Clarke Schmidt returned from the IL after a brief stint to begin the season, and while there were some shaky starts that put the Yankees in a precarious situation with the starting five, he has rebounded beautifully.
The right-hander lowered his ERA to 3.60 after twirling six innings of scoreless baseball against the Royals, as he flashed his new four-seam fastball to great success while delivering a quality start.
Five of his 10 starts this season have been quality starts, he’s pitched deeper into games than he has ever before, and the damage prevention is truly elite.
With some new weapons at his disposal to give him an even more fleshed-out arsenal, Clarke Schmidt is maturing into a strong middle-of-the-rotation starter that still possesses frontline upside.
How Clarke Schmidt Has Turned it Around For the Yankees in 2025
This season has been a bit rocky for Clarke Schmidt but he has rebounded beautifully, as the right-hander has posted a 3.60 ERA across 10 starts while improving steadily as the season has progressed.
One of the big progressions is his frequency of starts where he completes six innings, as last season he completed six or more innings of work just twice in 16 starts (12.5%) and in 2023 it was in five times in 32 starts (15.6%).
In 2025 he’s done it five times in 10 starts, meaning in half of his starts he’s getting the job done in terms of providing volume in a start.
Schmidt often struggled to get past the fifth inning, as his ERA soared when the sixth inning rolled around and the bullpen would have to clean up a mess left behind.
One of the big reasons he’s not struggling to pitch deep into starts as much is due to a deeper repertoire, sporting a brand-new four-seam fastball.
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This four-seamer sat around 94-95 MPH, averaging 15.6 inches of Induced Vertical Break while being thrown from a slightly lower arm angle than the league-average.
Schmidt’s lower release height and arm angle create more deception with this fastball at the top of the zone, and while it’s not an elite pitch, it’s an improvement over his sinker.
We’ve seen a dramatic reduction in sinker usage from this year to last year, and while he still utilizes it as a show pitch, it’s the least-used pitch in his arsenal.
The sweeper, curveball, and cutter remain effective parts of his repertoire, but with five pitches he can go to at any given time, the right-hander is more unpredictable than ever before.
Clarke Schmidt could get even better as the season goes on; he sports a 2.95 Expected ERA this season according to Baseball Savant, a result of how infrequently batters square up the ball against him.
His 34.5% Hard-Hit% is in the 83rd Percentile for pitchers, while his 28.2% Whiff% is in the 69th Percentile, and as long as he’s missing bats and limiting damage contact he’ll be an effective pitcher.
The walk rate is a bit high and he’ll need to lower that mark to pitch even deeper into games and be a more effective starter, but there truly is frontline starter upside here.
Dating back to last season, Schmidt has a 3.14 ERA and 25.9% K% across 26 starts, with the underlying numbers suggesting he’s an effective number two starter.
If the Yankees get this kind of production moving forward, the trio of Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, and Clarke Schmidt could be one of the best in the game.
Things could get even scarier for opposing lineups if the Yankees choose to add a starter at the deadline, as their rotation could instantly become the best in baseball.