00:0053 weeks after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Garrett Cole made his return to
00:04game action on Wednesday afternoon here at Steinbrenner Field.
00:07It was only 10 pitches, only one inning, but it was a significant step for Cole nonetheless,
00:11and just another indicator of how well his buildup, his rehab,
00:16his comeback has gone to this point so far.
00:19Cole is still probably two months away from potentially returning to a big league
00:24mound in the regular season, but Wednesday kind of offered a teaser of what may be,
00:29you know, what lies ahead for him through six fastballs, topped out at 98.7 miles an hour,
00:35average 97.1, which is, you know, a few ticks above where he was when he was last pitching back
00:42in 2024.
00:43So just, you know, more encouraging signs for Cole, which is what we've seen all spring during his
00:49bullpen sessions, during his live batting practices. Obviously you get a little bit more adrenaline in
00:55a game like this, even though it is a spring game, but I think it was a meaningful one for
00:59Cole here to take another step and check another box off. He's got more to go. Like I said,
01:05before he gets to a point where he could help the Yankees in the regular season, but
01:10a day like this kind of allows them to dream on what that rotation might look like once he gets
01:14back in it and joins Max Fried. Carlos Rodon is supposed to, you know, they're hoping to have
01:20him back next month. Cam Schlitler, you know, a lot of some high-end talent there if they can keep
01:25everybody healthy and if Cole can finish off his rehab process. But, you know, this month last year
01:32he was undergoing Tommy John surgery and now he's back on the mound for grapefruit league play. So a
01:38pretty, you know, significant day for Cole and Yankees to be able to, you know, take another step,
01:43big step back towards him contributing to the Yankees in the regular season.
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