Everything to Know About Yankees Pitching for Playoff Push

Current Starting Rotation

• LHP Carlos Rodón
• RHP Cam Schlittler
• RHP Luis Gil
• LHP Max Fried
• RHP Will Warren

This group, barring any injuries, is unlikely to change down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs. The rotation will shorten once the postseason hits, and the order in which the Yankees decide to deploy their starters will be dependent on their seeding and whether or not they have to play a three-game Wild Card series.

At the very least, Fried and Rodón are locks to make outings in October while Schlittler is presenting a strong case to be the club's No. 3 starter.

Current Bullpen

• RHP David Bednar
• RHP Luke Weaver
• RHP Devin Williams
• RHP Camilo Doval
• RHP Fernando Cruz
• LHP Tim Hill
• RHP Mark Leiter Jr.
• LHP Ryan Yarbrough
• RHP Paul Blackburn

This unit will also likely remain untouched, at least during the regular season, outside of Blackburn, who will become a prime candidate to be designated for assignment once left-hander Brent Headrick (forearm) completes his rehab assignment.

Once the playoffs roll around and rosters shrink back down to 26 players, however, the Yankees will have some tough decisions on their hands. Another factor to keep in consideration is that the club will almost certainly look to move one or more of its starting pitchers into the bullpen once the time comes.

Now, let's take a look at New York's depth options just in case they need to reach into the minor leagues for reinforcements.

Bullpen Depth

• RHP Jake Bird
• RHP Ian Hamilton
• RHP Yerry De los Santos
• LHP Jayvien Sandridge
• RHP Scott Effross

All five of the above pitchers have appeared in major league games for the Yankees over varying sample sizes this season and are currently playing for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre while residing on the 40-man roster, providing the club with a nice pool of arms to fall back on if necessary.

Bird is the highest-profile name amongst this bunch considering New York gave up a pair of prospects in Roc Riggio and Drew Shields in order to acquire him from the Colorado Rockies at the deadline. The 29-year-old logged a 27.00 ERA over two innings for the team, however, before getting optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and posting a 6.10 ERA for them across 10 1/3 frames.

Hamilton has pitched to a 3.45 ERA in 135 2/3 innings for the Yankees since 2023 while De los Santos owns a 3.28 ERA over 35 2/3 big-league frames this season. Sandridge allowed two earned runs in 2/3 of an inning during his only appearance for New York while Effross is responsible for an 8.44 ERA across 10 2/3 frames.

Rotation Depth

• RHP Allan Winans
• RHP Kenta Maeda

Winans has been spectacular for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre all season, putting up a 1.33 ERA in 19 outings (16 starts) and 87 2/3 innings. He's had trouble finding success in the majors with an 8.68 ERA over three appearances (one start) and 9 1/3 innings this year, but he could receive some work if necessary for the Yankees over the next few weeks.

New York signed Maeda, a nine-year major league veteran and former AL Cy Young runner-up, to a minor league contract in early August after opting not to trade for a starter at the deadline. The 37-year-old has recorded a 5.08 ERA over 331 big-league innings since the start of the 2021 campaign and has posted a 5.40 ERA in five starts with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but he too is an option if worse comes to worst for the Yankees given his experience.

The organization's starting pitching depth took a hit after Gerrit Cole, Clarke Schmidt and top prospect Chase Hampton all underwent Tommy John surgery, but they could move Yarbrough or Blackburn (if they hold onto him) back to the rotation or use them as spot starters if need be as well.

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