Yankees Young Starting Pitcher Struggling To Regain Past Form To Start Season

The New York Yankees' pitching staff has been decimated by injuries during the 2025 MLB regular season.

Max Fried and Carlos Rodon have done everything in their power to try and keep things afloat, but there is only so much they can do to make up for the lack of production from their teammates on the mound.

The Yankees are 20-16 on the season, going a perfect 7-0 when Fried takes the mound. They are under .500 when it is anyone else toeing the rubber, going 4-4 when it is Rodon who is starting.

New York needs to find more consistency from their starting rotation, especially with some issues arising with the back end of their bullpen.

One of the players they are relying on is Clarke Schmidt.

His start to the 2025 campaign was delayed after dealing with some right rotator cuff tendinitis. He didn’t make his debut until April 16 against the Kansas City Royals.

Overall, his production has been a little iffy out of the gate.

What Has Led to An Iffy Start for Clarke Schmidt?

Schmidt has made four starts with a 4.79 ERA across 20.2 innings. He has 19 strikeouts but has struggled a little bit with his control, issuing 10 walks as well. His 13.8% walk rate is in the bottom 8% of the MLB right now, per Baseball Savant.

Knocking off the rust could certainly be part of the reason for some struggles as he gets back into a groove after returning from injury. He also battled some soreness in his left side recently, resulting in his start being pushed back.

However, he has not yet found the same form he showcased during his breakout in 2024, as his arsenal has not been performing as well to this point.

As shared by Eno Sarris of The Athletic (subscription required), Schmidt had a Stuff+ of 107 last year. Thus far in 2025, he has experienced one of the largest drop-offs in the sport with a Stuff+ of only 98.

Certainly not too horrible of a number, but there are only five pitchers in baseball who haven’t had a role change and have thrown at least 10 innings this season who have seen a larger decrease in Stuff+ year over year.

With so many other issues to deal with on their pitching staff, the Yankees are hoping this is just a case of Schmidt working his way back into form after his spring training was interrupted by injury.

That certainly seems like a plausible explanation, given that he has surrendered only three earned runs over his last two starts, spanning 11 innings, after being tagged for eight earned runs over 9.2 innings in his first two starts.