Cam Schlittler is becoming the ace that no one saw coming within the New York Yankees’ rotation.
The 24-year-old rookie, called up this summer out of necessity to eat innings within an unstable rotation, continued adding to his impressive start to life in the bigs on Monday night in the Bronx against the Washington Nationals. He spun six scoreless innings while striking out eight and allowing four hits in the Yankees’ 10-5 series-opening win — their second straight victory after losing three in a row to the rival Red Sox.
“It’s more of the same,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Big fastball, breaking-ball presence. Throwing strikes. He’s good… Just another really strong performance.”
In eight big-league starts, Schlittler boasts a 2.76 ERA, a 1.299 WHIP, and 46 strikeouts in 42.1 innings pitched. He has been New York’s most consistent pitcher in recent weeks, with Max Fried scuttling through second-half woes and Carlos Rodon levelling out after a difficult July.
It prompted Boone to label the 6-foot-6 righty as a “future staple of our rotation,” while his teammates revel in his success.
“Electric fastball,” Jazz Chisholm, who hit a three-run home run in Monday’s win, said. “It makes us feel way more confident… We’ve just got to go out there and score some runs. Get some runs going, and we know he’s going to handle the rest.”
“As with any young guy, there’s going to be good and bad, but ultimately it’s been very impressive,” outfielder Cody Bellinger added. “He’s a great guy to have in the locker room, and it’s been fun watching him continue to get better with every start.”
Schlittler implored that the key to his success is confidence, but he is not going to get too ahead of himself.
“As a rookie, you can’t get too comfortable,” he said. “It’s just important for me to continue to do my job. I try to get to six, seven innings, and put the team in a spot to win.”
