Yankees general manager Brian Cashman recently gave an update about ace Gerrit Cole who last played in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series. Cole attempted to return this season but an elbow discomfort that turned into a Tommy John surgery ended his season before it even began.Cashman shared on Sunday night in an interview on MLB Tonight that his star pitcher would be ready to play on an undetermined date in 2026. Cole posted an 8-5 record with a 3.41 ERA across 17 starts for the Bombers in the most recent season that he played. Although subpar in terms of his averages, he bounced back in the postseason having given up just seven earned runs across 29 innings."He could push it on May, but to me, it could be June," said Cashman about Cole's timeline. He'll be ready when he's ready. No one is going to outwork him. He's prepared both mentally and physically at all times, so we'll se where it takes us. (1:09-1:25)Without Cole on the mound for the whole year, the Yankees faced several challenges in the starting rotation. This forced skipper Aaron Boone to call on the services of Cam Schlittler, Ryan Yarbrough, and heavily rely on Will Warren to fill out the front end of the lineup.Although they were able to hold the line in the regular season by finishing in the upper half of team pitching stats, the squad unraveled in the postseason by giving away a putrid 5.61 ERA, the second-worst average amongst all playoff teams.In addition to Cole's injury issues, the Yankees will begin the 2026 campaign without their number two starter Carlos Rodon, who underwent bone spur removal surgery in October 2025."We are vulnerable early on because of Rodon and Cole's surgeries. So that's one of the reasons we brought Yarbrough in. We're also having conversations about how can we protect ourselves in the starting rotation." (1:27-1:40)Former Yankees captain Don Mattingly falls short in Hall of Fame voteYankees legend and former club captain Don Mattingly fell short in this year's Contemporary Baseball Era ballot voting after receiving just six votes that's tied in third place with Braves legend Hall of Famer.Mattingly surrendered the spot to Giants great Jeff Kent, who received 14 votes. In addition, former Mets star Carlos Delgado finished in second with nine votes. "Donnie Baseball" was a Yankee lifer, having spent the entirety of his playing career at the Bronx.He tallied six All-Star selections, nine Gold Gloves, three Silver Sluggers, and the 1985 American League MVP along with his number being retired by the club.