SEATTLE -- Cam Schlittler pitched what was celebrated as “the game of his life” in the American League Wild Card Series last October, announcing his presence on the postseason stage with a gritty performance that sent the Red Sox home.
That designation may have been premature. The more he pitches at this level, it appears those types of performances just may be Schlittler’s baseline.
The 25-year-old right-hander dominated again on Wednesday, striking out seven over 6 1/3 scoreless innings while retiring the final 15 batters he faced in a 5-3 victory over the Mariners at T-Mobile Park.
Paul Goldschmidt hit a three-run homer and Ben Rice added a ninth-inning blast as part of a two-RBI performance, helping the Yankees complete a successful 5-1 season-opening road trip as they prepare to host the Marlins in Friday’s home opener.
Slowed this spring by a back and lat issue that limited him to 68 pitches in his season debut against the Giants, Schlittler once again showed no ill effects, showcasing a fastball that touched 98.2 mph with only a pitch limit to trip him up.
Seattle managed two hits off Schlittler, and none after Luke Raley’s one-out single in the second inning.
In the lineup as Giancarlo Stanton sat with a pre-planned day off, Goldschmidt hit his sixth-inning homer off George Kirby, who allowed four runs in six frames. It was Goldschmidt’s first home run off a right-hander since June 6.
Cal Raleigh halved the Yankees’ lead with a two-run single off David Bednar in the eighth, coming after Camilo Doval loaded the bases on two hits and a walk.