As the New York Yankees await news on the severity of Gerrit Cole's elbow issue, the reality of the calendar is this: He will be unavailable for a potentially significant period of time, and they are going to need to identify someone to pitch the games he cannot. And for a team with a payroll that is in the $300 million range, their options are probably narrower than you'd assume.
Without Cole, the Yankees' rotation looks like this: Nestor Cortes, the left-hander who worked extensively in the offseason and has impressed the staff this spring; Carlos Rodon, who is coming off a horrific inaugural season in the Bronx; Marcus Stroman, the right-handed sinkerballer who signed a two-year, $37 million contract with the Yankees in the offseason; and Clarke Schmidt, who had a 4.