Yankees release 26-year old pitcher halfway through Tommy John recovery

It's not exactly clear why the New York Yankees did this.

But what is clear is that they released one of their minor league pitchers while he's only halfway through his recovery from Tommy John surgery.

Certainly the assumption on social media is that it wouldn't have cost the Yanks much to keep him around and get the recovery to the finish line.

But with Cole Ayers, that's not what happened.

Ayers is a 26-year old pitcher who has reached Double-A in the Yankees system. They drafted him in the 16th round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Florida State at Manatee-Sarasota.

Now, he shared in an Instagram post that the Yankees cut him loose.

"Unfortunately I was released from the Yankees this weekend," Ayers wrote. "6 months into Tommy John rehab. Baseball isn't always sunshine and rainbows. Give your everything to a game, an organization. 26 years healthy ,never missed a game 'till the inevitable TJ, but it's just business. Plan stays the same. Path is just a little different."

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Ayers shared that he's 10 weeks into his throwing program and will be ready for game action by September.

"This is only the beginning of the greater path God has in store for me!" Ayers wrote.

Ayers may not have a bright big league future. He hasn't quite been good enough in the minor leagues.

This is still an odd outcome, though. 

Baseball reporter John Brophy wrote on X:

"Likely the roster crunch we see every opening day. A-level teams are limited to 30 players while Double-A is limited to 28 players."

It's a tough break for Ayers. He'll just have to keep working and recovering anyway.

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