NEW YORK — In a surprising move, the New York Yankees will start prospect Elmer Rodríguez in place of ace Gerrit Cole on Sunday, and give every one of their starting pitchers an extra day’s rest, manager Aaron Boone said.Cole will instead start Monday’s series opener in Detroit. The team made the decision because it’s in the midst of playing 16 games in 16 days and suddenly didn’t want each member of the rotation to pitch three times in a row on regular rest, Boone said.“It’s something we’ve been kicking around the last few days,” Boone said after the Yankees lost, 10-2, to the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.The move was unusual in how abrupt it seemed. Rodríguez, the Yankees’ most MLB-ready pitching prospect, had been slated to start Saturday night for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in Columbus, Ohio. Also, Cole played catch in center field at Yankee Stadium before Saturday’s game and seemed fine from afar.Why it's too early to talk about the MLB trade deadlineKen RosenthalBoone said he believed Cole’s body has responded “really well” to pitching in the majors again after missing all of last season and nearly the first two months of this season recovering from Tommy John surgery.Cole, 35, has pitched well. In five starts, he’s 2-1 with a 2.57 ERA. In his most recent start on Tuesday, Cole lasted six innings and threw a season-high 90 pitches, giving up two runs in a win over the Chicago White Sox at home.“I think he’s recovered well, too,” Boone said. “But we also want to play a long game with all these guys. Obviously, Carlos (Rodón) comes back. Younger guys in the rotation that have logged a lot of innings. Feel like they’re all in a good spot but want to be pretty mindful of this as we go through the summer with a long stretch here.”Cam Schlittler leads the Yankees with 95 innings, the third-most in baseball. Schlittler is coming off throwing 149 2/3 innings last season — the biggest workload of his young career.Ryan Weathers (80 2/3 innings) has thrown the second-most on the Yankees, and he threw just 56 1/3 innings last year with the Miami Marlins between the majors and the minors.Will Warren got roughed up for six runs (two earned) in 5 2/3 innings Saturday, giving him 78 1/3 total innings. Rodón has thrown 36 frames in six starts since returning from the injured list on May 10 after offseason elbow surgery.Rodríguez was the Yankees’ No. 6 overall prospect going into the season, according to The Athletic’s Keith Law. The 22-year-old rookie has made three starts in the majors this season, going 0-1 with a 4.15 ERA.“He’s come up (and) he’s had some bumps,” Boone said. “But I feel like he’s managed it well. He’s shown some poise out there in some moments (when) it’s had chances to get away for us. Excited to see him go out (Sunday) and hopefully give us a good outing.”It wouldn’t be shocking if the Yankees decide to use a six-man rotation at least until the All-Star break, which starts July 13, as a way to give each of their regular starting pitchers additional rest.Jun 20, 2026Connections: Sports EditionSpot the pattern. Connect the termsFind the hidden link between sports terms