Mar 11, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) during the second inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Yankees Could Use Four-Man Rotation to Start Season

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Jordon Lawrenz | Last updated Mar 16, 2026 5:50 PM ET

Spring training performances will certainly have something to do with this decision, but there's a real world where the New York Yankees roll out just four starters through the first two weeks.

New York's schedule is quite odd as they open on March 25 but enjoy the traditional Opening Day, March 26, as an off-day.

Not only are they off the 26th but New York has off March 29 as well. They'll play just three games in their first five days as they go from San Francisco to Seattle.

Starting on the west coast is never ideal, but this will give them a chance to roll out only a few starters to begin the year. Whether that works in their favor remains to be seen, but one would expect it will due to Luis Gil and Ryan Weathers' struggles.

Luis Gil's Performances Make This Decision Easier

Manager Aaron Boone doesn't want to have his guys throwing on an odd number days of rest, especially this early in the year. Baseball is all about repetition and getting into a rhythm, something like their ace Max Fried can't do if he's pitching on five days rest one time and then has a full seven days off before his next start.

The undboutdable hot hands in Spring Training have been Fried, Cam Schlittler, and Will Warren. Each has a different sample size, but it's clear that trio is far superior to anything Weather or Gil has been doing.

Coming off another disastrous start, it's clear Gil simply doesn't have it. At the end of the day that's okay as these things take time, and for once, time is on the Yankees side due to their unusual start to the season.

Four Off-Days in First 13 Days

Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

MLB teams are lucky to get one day off a week in the thick of the season but New York sure gets to ease their way into the 2026 campaign.

Yankees' Bryan Hoch noted Fried is the Opening Day starter and Schlittler is likely to follow. That would line up Warren to start in the series finale with Weathers making his Yankees debut in the Mariners opener.

While usually the team would use Gil for the fifth game, that's actually a full five-days of rest for Fried. Boone will likely elect to go with Fried in game two of the series and then back to Schlittler for the finale.

After things end in Seattle, New York has another day off. They host the Miami Marlins for a three-game series and then have April 6 off before welcoming the Athletics. From there it's 13 straight games, so Gil will have no choice but to be ready and make his season debut.

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This article first appeared on New York Yankees on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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