Yankees' Clarke Schmidt Thinks He would Have Finished Off the No-Hitter

That may have been said tongue-in-cheek. Schmidt admitted he emptied the tank in that final inning. He knew where things stood both in the box score and in his body.

“Going into the seventh, I knew that I had no hits, but I also knew that I had close to 100 pitches,” he said. “So I think, you know, it was like I had an internal battle with myself… it’s kind of out of reach, but I'm still going to try to go out there.”

Schmidt missed the first two weeks of the season after nagging fatigue injuries in spring training but has been healthy and effective since returning.

 Still, both he and the Yankees had their eyes on the long view. Schmidt has a long history of injuries, including Tommy John surgery before his professional career began. 

“You’ve got 80 more games to go,” he said. “You gotta think bigger picture here.”

By the end of the seventh, fatigue had started to creep in. Schmidt said he was “really putting a lot of effort behind those pitches” late in the inning, calling it his last burst of energy before the plug was pulled.

“There’s no sense arguing at that point,” he said.

Boone stuck to the plan. Schmidt stuck to the moment just long enough to leave fans wanting more.

The no-hitter didn’t happen. But the return? That part was perfect.

Let me know if you want to tweak the ending or add context from Boone’s side next.