Gerrit Cole scratched with general body fatigue: Yankees ace to miss start against Phillies

Will Warren has been called up to take Cole's start Tuesday

Reigning AL Cy Young winner and New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole has been scratched from Tuesday's start against the Philadelphia Phillies with what the Yankees are calling "general body fatigue," the team announced. Rookie righty Will Warren will be called up to make the spot start. It will be his MLB debut.

Gerrit Cole said he is feeling “run down” and that it was “hard to bounce back” from his last start. He said his elbow is not an issue. He is not expecting to start tomorrow and will target the next series. Said this is a good chance to put “gas in the tank.”

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) July 30, 2024

Cole, 33, missed the first two and a half months of the season with nerve inflammation in his elbow. He has been hit or miss in his seven starts since returning, pitching to a 5.40 ERA but also allowing two runs or fewer four times. Part of that high ERA has been the Mets: Cole has an 11.17 ERA against the Mets and a 3.20 ERA against everyone else.

The trade deadline is 6 p.m. ET Tuesday -- first pitch between the Yankees and Phillies is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET. New York was said to be in the market for a starting pitcher even before Cole was scratched from his start. Detroit Tigers righty Jack Flaherty, our No. 14 trade candidate, is rumored to be a target.

With a caveat that a trade could change things in short order, the Yankees' rotation depth chart currently looks like this:

1. RHP Gerrit Cole (scratched from Tuesday's start)
2. RHP Luis Gil (nearing his previous career high in innings)
3. LHP Carlos Rodón
4. RHP Marcus Stroman
5. RHP Clarke Schmidt (out several more weeks with a lat strain)
6. LHP Nestor Cortes
7. RHP Cody Poteet (out with a triceps issue)
8. RHP Will Warren

Cortes and Stroman combined for a 6.51 ERA and under five innings per start in July. It has been reported that, if the Yankees are able to land a starter before the trade deadline, they will look to flip Cortes elsewhere.

Warren, 25, is New York's No. 7 prospect, according to Baseball America's midseason rankings. He has a 6.11 ERA in 20 Triple-A starts, though he's surrendered two or fewer earned runs in seven of his last 10 starts. The sinker/sweeper pitcher's "likely role is as a starter toward the back end of a rotation," per Baseball America. 

The Yankees enter play Tuesday with a 63-44 record and a half-game behind the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East. New York has won three straight games, though they are 13-23 since June 14. Only the Chicago White Sox have a worse record since that date.