Yankees Tab Cam Schlittler for Game 1 of Wild Card Series Against Red Sox

The New York Yankees ended a week of internal deliberation on Sunday, announcing that right-hander Cam Schlittler will start Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium, according to ESPN's Jorge Castillo and confirmed by manager Aaron Boone. Max Fried will start Game 2 on Wednesday, and Gerrit Cole is slated for a potential Game 3 on Thursday, according to the Associated Press.

The announcement resolves a genuine rotation puzzle. Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake had said as recently as last Thursday that Fried was "obviously in heavy consideration" for the Game 1 nod, in part to give Schlittler extra rest, according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. Blake's reasoning: "Max is on extended rest, and Cam would be on his third five day in a row. So just making sure he's in a good spot before we make any rash decisions."

The numbers made the final call an easy one. Schlittler finished the regular season 14-6 with a 1.95 ERA, the lowest by any Yankees starter since 1978, according to the Associated Press. He struck out 239 batters over 193.2 innings across 33 starts, posted a 0.92 WHIP, and led all AL pitchers with 6.2 fWAR, according to the New York Daily News. He's the favorite for the AL Cy Young Award.

Schlittler, a Walpole, Massachusetts native, has been especially lethal against his hometown team. He went 2-1 with a 0.74 ERA against Boston this year, striking out 27 over 24.1 innings and holding Red Sox hitters to a .174 average, according to the Associated Press. Last October he ended Boston's season outright, striking out 12 over eight scoreless innings in Game 3 of the 2025 Wild Card Series, a 4-0 clincher in the Bronx, according to the New York Daily News and USA Today. He threw 11 pitches at 100 mph or faster in that outing, including six in the first inning, per the Associated Press.

Fried's case for a return to Game 1 duty was complicated by an injury-riddled season. The left-hander landed on the injured list twice for bone bruises in his left elbow, limiting him to 20 starts and a final line of 5-5 with a 2.80 ERA, according to the New York Daily News. He has pitched better since returning from his second IL stint on August 29, posting a 2.73 ERA over five starts. His postseason track record is shakier: a 5.31 ERA over 76.1 playoff innings, including seven earned runs allowed over three innings in Game 2 of last year's ALDS against Toronto.

Cole, 22 starts removed from Tommy John surgery that wiped out his entire 2025 season, finished 10-9 with a 3.61 ERA and 131 strikeouts over 127 innings, according to the New York Daily News, which noted he has "struggled to get swing-and-miss at times" and could arguably be considered the Yankees' fourth-best starter behind Carlos Rodón. Rodón, who went 7-3 with a 2.67 ERA, was left off the Wild Card rotation entirely and could instead work out of the bullpen or open a potential ALDS, according to USA Today. Cole's career ERA against Boston sits at 5.30 over 20 regular-season starts, his second-highest mark against any opponent, despite a strong 2.77 career postseason ERA.

Bleacher Report's account states the Yankees "dropped Game 1 of the ALDS to the Red Sox last fall with Fried starting." The Yankees' 2025 ALDS opponent was Toronto, not Boston. The Red Sox were last year's Wild Card opponent, where Fried did start and lose Game 1 before New York rallied behind Rodón and Schlittler, according to USA Today. Bleacher Report's broader point, that the Yankees have shown they can recover from a Game 1 loss, still stands, just attached to the wrong series.

Boston has not announced its own rotation. Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters in St. Petersburg before Boston's regular-season finale that he had "a decent idea" of his plan but wasn't ready to reveal it, according to USA Today. The series opens Tuesday, continues Wednesday, and, if necessary, wraps up Thursday, with the winner advancing to face the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in the ALDS.