Yankees place Gerrit Cole on 60-day injured list

HOUSTON — With Gerrit Cole set to miss at least the first two months of the season with right elbow inflammation, the Yankees made an obvious roster decision before Thursday’s season opener, placing Cole on the 60-day injured list.

Cole, who is a long way from beginning his throwing program and now officially will not be able to return until May 27, still is as involved as ever when it comes to the pitching staff. He's in on meetings to talk strategy and sequencing, among other things.

“Got to talk to Gerrit for a while today. We were just talking about things in the game that he’s so passionate about,” Aaron Boone said. “It certainly [stinks] not having your ace go [Opening Day] but also excited about Nestor [Cortes] getting that chance, excited about hopefully the prospects of Gerrit getting back to us at some point. I know the rehab so far has gone OK. You always want your ace, your Cy Young, going, but hopefully this is something, when the dust settles, we look up and maybe we’ve found out some things about some guys who have been given opportunities that become a significant piece for a really special team. You need those things to happen as well.”

Placing Cole on the 60-day IL was among a flurry of roster moves the club made before Thursday’s game.

DJ LeMahieu was put on the 10-day IL with a right foot contusion, the result of fouling a ball off the foot during a spring training game March 16. Oswald Peraza went to the 10-day IL with a right shoulder strain and righthanders Tommy Kahnle (right shoulder inflammation) and McKinley Moore (right knee bursitis) were put on the 15-day IL. All are retroactive to March 25.

As corresponding roster moves, the Yankees recalled righthander Luis Gil,  who will make his season debut Monday  against the Diamondbacks; signed righty reliever Nick Burdi to a major-league contract and selected him to the active roster, and added infielder Jon Berti, acquired from the Marlins the day before, to the active roster.

The Yankees had seriously considered starting Berti, a 34-year-old utilityman who can play third, short, second and all three outfield spots, at third base Thursday. But after what he called a “whirlwind” of a day Wednesday when he found out he had been traded and then didn’t get to the team hotel until about 2 a.m. Thursday, the switch hitting Oswaldo Cabrera made the start at third instead.

Cabrera made the most of it, reaching on an infield single in the fifth and scoring one of the Yankees' three runs in the inning, then tying it at 4-4 in the sixth with a homer to right.

“Super-exciting, obviously, just to come to such an organization that’s so prestigious,” Berti said. “I grew up watching the Yankees all the time and stuff, so it’s pretty surreal.”

As for his “best” position in the field, Berti smiled.

“Depends on the day you ask me, I guess,” he said. “I love playing all over — third base, shortstop, wherever we need it.”