New York Yankees 5-0 Minnesota Twinst
The New York Yankees continued their strong performance as Clarke Schmidt delivered a career-high eight shutout innings, leading the Yankees to a 5-0 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday, completing a three-game sweep.
Schmidt (5-1) allowed just three hits—a double and two singles—without walking a batter and struck out eight. This impressive outing marked his third consecutive win and lowered his ERA from 2.95 to 2.49. Schmidt threw a career-high 103 pitches, surpassing his previous best of 6 2/3 innings from his last start against Tampa Bay.
Anthony Volpe sparked the Yankees (30-15) early with a leadoff home run, fueling a three-run first inning. Gleyber Torres contributed two doubles and an RBI, while Anthony Rizzo, Austin Wells, and Alex Verdugo each added RBIs. The Yankees have now won 11 of their last 14 games and hold the second-best record in the majors, behind only Philadelphia.
Aaron Judge continued his hot streak, going 2-for-3 with two doubles and a walk, following a 4-for-4 performance with a walk on Wednesday. Judge’s prowess at the plate accounted for half the hits the Twins managed in the entire series, where they were outscored 14-1 and outhit 35-14.
The Twins (24-19) struggled defensively throughout the series. Alex Kirilloff misplayed a line drive from Torres in the first inning, allowing Judge to score. Joe Ryan (2-3) struggled on the mound for Minnesota, allowing four runs on six hits and one walk over 5 1/3 innings, striking out five.
A Day to Remember
Since Ryan Jeffers started the series with a leadoff home run off Carlos Rodon, the Yankees’ pitching staff has thrown 27 consecutive scoreless innings, capped by Clarke Schmidt’s career-best outing. The Yankees are the first American League team to reach 30 victories in 2024, trailing only the Phillies in the majors.
Anthony Volpe extended his hitting streak to eight games with his second career leadoff homer, giving the Yankees an early 1-0 lead. Gleyber Torres doubled, allowing Aaron Judge and Alex Verdugo to score, pushing the lead to 3-0 before Schmidt even took the mound.
Schmidt dominated, striking out eight over eight innings, allowing just three hits and no walks. His cutter was particularly effective, showcasing the potential the Yankees saw when they drafted him in 2017. With Gerrit Cole still injured, Schmidt’s emergence has been crucial.
The Yankees added two more runs in the sixth and seventh innings, with Austin Wells and Verdugo contributing RBIs. Victor González finished the game, securing the Yankees’ 30-15 record, placing them atop the AL East.
Roster
Up Next
The Yankees will head to Chicago to face the White Sox on Friday night. Left-hander Nestor Cortes (1-4, 4.02 ERA) will start for New York, while right-hander Mike Clevinger (0-1, 5.40 ERA) will take the mound for Chicago.
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Clarke Schmidt looked Fabulous Thursday against the Twins, and that knuckle curve of his was AWESOME! I don’t know how anyone could hit that if he can keep throwing it with that much downward break: that was Gorgeous, a word I’d normally only use to describe a beautiful woman; it was that pretty a pitch.
When the Yankees selected Schmidt in the first round in 2017, with the 16th overall pick, I was impressed with his collegiate stats & some videos I’d seen of him pitching, but I was worried because he needed TJ Surgery. I was afraid that he might end up being another top pitching bust, like Brien Taylor (see below).
Thankfully, Schmidt has remained healthy as a Yankee, and he’s now showing signs of being a dominate #2 pitcher, with the potential to become a #1 pitcher. Hopefully, this is the Schmidt we’ll see Frequently going forward.
A Sad Bit of Yankees History:
The name Brien Taylor probably means nothing to most of you, but Taylor was the First Overall Pick in the 1991 draft, and he was named Baseball’s Top Prospect by Baseball America before the 1992 season.
Ron Rizzi, a veteran scout with 53 YEARS experience in baseball, said that Taylor “would have been ONE OF THE GREATEST PITCHERS IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL.” (emphasis added)
Taylor never got a chance to achieve that greatness because his pitching arm was pulverized in a brawl with a man who had badly beaten his brother. In the process of confronting the man, Taylor’s rotator cuff was decimated.
According to Scott Boras, Taylor’s agent, Dr. Frank Jobe, the famous surgeon, said the following about Taylor’s injury: “This is the worst rotator cuff tear I’ve ever seen. It is completely off the bone.”
Taylor tried to come back multiple times from the injury, but he was a shell of his former self, and he was out of baseball in a few years.
in 2012, Taylor went from being a Yankees Bust to being Busted on drug trafficking charges, after undercover agents purchased cocaine and crack cocaine from him over a period of several months. He eventually pleaded guilty to the charges & was sentenced to 50 months in prison in 2012 but was released from prison in September 2015.
Hopefully, Taylor’s life has been much better since then.