Yankees Gerrit Cole remembers Tommy John as trailblazer for venturing into the unknown with surgery

TORONTO — As a recent beneficiary of the surgery named after Tommy John, Gerrit Cole joined in those remembering the former Yankees lefty who died Saturday night at the age of 83.Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees.

“I think the first thing that comes to mind is how much of a trailblazer he was and what great perseverance he had, venturing into the unknown with the surgery and really writing the book, writing the script for how to push through it and overcome it and ultimately have success afterwards,” Cole said Sunday after a 4-3 win over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.John, who was the first baseball player to undergo UCL surgery performed by Dr.Frank Jobe in 1974, came back to pitch in 405 games and 2,544 ²/₃ innings after the procedure, recording 164 of his 288 career wins with the new elbow.Cole, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2025, came back this year and has been sharp, posting a 3.22 ERA over his first 15 starts.

He marveled at John being the first to come back from the major surgery that is now ubiquitous across the league.“What a blessing it is that we get to see these great players continue on such a great path, and it’s because of Tommy John and Dr.Jobe,” Cole said.Both Cole and manager Aaron Boone said they thought John should be a Hall of Famer, and not just for the surgery in his name.“I hope people remember how outstanding his career was and not just being named for the injury that obviously we know very well now,” said Boone, whose father Bob played with John on the 1982 Angels.

“I can see his windup, one of my favorite windups to imitate.But a great career and a lasting legacy.”With Carlos Rodón closing in on a return from the injured list, Ryan Weathers keeps bolstering his case to stick in the rotation.The lefty was strong again Sunday, allowing just one run over 7 ¹/₃ innings while out-pitching Blue Jays ac...