Gerrit Cole jokes the Yankees invented their own COVID variant

Pitcher Gerrit Cole joked about a “Yankees variant” of the COVID-19 outbreak, with New York enduring a third wave of positive tests this season.

The Yankees would be hard hit enough if injuries were the only thing keeping guys out of their lineup. Another COVID-19 outbreak isn’t helping.

New York has had to put five players on the COVID injured list this month, including pitchers Gerrit Cole, Jordan Montgomery and Clay Holmes, plus first baseman Anthony Rizzo and catcher Gary Sanchez.

It’s been a rough ride in general for the Yankees on the COVID-19 front, so much so this latest situation has Cole joking about a “Yankees Variant” of the coronavirus.

“I think we have our own variant named after us, the Yankees Variant,” Cole said during FOX’s broadcast of the Field of Dreams game against the White Sox.

Gerrit Cole joked about the “Yankees Variant” of COVID-19

COVID-19 is a serious matter, but Cole clearly wasn’t trying to disrespect the seriousness of the situation. The Yankees have had an inordinate number of players and staff contract the coronavirus this year. The jest is fitting.

In May, New York had eight people within the organization test positive for COVID-19. In July, Aaron Judge headlined a group of six who tested positive after the All-Star break.

The latest outbreak comes at a time when the Yankees already had a slew of injuries to deal with. On Wednesday, NY had 20 players on the injured list and only five of those were on it because of COVID.

The good news is Cole and the others should be on their way back soon. Cole and Montgomery, who were put on the COVID IL on Aug. 3, were back with the team in Iowa on Thursday and are expected to return to action by next week.