Give Cam Schlittler credit. He did not run from Sunday’s loss.
The Yankees ace lasted just 4 1/3 innings in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 19, taking the loss in an 8-2 defeat at Yankee Stadium. And when he stepped in front of the microphones afterward, he did what a lot of pitchers refuse to do.
He blamed himself.
That’s on me, Schlittler said, per SNY. We know we’ve got a doubleheader. Taxed the bullpen there. Can’t get through five. Then he doubled down. As a starter, if you can’t get through five, that’s not a good sign. Especially in the first game of a doubleheader.
The stat line is misleading. Schlittler generated 20 whiffs and struck out eight Dodgers hitters without walking anyone. He surrendered three earned runs on six hits. Those are not terrible numbers for a matchup against the defending World Series champs, especially with Yoshinobu Yamamoto dealing on the other side.
The problem was pitch count. The Dodgers fouled off 27 pitches. Sixteen of them came with two strikes. That is not luck. That is one of the best offenses in baseball turning every plate appearance into a slog. Schlittler was throwing quality pitches and getting punished for it.
Still, the accountability was a good look for a young starter carrying this rotation. Schlittler is now the guy in the Bronx. Gerrit Cole is still working back. Marcus Stroman has been up and down. Schlittler wanted the ball in a big series against L.A., and he wanted the responsibility that came with it.
The concerning piece is what this does to the bullpen. Aaron Boone had to burn Ian Hamilton, Luke Weaver, and Michael King’s replacement all in the first game of a doubleheader. That is not sustainable in July, and it is definitely not sustainable if Boone wants his pen to be fresh for the trade deadline stretch.
The Yankees are 58-42 after Sunday’s split and still hold the AL East lead over Toronto by 3.5 games. There is no panic. But this Dodgers series was a reminder that the gap between good and great in the American League right now is small. New York cannot afford too many outings like the one Schlittler had.
Give the Dodgers credit too. Yamamoto has been the best pitcher in baseball over the last two months. He is making a real Cy Young case. And the Los Angeles lineup, even without a full-strength Shohei Ohtani, is still nearly impossible to navigate through three times.
Schlittler will get the ball again in five days. He will be fine. But nights like Sunday are why the Yankees are still looking at the trade market for another starter before August 3.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
