Aaron Boone holds firm on timeline for Gerrit Cole's return to the Yankees rotation

The starting pitching rotation for the New York Yankees is expecting a big boost from the impending return of Gerrit Cole, but manager Aaron Boone is refusing to rush him.

In a brief pregame press conference ahead of Friday's Subway Series opener at Citi Field against the New York Mets, Boone emphasized that "the likelihood is two more [minor league starts] for [Cole], and then [the Yankees] will be in a position to roll."

Cole is slated to take the mound tomorrow night at 6:05pm EST for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders against the Syracuse Mets.

When asked for specifics on how they are managing Cole's workload as he gears up for a return - at this point likely to come before the end of May - Boone noted that his star righty is under a pitch count limit in the "mid 80's".

The injuries are piling up for the Yankees at the moment. Max Fried was just added to the 15-day IL due to a left elbow bone bruise. Meanwhile, DH Giancarlo Stanton, corner outfielder Jasson Dominguez, and emerging shortstop Jose Caballero are all on the 10-day IL.

With the Bronx Bombers rolling into Queens for the weekend having lost six of their last eight games, Boone is refusing to bow to the pressure and rush Cole back into the fold in the hopes of regaining control of the AL East.

"We don't want to take [Cole] off track for a short-term need," Boone remarked.

At time of writing. the Yankees are currently two games behind the red-hot in the .