NEW YORK – The Yankees’ braintrust spent days debating their rotation in the American League Wild Card Series, only to arrive at a logical conclusion: Just hand the ball to the guy who’s about to win the AL Cy Young Award.
Cam Schlittler will face the Red Sox in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series on Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET, the team announced, to be followed by Max Fried in Game 2. Gerrit Cole would start Game 3, if necessary.
“Who wouldn’t want to start the first game?” Schlittler said earlier this week. “I feel like this whole pitching staff kind of deserves it. We’re all competitors.”
Fried and Schlittler both tossed side sessions in the rain on Sunday at Yankee Stadium, and manager Aaron Boone said he would wait to announce his plans until both hurlers came through without incident.
The Yankees have been keeping close tabs on Schlittler’s workload. He’s coming off a 33-start campaign in which he posted a 14-6 record and 1.95 ERA in a career-high 193 2/3 innings.
Pitching coach Matt Blake said earlier this week that while Schlittler has “earned the right to pitch Game 1,” the righty’s health was among the items the team would consider.
Fried is on extra rest, having last pitched last Tuesday, while Schlittler is on regular rest coming off a three-inning outing against the Rays on Thursday.
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Additionally, Blake noted that Schlittler has pitched on his regular day for three consecutive turns. The Yankees held Schlittler to 70 pitches in that start against Tampa Bay.
Ultimately, common sense prevailed. Schlittler’s 1.95 ERA is the Yankees’ lowest since Ron Guidry’s 1.74 mark in 1978, and he’s in line to become the seventh Yankee to win the Cy Young Award and the first since Cole in 2023.
“He’s a student of the game,” Blake said. “He understands who he’s facing and which [pitch] shapes are going to work better to hitters. I think that’s something he’s learned a lot about as the years have gone on.”
Neck and neck with the Blue Jays’ Dylan Cease in the Cy Young conversation for much of the season, Schlittler separated himself with a strong finish. He pitched to a 1.17 ERA (10 runs, seven earned) over his final nine starts, spanning 54 innings.
Going 2-1 with a 0.74 ERA in four starts against the Red Sox this season, Schlittler most recently faced them on Aug. 28, when he held Boston to two hits over 5 2/3 innings in the Yanks’ 1-0 victory.
“He just doubled down on what we saw last year,” Blake said. “The fact that he’s held velo the way he has, the fact that he’s thrown probably more strikes than he did in July and August – it’s a testament to the work that he put in over the course of 30-plus starts to put himself in this spot.”
Of course, Schlittler knows what a playoff start in the Bronx should feel like.
He was magnificent in the Wild Card Series last year, striking out 12 over eight scoreless innings to send Boston home and vault the Yankees into the AL Division Series against the Blue Jays.
“The environment, it’s electric,” Schlittler said. “Being home is important. To be in front of these fans, it’s going to be special.”