This story was excerpted from Bryan Hoch’s Yankees Beat newsletter, with MLB.com's Theo DeRosa filling in for this edition. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
WEST SACRAMENTO -- Will Warren might not be the first player to jump to mind when considering the Yankees’ standout rotation in 2026. With Cam Schlittler’s dominance, Ryan Weathers’ early success and the returns of Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón from injury, it’s easy to overlook Warren just a bit.
According to manager Aaron Boone, though, Warren’s under-the-radar status works just fine.
“I actually think it fuels him a little bit,” Boone said before Warren’s start in Sunday's 13-8 win over the Athletics. “Not that he’s asking for attention or anything like that, but I think there is a level of, ‘Hey, I’m pretty good at this, too.’”
This season, Warren’s results are backing that up -- most recently evidenced by his outing against the A’s, in which he pitched six innings without allowing an earned run, striking out five. All three runs Warren allowed came in the first inning, and all three were unearned due to a two-out fielding error by Trent Grisham on a fly ball to center field that should have ended the frame.
Warren weathered the novelty of waiting out a 13-run inning from the Yankees' offense, then worked out of jams in the third and fifth innings to deliver a quality start.
“Good job by him of locking in and giving us six strong innings there,” Boone said.
The outing was proof of the right-hander’s maturation, particularly when it comes to the mental side of the game. He has lowered his ERA from 4.44 a year ago to 3.22 in 2026, but without making any major changes to his arsenal or mechanics.
“I don’t think I’m a different pitcher or anything like that,” Warren told MLB.com. “I think it’s a mindset thing.”
For Warren, that means trusting his five-pitch repertoire in the strike zone to limit free passes, and it’s working. His walk rate is down to 7.0% from 9.1% last season. It also means greater confidence on the mound; Warren consistently reminds himself that, “You’re better than whoever’s in the box.”
“We’re out here for a reason, so it’s like, ‘Don’t go out there timid. Just go out there and compete,’” Warren said.
Warren has shown he isn’t afraid to challenge hitters, owning a well-above-average 25.8% strikeout rate while also limiting walks. But he’s missing barrels a lot more in 2026, cutting his barrel rate to 6.2% entering Sunday -- in the 67th percentile of MLB pitchers -- from 10.9% last season (10th percentile).
Part of that might be thanks to his sinker, which Warren is deploying more against left-handed hitters this season. After throwing the pitch to lefties 111 times in 2025, he’s thrown it 97 times already in ’26.
To Warren, having a second fastball option besides his four-seamer makes it hard for hitters to figure out which heater is coming. And by the time they realize, it’s probably too late. Warren’s sinker had a 27.3% putaway percentage entering Sunday, his best on any of his five pitches.
“I think for a while, it was, ‘No sinkers to lefties. They’re going to do damage on it,’” Warren said. “We really ramped up the four-seamer last year. I think it’s even better adding in the sinker this year because now they’re having to guess which one.”
Despite below-average velocity at 93.6 mph, Warren’s four-seam fastball has been a weapon ever since he debuted in 2024. That cup of coffee didn’t go great -- Warren had a 10.32 ERA in six outings -- but the righty held opponents to a .074 average (2-for-27) on his four-seamer.
Warren took a large step forward in ’25, making every turn through the rotation and striking out 171 in 162 1/3 innings, but he’s been much better in his third MLB season. He’s averaging 5.36 innings per start, up from 4.92 a year ago. And his expected ERA was just 3.16 before Sunday’s strong start, backing up his impressive results.
“It’s been fun to watch him continue to grow from getting his feet wet in ’24 to becoming a staple in our rotation last year, and now this year taking that to another level and becoming even a better pitcher,” Boone said.
With the recent success of the Yankees’ rotation -- including a string of six straight quality starts from May 22 through Friday -- Warren’s success has largely gone unnoticed.
Of course, within the Yankees’ clubhouse, that’s certainly not the case.
“He’s been great,” Boone said. “He really has.”