NEW YORK — Cam Schlittler walked off the Yankee Stadium mound Sunday with two very different kinds of attention following him. One came from a 111.5 mph comebacker that struck the back of his right hamstring. The other came from another start that made the Yankees’ late-season rotation look increasingly built around the 25-year-old right-hander.
Schlittler worked six scoreless innings in the Yankees’ 2-0 win over the Mets, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out eight. Ben Rice opened the scoring with his 38th home run in the first inning, and Austin Wells added a solo shot in the third. Schlittler earned the win to improve to 14-6. Mets right-hander Christian Scott took the loss, falling to 4-5, and David Bednar finished the three-hit shutout for his 34th save after Brent Headrick and Paul Blackburn handled the seventh and eighth.
The victory pushed the Yankees to 86-63, kept them four games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East, and cut their magic number for a postseason berth to one entering Monday. It also gave the Yankees five wins in six games and a series victory over their crosstown rival. The immediate concern came on Schlittler’s final pitch, when Bo Bichette’s liner ricocheted off his leg to Wells, who completed the out at first.
By Monday morning, the Yankees had not announced a new diagnosis or imaging result. Schlittler said after the game that he expected to make his next start, while Aaron Boone said he expected the right-hander to be fine. That mattered because the Yankees are not simply riding a hot rookie into October. Schlittler has become their most consistent run-prevention force, and his latest start added a historical dimension that few pitchers his age have reached over the past century. That shift has changed the Yankees’ October conversation quickly.
Boone sees value beyond Cy Young
Sunday also moved Schlittler to the top of the major league ERA race. His ERA fell to 1.95, with 228 strikeouts and a 0.90 WHIP across 184 2/3 innings. The Yankees noted after the game that his 228 strikeouts are the seventh-most by a pitcher in one season in franchise history.
Boone was asked about Schlittler’s value to the Yankees and pushed the discussion beyond the Cy Young race.
“I think valuable is a good word. He might be the MVP, too,” Boone said. “He’s been awesome. Just an awesome season, and hopefully there’s a lot left in the tank.”
Aaron Judge, a three-time AL MVP, took a different view while still backing his teammate as the league’s top pitcher.
“He’s definitely pitching like an MVP,” Judge said. “They’ve got a Cy Young Award for a reason: for the best pitcher in the game. He’s got my vote for Cy Young.”
Two-thirds of the schedule tells the story
The 21 low-run starts are already a Yankees franchise record. His 1.95 ERA is also the second-lowest mark by a Yankees pitcher through 31 starts since Ron Guidry carried a 1.71 ERA at that point in his 1978 Cy Young season.
Schlittler has allowed one run or fewer in six straight starts. Against the Mets, he held a no-hit bid until Brett Baty doubled in the fifth and finished with 94 pitches, 60 for strikes. His fastball again overwhelmed a lineup that had scored 12 runs one day earlier.
The result gives the Yankees a simple October question. It is no longer whether Schlittler belongs near the front of the pitching staff, but how much the Yankees can lean on him when the postseason begins. He leads the AL in innings and has combined workload with elite run prevention.
A Ruth-sized line in the record book
Schlittler has now allowed no more than one run in 21 of his 31 starts this season, placing him in a four-pitcher group over the last 110 years among pitchers age 25 or younger.
Dean Chance had 22 such starts for the Angels in 1964. Blake Snell had 21 for Tampa Bay in 2018. Babe Ruth had 21 for Boston in 1916. Schlittler now stands with all three.
The Ruth link reaches back to the left-hander’s pitching peak, before his Yankees slugging years. Ruth went 23-12 with a 1.75 ERA in 1916.
For Schlittler, the feat is about repetition. Eight of his starts have been scoreless, meaning 13 more ended with exactly one run allowed. That puts 67.7% of his starts at one run or fewer.
Health becomes the next Yankees checkpoint
The only interruption Sunday came with Bichette’s comebacker. Schlittler walked off under his own power and went directly to the clubhouse. At 94 pitches, his day was likely finished regardless.
Schlittler gave the clearest update after the game.
“I’m feeling good,” Schlittler said. “It’ll be a fun couple of days trying to get that recovered, but I think we’re in a good spot.”
The Yankees open a three-game series at Minnesota on Monday with Will Warren scheduled to start. Schlittler’s next turn would come later in the week if the rotation remains on schedule. For now, the Yankees have a magic number of one, an ace-level starter sharing rare company with Ruth, and one health check that matters more than the awards debate.
Schlittler made clear which race matters most to him.
“The expectation is to make the playoffs, and the expectation is to win a championship,” Schlittler said. “We’re in a good spot if we keep playing the way we’re playing.”
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