NEW YORK — Yankees ace Gerrit Cole is scheduled to throw off a mound Saturday for the first time since getting injured in spring training.
“Whether that’s a full bullpen or what exactly that looks like, we’ll see,” New York manager Aaron Boone said before Friday night’s game against Detroit. “I think it’s gone well so far, his build-up and checking the boxes and the level of intensity of throwing and things like that. So far, so good. Getting off the mound will obviously be another step.”
The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner has been on the 60-day injured list all season with right elbow inflammation. He’s not expected back until at least June.
Cole, 33, has been throwing on flat ground. The right-hander was shut down in March because of nerve irritation and edema in his pitching elbow.
In other injury news, infielder Jon Berti played third base Thursday in a rehab game with Double-A Somerset and went 1 for 4 with a walk and two strikeouts. He was set to go through a workout Friday and potentially come off the injured list Saturday.
The speedy Berti has been sidelined since April 11 with a left groin strain.
“Looking forward to getting him back in the mix,” Boone said.
Right-handed reliever Nick Burdi (right hip inflammation) is slated to pitch Sunday for Somerset and could be reinstated from the IL after one or two minor league rehab outings.
Yankees reliever Tommy Kahnle (right shoulder inflammation) is expected to begin a rehab assignment after throwing live batting practice once or twice more. His next such session will be Saturday.
Cole went 15-4 with an AL-best 2.63 ERA and 222 strikeouts in 209 innings over 33 starts last year. The six-time All-Star is in the fifth season of a $324 million, nine-year contract that pays $36 million annually. Cole has the right to opt out after the season and become a free agent, but if he opts out, the Yankees can void the opt-out by adding a guaranteed $36 million salary for 2029.
The Ottawa Senators have opened up a nice gap as the first wild card, with 75 points and 26 regulation wins in 65 games. Beyond them, things get interesting.
If it comes down to the regulation-wins tiebreaker at season’s end, the Rangers have an upper hand over all the rest, with 29 in that column, compared with 23 for the Jackets, Red Wings and Bruins, and just 22 for the Habs.
The Canadiens host the Panthers also at 7 p.m. (NHL Network)
The Blue Jackets face the visiting Rangers also at 7 p.m. (ESPN+)
And if they have their sights set on catching the Senators, these clubs are all rooting for the Maple Leafs, who host Ottawa (7 p.m., ESPN+). It’s a great night for multiple streaming devices!
There is a lot of runway left until April 17, the final day of the regular season, and we’ll help you track it all with the NHL playoff watch. As we traverse the final stretch, we’ll provide details on all the playoff races, along with the teams jockeying for position in the 2025 NHL draft lottery.
Points: 62 Regulation wins: 23 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 15 Points pace: 75.9 Next game: vs. WPG (Sunday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 22
Points: 45 Regulation wins: 13 Playoff position: N/A Games left: 15 Points pace: 55.1 Next game: vs. WSH (Saturday) Playoff chances: ~0% Tragic number: 5
Race for the No. 1 pick
The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process are here. Matthew Schaefer, a defenseman for the OHL’s Erie Otters, is No. 1 on the draft board.
The Texas Rangers‘ pitching staff took another hit Friday, when right-hander Jon Gray suffered a right wrist fracture.
Gray was struck by a line drive from Colorado Rockies first baseman Michael Toglia to lead off the fourth inning that knocked him out of the game.
“Not good news, not good news,” manager Bruce Bochy told reporters. “It’s terrible. I feel awful for him, to be this close to getting the season going. It’s just not good news. I’ll get back in there and find out more, but right now, there is a fracture.”
Gray’s injury is the third setback for the Rangers rotation this week. The team said Thursday that left-hander Cody Bradford would start the season on the injured list because of soreness in his throwing elbow. Tyler Mahle had been scratched from a start with forearm soreness, but the right-hander returned to pitch in a minor league game Thursday.
Gray went 5-6 with a 4.47 ERA in 23 appearances (19 starts) for the Rangers last season, when he was shut down in September for a foot injury that required surgery. He is in the final year of a four-year, $56 million deal.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
TOKYO — Japanese star Shohei Ohtani showed off some prodigious power in his return to the Tokyo Dome on Saturday night.
In an exhibition game against the Yomiuri Giants, the three-time Most Valuable Player belted a long two-run homer to right field in the third inning to give the Dodgers a 4-0 lead, setting off a roar from the roughly 42,000 fans in attendance.
The Dodgers put on quite a power display in the third with Michael Conforto, Ohtani and Teoscar Hernández all going deep to give Los Angeles a 5-0 advantage.
The Dodgers are playing in Japan as part of the Tokyo Series. The team is playing two exhibition games against Japanese teams before starting the regular season with two games against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Ohtani became the first player in MLB history to have at least 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in one season in 2024. He played several seasons for the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan before coming to the U.S. in 2018 with the Los Angeles Angels.