It is a tiny sample size. So small that Jonah Tong has yet to make a major league start and Nolan McLean — with his introduction Wednesday to Phillies-Mets — and Cam Schlittler had combined for just 11.
But even with that limited time in The Show, Tong, McLean and Schlittler are evolving into instrumental pieces for the New York teams this stretch run. McLean and Schlittler, at minimum, are potentially making cases to start postseason games — and who knows if Tong does as well.
Schlittler, who made his MLB debut July 9, has yet to surrender more than three runs in any of his eight starts and appears to be improving. He has been the Yankees’ top starter in August — with a 1.63 ERA in five outings this month (third in the majors for anyone with 25 innings), a 29 percent strikeout rate and a .188 batting average against.
In a best-of-three first round — assuming the Yankees get there — Aaron Boone almost certainly will go with his veteran lefties, Max Fried and Carlos Rodón (presuming no injuries, which is of course, perilous). The third spot would come down to Schlittler, Luis Gil and Will Warren. And based on stuff, it would probably be Gil vs. Schlittler. Gil made two postseason starts as a rookie last year, but had made 29 regular-season starts.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
