The New York Yankees will take on the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday evening for the third game of a closely-contested American League Division Series. The team is well aware of the importance of Game 3. Historically, those who have won it in a best-of-five matchup are well-positioned to advance. Right now, the teams are tied at one win each after the Bombers won the opener on the weekend and the Royals answered on Monday.
The Yankees will be leaning on Clarke Schmidt in Game 3
To gain that valuable advantage, the Yankees are sending right-hander Clarke Schmidt to the mound against Seth Lugo. The latter has historically dominated the Yanks, so Schmidt will need to be at the top of his game for them to have a chance at stealing back the home-field advantage.
Schmidt, who has said that starting a playoff game for the Yankees is a childhood dream of his, seems to have the right mindset. Will he have the stuff and, most importantly, the command after not throwing a pitch in MLB since September 29? It’s a fascinating question and we are just hours away from finding out.
The right-hander had an excellent year. He dominated in April and May until a right lat strain took several months off his season. He returned in September and posted a 3.65 ERA for the month, with 10 walks and 26 strikeouts in 24.2 frames. For the 2024 campaign as a whole, he delivered a strong 2.85 ERA in 85.1 innings of work, striking out 93 batters.
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Schmidt can be a tad inconsistent, but the Yankees trust him
It needs to be said, however, that Schmidt can be a tad inconsistent. Just a quick look at his ERA finishes as a major league will tell us that (excluding 2020 and 2021 when he pitched just 6.1 frames): 3.12 in 2022, 4.64 in 2023, and 2.85 this year.
In his last two starts, Schmidt allowed seven earned runs in 9.1 innings, which is another proof of this. The Yankees, however, are extremely confident in him, as manager Aaron Boone said he was the right man for the job this week. They also have Luis Gil ready to go if needed, but opted for Schmidt and that tells us the organization likes the way he is throwing these days.
We will soon know if Boone’s decision to start Schmidt over Gil was the right one. He has the tools to give the Yankees some very competitive innings, and that’s all that matters at this juncture.
