Wednesday will mark a first for the New York Yankees: the first time Gerrit Cole and Max Fried take the mound as active rotation-mates since Fried signed with the team.
Rainy weather forced New York’s hand. Tuesday’s postponed game against the Pittsburgh Pirates led to a surprise announcement that Fried would come off the injured list Wednesday rather than pitch a scheduled rehab game. He’ll start Game 2 of a split doubleheader against Pittsburgh at Yankee Stadium, with Cole starting the opener against his former team. First pitch for Game 1 is set for 1:05 p.m., with Game 2 following at 7:05 p.m.
A Long-Awaited Pairing Finally Arrives
GettyMax Fried of the New York Yankees.
Fried has been on the injured list since May 16 with a left elbow bone bruise. Cole, meanwhile, missed the entire 2025 season recovering from Tommy John surgery and didn’t return to the mound until after Fried had already gone down this year. Wednesday will be the first time the two have been active together since Fried signed his eight-year, $218 million deal before last season.
Fried touched on the situation back in May, shortly after Cole made his season debut.
“It would be nice to be able to both be active at the same time,” Fried said.
That wish becomes reality Wednesday, giving Pittsburgh’s lineup its first look at the front-of-rotation pairing the Yankees envisioned when they signed Fried. Fried will still work under some restrictions in his return, even against a high-scoring Pirates offense.
Fried’s Return Gets Moved Up After Rainout
GettyNew York Yankees’ Gerrit Cole.
Before Tuesday’s postponement, manager Aaron Boone had indicated Fried would make one final rehab start at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday, throwing around 60 pitches before rejoining the Yankees next week in Chicago. The rainout scrapped that plan entirely.
Fried had only thrown 52 pitches in his lone rehab outing on July 17, and the expectation is he’ll land in a similar range Wednesday or slightly higher, a common approach when teams have starters ease into big-league intensity following activation.
He last pitched for the Yankees on May 13, working through mechanical issues all season despite a smooth rehab process. Fried carried a 4-3 record with a 3.21 ERA, 19 walks, and 50 strikeouts across 10 starts and 61.2 innings before landing on the injured list.
Why the Yankees Needed This Depth
GettyAaron Boone of the New York Yankees.
New York opened the second half without a fifth starter, also missing Carlos Rodon to elbow inflammation, and didn’t have many reliable internal options to fill the gap. Elmer Rodriguez, one of the organization’s top pitching prospects, has made four big-league starts without much success, and the Yankees have already used three of his five remaining minor league options for the year.
Had Fried not been activated early, Tuesday’s rainout would have forced New York into another bullpen game or spot start before the upcoming series against the Chicago White Sox.
Rodon is progressing on his own timeline. He received a second round of treatment, including another PRP injection, on Friday after throwing roughly 10 pitches off the mound. Boone indicated Rodon would throw bullpen sessions Tuesday and again over the weekend, with a chance to face live hitters as soon as next week.
Final Word for the Yankees
New York’s rotation has weathered a difficult stretch of injuries this season, and Wednesday represents real progress toward getting whole. Fried and Cole sharing a mound for the first time isn’t just a symbolic moment. It’s the beginning of the front-of-rotation pairing the Yankees committed real money toward building.
The lineup still has work to do without Judge available. But a deeper, healthier rotation buys New York the time to figure that part out.
Reinforcements.
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