The New York Yankees have been without breakout right-handed starter Clarke Schmidt since late May, when he suffered a significant right lat strain. It’s fair to say the rotation hasn’t been the same without him and the numbers prove it.
Maybe it’s a coincidence, or perhaps not, but the Yankees’ pitching staff had a 2.00 ERA in March, a 3.22 mark in April and a 2.37 ERA in May when Schmidt was healthy and contributing. The numbers in June (5.26), July (4.26) and August (3.98 so far) are not as good as those early-season months. You could almost say the Yankees miss him out there every fifth day, right?
After a long rehab, a few bullpens and a dominant first rehab start for the Somerset Patriots five days ago, Schmidt is not quite rejoining the Yankees just yet, but he is definitely one step closer to that goal.
“Today, the Yankees transferred the rehab assignment of RHP Clarke Schmidt from Double-A Somerset to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre,” the team announced via X.
Schmidt was definitely on his way to fully breaking out for the Yankees. He posted a brilliant 2.52 ERA in 60.2 frames, with 67 strikeouts against 20 walks. He was 5-3 at the time of being shut down with the unfortunate injury.
He convinced the Yankees it was time to move closer, to Triple-A, after tossing 3.2 innings of just one run (a solo home run) last Friday for the Patriots. He walked just one and struck out six hitters.
He is expected to need one or two additional starts for the RailRiders, and then rejoin the Yankees in some capacity. He is, without a doubt, one of the five best starters on the roster, but many things can happen between now and the day he is deemed ready.
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