run while striking out 10 batters in his final rehab start Friday night with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre.

He reached 70 pitches, meaning he’ll likely be available for roughly 80-85 pitches on Wednesday and not yet worked up for a full workload.

Gerrit Cole, New York Yankees pitcher, speaking with media after rehab assignment with Somerset Patriots
Gerrit Cole will make his season debut on June 19, 2024. Bill Kostroun/New York Post

The Yankees’ staff has been dominant without Cole — their starters own a combined 2.90 ERA, lowest in MLB entering Monday.

And rookie Luis Gil, who replaced Cole in the rotation, has enjoyed a breakout season with a 9-1 record and 2.03 ERA.

Cole, the reigning American League Cy Young winner, is expected to take Cody Poteet’s spot in the rotation.

Poteet, pitching in the majors for the first time since 2022, performed strongly in fill-in duty for Clarke Schmidt, who is on the injured list with a lat strain. Poteet went 3-0 with a 2.14 ERA in four starts.

Cole joined Schmidt and teammates Giancarlo Stanton, Jon Berti and Nick Burdi at the Stadium on Monday as the team honored Rehan Staton — a former sanitation worker who graduated from Harvard Law School and started The Reciprocity Effect.

The Yankees donated $10,000 to the nonprofit, which helps support staff affiliated with educational institutions and corporations.

Along with Staton, the Yankees will have five honorees for each day of Hope Week.

“I feel really blessed that we do this every year,” Cole said. “We go into this and end up learning something or becoming more educated on something that we didn’t already know. It’s a great way to reach a new part of the community and to meet people that you otherwise wouldn’t have normally met.”