As the Yankees awaited Gerrit Cole’s results over the weekend, general manager Brian Cashman told reporters he was “prepared for the worst.” On Monday, after getting a second opinion, the Yankees had to accept ‘the worst.

“I’m prepared for the worst,” Cashman said late Sunday morning in Jupiter, Florida, before the Yankees played the Cardinals in a Grapefruit League game. Cashman, speaking to reporters from Newsday and the New York Post, said his many years in the game have taught him to often take a fatalistic view of things.

They Yankees will likely see if role players and youngsters can step up, then assess the trade market as they learn more about themselves.