The New York Yankees have brought back their former Cy Young Award-winning pitcher from the injured list, with the right-hander set to take the mound Friday night against Tampa Bay in a crucial American League East battle at home.
The veteran starter has spent 14 months working his way back from Tommy John surgery, with the last two months focused on gradually strengthening his arm and participating in minor league rehabilitation games as he prepared for his Yankees comeback.
“It’s been tough. I mean, I’ve missed it quite a bit,” the pitcher said earlier this week. “There’s been some blessings along the way as well. I talked about my family and spending time with my boys. But largely I’m just looking forward to being really tired and having that exhaustion, like, mean something.”
The 35-year-old will step onto a major league mound for the first time since Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. That following spring, he underwent reconstructive elbow surgery just five days after giving up two home runs during a spring training appearance against the Minnesota Twins.
During spring training this season, he made two appearances for the Yankees before starting his rehabilitation assignment on April 17. Across six minor league games with three different New York affiliate teams, he recorded a 4.66 ERA while surrendering 28 hits over 29 innings, striking out 28 batters and issuing three walks.
“We’re thrilled to get him back,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Thursday. “I think that goes without saying. It’s been a long road and I feel like he’s crushed the rehab process. I feel like the ramp up’s been really good. We’ve been diligent, haven’t skipped things and haven’t rushed things.”
“As a result, I think he’s in position to come here and perform at a high level. That being said, it’s been a long time and so I’m sure there’ll be some things he’s got to iron out at this level, too.”
The Yankees also activated utility man Jose Caballero from the 10-day injured list, where he had been recovering from a fractured finger.
Caballero sustained the injury to his right middle finger on May 10 while diving back to first base to avoid a pickoff attempt during a 4-3 road defeat to the Milwaukee Brewers.
While Caballero was sidelined, the Yankees promoted shortstop Anthony Volpe, who made his 2026 MLB debut after beginning the season rehabilitating from shoulder surgery performed last October before being sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on May 3.
Prior to getting hurt, Caballero was hitting .259 with four home runs, 13 RBIs and 13 stolen bases across 41 games, starting 39 contests at shortstop. The Yankees obtained him at the 2025 trade deadline from division rival Tampa Bay and utilized him in both outfield and infield positions, though he had secured the everyday shortstop role entering this season.
Right after Caballero’s injury occurred, Boone suggested the 29-year-old would keep his starting shortstop spot, but the Yankees manager remained uncommitted over the past week regarding how Volpe would be deployed once Caballero was cleared to return to the majors.
“We’ll see. We haven’t had that conversation yet. The biggest thing is he’s come up and played his butt off,” Boone said of Volpe during an appearance on “Talkin’ Yanks” on Tuesday. “The one thing that’s encouraging is how Anthony’s played in not ideal circumstances. He’s come up and performed at a really high level.”
Following Spencer Jones being sent to Triple-A Thursday, Volpe stays on the roster, although his future role remains uncertain as Caballero is listed in the starting lineup at shortstop for Friday night’s game.
Volpe, 25, competed through a partial labrum tear in his left (non-throwing) shoulder last season before undergoing the October surgery. Both his batting performance and defensive play declined in 2025 while dealing with the injury, a drop-off from his 21-home run, Gold Glove rookie campaign in 2023 across 159 games and his .243 average with 12 homers and 60 RBIs in 160 games during 2024.
Over 480 career games, Volpe has hit .222 with 52 home runs, 192 RBIs, 84 doubles and 72 stolen bases. He also shared the American League lead with 19 errors last season.
