NEW YORK — The Yankees are 25-11 and rolling. They have won 15 of their last 17 games. Their rotation ERA over that stretch is among the best in baseball.
They are doing all of this without two of their starting pitchers and with their most dangerous DH sidelined by a nagging calf injury. At the same time, their AL batting average leader has missed back-to-back games with a hand contusion.
Here is where all four players stand as of May 6.
Carlos Rodon: Final rehab start likely behind him
Carlos Rodon took the mound for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre at Worcester on Tuesday in what is expected to be his last minor league tune-up before rejoining the Yankees’ rotation.
The results were not clean. Rodon went 6 1/3 innings and allowed six runs, five of them earned, on seven hits including two home runs. The Yankees said the outing was still a positive step in his recovery from left elbow surgery performed in October 2025.
Rodon has been building up arm strength across multiple rehab starts over the past several weeks. Despite Tuesday’s rough line, the Yankees indicated the pitch count and innings totals were on target. He is expected to return to the Yankees’ active rotation in his next turn, which would come during the ongoing homestand.
Rodon’s return will push rookie Elmer Rodriguez, who was optioned back to Triple-A after Tuesday’s 7-4 win over Texas, out of the rotation spot he briefly held.
Gerrit Cole: Tommy John recovery, still making progress
Cole also made a rehab start on Tuesday as part of his recovery from Tommy John surgery. He and Rodon combined to allow 10 runs and four home runs between them across their respective outings.
Cole’s return timeline is longer than Rodon’s. The Yankees said his rehab is progressing but they have not set a target date for his activation. The plan remains to build him back up carefully, given the nature of the surgery and his importance to the rotation.
The Yankees have managed without Cole all season and still built the best record in the AL. When he returns, the rotation depth shifts significantly.
The main news: Stanton not close to returning despite IL eligibility
This is the update Yankees fans need to read carefully.
Tuesday marked the first day Giancarlo Stanton was eligible to come off the 10-day injured list. He did not. And based on what manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees beat Texas, Stanton is not close.
Stanton has not started running yet. That is the clearest signal of where things stand. He suffered a low-grade right calf strain on April 24 while jogging between first and second base during a game against the Houston Astros. The Yankees waited four days before placing him on the IL, hoping a shorter absence might be possible.
That optimism has faded. Boone was asked directly about Stanton’s condition before Tuesday’s game.
“He’s doing OK, and he’s hit some,” Boone said. “[It’s lingering] a little bit. It still feels minor, but not ready to push it yet.”
Stanton has a well-documented history of soft-tissue leg injuries. The Yankees have been through enough of those situations to know that rushing the process carries real risk. They are choosing patience.
With Stanton out, Jasson Dominguez has taken the primary DH role. Dominguez had his own health scare recently when he was hit by a pitch on his left elbow the previous Wednesday. Fortunately, the Yankees avoided any serious damage. He entered Tuesday batting .273 with an .833 OPS across six games in the expanded role. He went 0-for-4 in Wednesday’s game.
Ben Rice: Hand contusion, day-to-day for second straight game
Ben Rice missed his second consecutive game Tuesday with soreness in his left hand. He suffered the contusion Sunday against the Orioles when he caught a low pickoff throw from Max Fried with his palm in the third inning. He exited that game shortly after and did not play Monday either.
Rice told reporters Tuesday that he had been receiving treatment and was feeling better. He had not yet swung a bat when he spoke to the media. He planned to try.
Boone was asked what it would take for Rice to be available off the bench Tuesday night. The answer pointed toward a wait-and-see approach rather than any firm commitment.
“If he starts doing some light hitting, and then can ramp it up even more and do the things he needs to do to be able to get a swing off, then we’d have a conversation,” Boone said. “So we’ll see how the next few hours are here.”
Rice was not available Tuesday. Paul Goldschmidt started at first base and hit his 374th career home run in the 7-4 victory.
The Yankees are eager to get Rice back. Boone recently called him a “wrecking ball.” Entering Tuesday, Rice led the American League with a .343 batting average. His 1.214 OPS led the entire major leagues. He also had 12 home runs and 27 RBIs in 33 games.
The Yankees’ depth has covered for Rice so far. But no replacement produces at his level. Every day he misses costs the lineup something real.
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