Fans of the New York Yankees who were worried about Cam Schlittler’s status can officially exhale.
The breakout star of the 2025 season will make his spring training debut for the Yankees on Friday when they host the Tampa Bay Rays at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa.
Schlittler has been managing a back injury that was worrisome to fans, mainly since he had not yet made an appearance in the Yankees’ first 11 games. But he has recovered from back inflammation and will begin his ramp up to Opening Day against the San Francisco Giants on March 25.
Cam Schlittler Will Make His 2026 Spring Debut Friday
Schlittler quickly became important at work for the Yankees in 2025 after going 4-3 with a 2.96 ERA then allowed just two earned runs while striking out 14 in 14 1/3 innings in two postseason starts against the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays.
So with Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon and Clarke Schmidt likely to miss the start of the regular season, Schlittler’s early-season back injury loomed large over the Yankees starting rotation.
But even though, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, Schlittler will take a little extra time to ramp up to about 80 pitches, he will still be able to make his turn in the rotation.
That’ll start Friday against the Rays, against whom Schlittler was 0-1 with 2.45 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 11 innings over two starts during the regular season last year.
Cam Schlittler Will Likely Get Four Spring Training Starts
The Yankees are likely to start the regular season with a rotation of Schlittler, Max Fried, Ryan Weathers, Luis Gil, Will Warren and potentially Ryan Yarbrough.
Fried almost certain to start the regular-season opener at Oracle Park barring an injury, since he led the majors in wins (19) and is the only available ace of New York’s three-headed starting-rotation monster. But Schlittler could be in line to throw the Yankees’ second regular-season game in San Francisco on March 27.
By making his first outing in Tampa on Friday, Schlittler is likely to make four starts in Florida, capped by the Yankees’ Grapefruit League finale against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 22.
The Yankees will break camp and head west to Arizona for two games against the Chicago Cubs in Mesa before going to the Bay Area and opening their season against the Giants.
That means Schlittler will have four outings to ramp up to about 85 pitches — which typically the limit starting pitchers open the year throwing. It’s possible the Yankees could tandem Schlittler with Yarbrough if the righty isn’t fully ramped up, since Yarbrough has both started and come out of relief throughout his career.
Of course, injuries and other factors could alter Schlittler’s timeline. Manager Aaron Boone and pitching coach Matt Blake may opt to start Ryan Weathers, who is 2-1 with a 2.84 ERA and 23 strikeouts in 19 innings against the Giants in his career, for Game 2.
But it’s safe to assume, barring injury, Schlittler will on the mound in San Francisco for the opening series. That means he has a handful of spring starts to be ready to go.
Yankees Get Good Cam Schlittler News Amid Injury Concerns