"It would be a potentially foolish mistake" - MLB analyst urges Yankees to fix Gerrit Cole's void instead of resting on Cy Young winner's return

New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole reportedly has an elbow injury that will keep him sidelined for up to two months. This is grim news for the Yankees, who have loaded up on talent this offseason with the acquisition of Juan Soto, Marcus Stroman and Alex Verdugo.

Cole consulted with renowned orthopedic surgeon Dr. Neal ElAttrache. It's sort of a good news-bad news situation for the Bronx Bombers. The good news is their ace pitcher Gerrit Cole won't need Tommy John surgery. The bad news is that they will still need to rely heavily on Cole despite his elbow issue.

Given the situation, MLB analyst Jon Harper suggested that the Yankees should take a swift approach and lure either Jordan Montgomery or Blake Snell.

Both lefties are coming off stellar seasons, with Montgomery acting as ace for the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers while Snell bagged the second Cy Young Award of his career.

Given Snell's seesaw career, especially after winning a Cy Young Award, Montgomery's familiarity with the Yankees organization certainly makes more sense.

Harper also discussed Gerrit Cole's pitching repertoire compared to other pitchers. He cited Masahiro Tanaka as an example of a pitcher that played through elbow issues. The MLB insider tackled the issue of Cole relying on his fastball and power more than Tanaka, who is known to serve up clinical breaking balls to compensate for power.

Whichever way the Yankees go about the Cole situation, it will certainly have an impact in the grander scheme of things, as the majority of the team's stars encountered injuries last season that derailed the team's push for the postseason.

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Jordan Montgomery can be Gerrit Cole's replacement for 2024

In an ultra-competitive division such as the American League East, the New York Yankees certainly need an ace with the caliber of Gerrit Cole. However, with the reigning Cy Young Winner shelved for the foreseeable future, they can always look to run it back with a former player of their own.

Jordan Montgomery started his MLB career with the Yankees. The lefty hurler spent eight years with the organization before being shipped off to St. Louis. However, it left a sour taste in his mouth as he was reportedly caught off guard when he was traded to the Cardinals.

After a respectable stint with the Cards, he was dealt midseason to the playoff-contending Texas Rangers. There, Montgomery shined and didn't look out of place next to names such as Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom.

The lefty was one of the key components in Texas' Fall Classic victory. He posted a 4-2 record with a 2.79 ERA during his time in the Lone Star State.

With the Yankees' starting core of Nestor Cortes, Carlos Rodon, Marcus Stroman, and the aforementioned Gerrit Cole, and given their combined injury histories, Montgomery will certainly be a prime candidate to take up the mantle as an ace for the team as Cole recovers from his injury.