The New York Yankees‘ weary and injury-plagued pitching staff is close to getting more valuable reinforcements.
After Luis Gil made his return out of relief in Anaheim on Monday night, and Yankees manager Aaron Boone confirmed righty Clarke Schmidt would make his second minor-league rehab start Wednesday night.
Boone confirmed Schmidt’s update on the Talkin’ Yanks podcast Tuesday. Schmidt has been out since July 2025 after having Tommy John surgery, which cut short his best season to date.
The Yankees lead the majors in both bullpen (3.11) and starters’ ERA (3.36), but they are without starter Ryan Weathers and high-leverage reliever Fernando Cruz, due to injuries.
Clarke Schmidt Will Make a Rehab Start on Wednesday
Boone told the podcast hosts during his weekly appearance that he was “encouraged” by Schmidt’s progress while rehabbing with Double-A Somerset. Schmidt threw 20 pitches and got two outs, both strikeouts, but did allow a two-run home run to Aaron Walton, the Cleveland Guardians‘ No. 9 prospect according to MLB Pipeline.
“I thought he looked pretty good the other day,” Boone said of Schmidt’s outing. “He gave up two runs, and gave up a home run, but he looked good, and his live [bullpen session] looked really good too. I’m encouraged where Clarke’s at.”
But Schmidt’s return is far from imminent. Boone said he would make “at least a couple, few more” rehab starts after Wednesday.
Still, getting Schmidt back in the majors would be a huge relief. He was finally figuring it out last season when he sustained a minor UCL tear that required surgery, posting a 4-4 record with a 3.32 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 73 strikeouts in 78 2/3 innings.
“I think there’s a real chance he can help us,” Boone said.
Clarke Schmidt is Likely To Come Out of the Bullpen in October
The Yankees’ offense has been struggling, and their pitching is so good that they’ve played a slew of close, low-scoring, playoff-like games.
Plus, Brian Cashman didn’t make any meaningful moves to bolster the bullpen at the deadline. That’s part of the reason the team called up Gil from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre and claimed John Schreiber off waivers from the Kansas City Royals on Monday.
So Schmidt is in line to be a swing reliever in October, since he’s done that in the past. It’s unlikely he’ll be built up enough to start in time for the playoffs, and the Yankees already have at least six starters — Schlittler, Rodon, Cole, Fried, Weathers and Will Warren — worthy of a postseason start.
The Yankees also rank seventh in the majors in starters’ innings pitched (737 1/3), entering play Tuesday just 1/3 of an inning behind the Baltimore Orioles for sixth.
They’ve been without Weathers, Gerrit Cole, Max Fried and Carlos Rodon at various points this season, and they’re trying to avoid overusing ace and AL Cy Young Award favorite Cam Schlittler, who is still five months from his 26th birthday.
That means Schmidt could be a huge weapon out of relief, especially with a mid-90s cutter, knuckle-curveball, slider and wipeout sweeper — a mix that has produced 0.97 strikeouts per inning over his career.
Yankees Manager Aaron Boone Offers Encouraging Update on Clarke Schmidt