"Got a little too hot a little too quick" - Gerrit Cole sheds light on latest injury, drops potential timeline on Yankees return

The New York Yankees' roration suffered a serious blow after reigning AL Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole sustained an elbow injury during spring training earlier this month.

While speculations of a Tommy John Surgery for the Yankees ace had the Bronx faithful on the edge, Cole has reportedly avoided surgery for the time being after meeting with Dr. Neal ElAttrache on Thursday.

Although reports suggested the Yankees pitcher is likely to miss 10-12 weeks of action, Gerrit Cole has given an update on his injury and a rough timeline of his slated return to action. The six-time All-Star confirmed that he won't be throwing for the next 3-4 weeks, owing to a nerve inflammation and edema.

“Three to four weeks no throw, and we’ll go from there," Cole said. "I think we determined that we just got a little too hot a little too quick this spring.”

Yankees entrust Nestor Cortes with Opening Day role following Gerrit Cole's injury

Cole's abrupt injury threw a spanner in the plans of the Bronx Bombers with the team struggling to find a able replacement ahead of Opening Day.

Marcus Stroman, one of the major signings of the offseason, reportedly refused to take up the starting role for the Yankees' opening day as it would have altered his current schedule of pitching in the Yankees' third game, further complicating things for the Yanks.

However, the team has entrusted All-Star pitcher Nestor Cortes with the role in Gerrit Cole's absence. Although Cortes had an indifferent season last year, he is up for the challenge.

“Happy Aaron Boone and the organization have the trust in me to go out there for the first game.” “I’ve been up and down [in my career]. I’ve been put into many different roles throughout my career. I feel like I could be the guy to show everybody I can [do it].”