Why Yankees’ Gerrit Cole is facing 2 big obstacles ahead of MLB playoffs

Even with southpaw Max Fried’s latest trip to the injury list with a bone bruise in his left elbow, the New York Yankees still boast one of the sport’s most imposing starting rotations. Cam Schlittler, Carlos Rodon, and Will Warren have each enjoyed strong moments through the course of the campaign, but it may be their longtime ace, Gerrit Cole, who will bear the most responsibility as the summer winds down.

The former American League Cy Young winner’s most recent outing was more than solid. He delivered six innings of one-run baseball and struck out eight batters as the Yankees earned a 6-1 win over the Baltimore Orioles.

“It’s great to get ahead,” Cole told Bryan Hoch of MLB.com after the win. “I think sometimes we got ahead even out of the strike zone, which means I think we’re doing a good job being unpredictable.”

As the 2026 postseason approaches, Cole will need to string together more performances that resemble his latest showing. But doing so will be a tall order. He is still working his way back from a serious elbow injury, and now finds himself in the midst of a division race that could come down to the last week of the regular season.

Gerrit Cole’s workload could become a factor for the Yankees

The California native has been mostly effective since recovering from a Tommy John surgery that kept him sidelined for the entirety of 2025. Cole made his first start of 2026 in May, and over 92.2 innings, he’s gone 7-6 with a 3.11 ERA.

The baseline numbers are solid, but have come without uncharacteristically poor starts, including a June start against the Detroit Tigers during which he surrendered five runs in 4.1 innings.

According to Baseball Savant, the six-time All-Star ranks in the 80th percentile in terms of Pitching Run Value, the 93rd percentile in Fastball Run Value, and the 95th percentile in BB%.

The righty has seemingly found his groove by working through present weaknesses, but there are reasons to be concerned about his workload. To put things in perspective, Cole tossed just 95 innings in 2024 after missing the start of the year with right elbow nerve inflammation.

He was able to help the Yankees during their run to the World Series that October, but it remains to be seen if the 35-year-old will have the stamina to pull off a similar feat this fall. Such a question has become more important as the club has their sights set on claiming the AL East while they deal with a rotation that, while extraordinarily talented, is also facing injuries and other fatigue-centered questions.

The Yankees’ division race with the Tampa Bay Rays is tight

Less than five games separate the Yankees and Rays in the AL East. The two teams will play four games with each other in September, and even though Tampa Bay is ahead, it is possible that the division could largely be decided during that set.

That reality means New York must keep playing at a high level until the last week of the season. Fried is out. Further, Rodon just came back from elbow inflammation, and Schlittler has logged a career-high in innings by a wide margin since 2026 has marked his first full campaign in the Bronx.

Cole will be a needed force. At any time, the rotation could suffer another nagging ailment or see one of its less experienced members deal with exhaustion. The group has performed valiantly, but the team’s ceiling could be determined by how their most seasoned arm responds to the challenges in front of him.

“We’re having a good time pitching and playing close games,” Cole told Greg Joyce of the New York Post earlier this month. “Certainly we want to blow guys out and secure as many wins as possible, but at the same time, we’re throwing the ball well, we’re playing good defense, and we’re hanging in a lot of games, giving ourselves a chance to win.”

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