NEW YORK — Gerrit Cole isn’t ready to throw off a mound just yet. However, the Yankees’ ace continues to move in the right direction.

Cole is now throwing from 120 feet after making 50 tosses on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. He said he isn’t sure when he will toe the slab for the first time since being sidelined with elbow inflammation in spring training, but Aaron Boone said the righty might get on a mound soon.

“I don’t necessarily think it means he’s getting on the mound immediately,” the manager said before the Yankees played the A’s on Tuesday. “It may be sometime next week. But I know, at least so far, the process and how he’s done and how it’s going is encouraging.”

Cole, who will take Wednesday off, added that he doesn’t know how many more catch sessions he needs to complete before throwing off a mound. He also wasn’t sure if he would travel for the Yankees’ upcoming trips to Milwaukee and Baltimore.

However, the reigning Cy Young winner said that he’s happy with his progress thus far. Cole’s elbow hasn’t been an issue since his throwing program began on April 8.

“It’s kind of a similar ramp-up to what an offseason would be like,” Cole said. “That’s kind of what we’re working off of. I’m just trying to nail it. Not go too fast, not go too slow, either.

“I’m out to 120, so it’s moving. It’s moving along.”

LeMahieu exits early

DJ LeMahieu, working his way back from a nondisplaced fracture in his right foot, began a rehab assignment at Double-A Somerset on Tuesday. It did not go as planned.

The third baseman ended up exiting the game after just one inning in the field and one plate appearance. LeMahieu was supposed to play three to five innings, but he felt soreness in his foot. He will return to New York on Wednesday, where he will be examined by a team physician.

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