Yankees' Gerrit Cole scheduled to throw off mound Saturday

There remains no official timeline for Gerrit Cole’s return, but the righthander, who began his throwing program in early April, is set to take the next significant step in his rehab.

Aaron Boone said before Friday night’s game against the Tigers that Cole, who played catch earlier in the day, is “scheduled” to throw from a mound on Saturday.

“It’s a step,” Boone said. “It’s gone well so far. His buildup and checking the boxes and the levels of intensity of throwing and things like that. So far, so good, and getting [on] the mound will obviously be another step.”

From the start, those inside the Yankees’ organization never took seriously the reports of a “one-to-two-months” time frame that came in droves after Cole headed to California in mid-March for follow-up testing and evaluation of his right elbow after inflammation was discovered in an initial MRI.

It was for that reason that the club never provided a timeline for his return, though at the time, just about everyone in the organization  would have signed up for a return by July 1, something that very much remains the case.

No, the one-to-two-months was pure guesswork, given by some around the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner.

“There’s still so much unknown,” one organizational insider said at the time, noting the “uncertainty” and “unpredictability” that comes with elbow injuries.

From the time Cole got hurt, everyone has said he would need essentially a full spring training to get ready, a period of six weeks.

What isn’t clear is exactly when that six-week clock will begin, or if it  already has begun.

“I guess the clock’s always going, especially for starting pitchers and, frankly, every pitcher now, you get to spring training, you’ve typically been going through a throwing program for some time and built up to be able to get on the mound and those kind of things,” Boone said in a bit of word salad. “So I’m not sure exactly the timeline. All I know is things have been going well. We’re getting to the point now where obviously [he’s] able to get [on] the mound. I don’t know the timeline from there.”

Because pitchers usually arrive at spring training already having started throwing off a mound in earnest, it’s not a leap to assume that Cole’s clock either has just started or  will start soon. That would bring about a best-case scenario of a mid-June return, but again, that’s best-case, and Cole hasn’t yet thrown his first bullpen session.

Meanwhile, the Yankees' rotation — to the surprise of many, including more than a few in the organization — not only has survived Cole’s absence but has thrived.

Even with Carlos Rodon turning in his worst start of what has been a largely successful start to the season, Yankees starters entered Friday night having allowed three or fewer earned runs in 26 of their 33 starts, two or fewer earned runs  in 19 of those starts and one or zero earned runs in 14 of those outings.

The Yankees are one of only two teams in the majors to have five pitchers who have made at least six starts this year and have an ERA below 3.90 (Luis Gil 3.19, Clarke Schmidt 3.19, Rodon 3.68, Marcus Stroman 3.69 (entering Friday night) and Nestor Cortes 3.86). The Phillies are the other team.

“They’re doing excellent,” Cole said of the unit on April 25. “They’re throwing the ball well. I like the adjustments that we’re making. It’s a concerted effort from one start to the next to improve, so it’s nice to see that come to fruition. We’ve been executing well.”

Notes & quotes: Utilityman Jon Berti, on the injured list since April 11 with a left groin strain, came through his brief rehab assignment with Double-A Somerset this week just fine and is slated to be activated Saturday, Boone said . . . Reliever Nick Burdi (right hip inflammation) will start a rehab assignment Sunday with Somerset. Boone said that assignment isn’t likely to last long, probably not more than one or two games . . . DJ LeMahieu, out since the start of the season with a non-displaced fracture in his right foot, resumed baseball activities  this week. He was shut down two weeks ago after experiencing discomfort in the foot following one at-bat in a rehab assignment with Somerset. There is no time frame for his return . . . Catcher Austin Wells, who took three wicked shots off his mask during Thursday afternoon’s game in Baltimore, was back behind the plate Friday night catching  Stroman.