2025 goes in the Yankees' history books as a stunningly successful season, considering the amount of talent they lost before the calendar even turned to April. Juan Soto became a multi-faceted Plan B. Then, once the Yankees had seemingly regrouped from his departure, they lost Clarke Schmidt, Luis Gil and ace Gerrit Cole in one fell swoop (not an exaggeration; they literally all fell in one swoop).
Still, the Yankees tied for the best record in the American League and defeated their arch rivals (the Red Sox) in the first round of the playoffs. As the surge built, Cole — who underwent Tommy John surgery in March — was around more and more often, watching Cam "Baby Cole" Schlittler help carry the torch.