The New York Yankees have punched their ticket to the 2026 MLB Playoffs and, barring a late surprise, will face the Boston Red Sox in the AL Wild Card Series with all games being played in Yankee Stadium. There are legitimate questions surrounding the Yanks’ offense and bullpen, but their rotation appears to be in a very good place heading into October: it boasts leading AL Cy Young candidate Cam Schlittler, former winner of the award Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, and Carlos Rodón, plus other solid depth
options.
It’s safe to assume that Schlittler, Cole, and one of Rodón or Fried will be the ones in charge of taking the ball in the Wild Card round. How will manager Aaron Boone deploy them, though? And who will be the starter for Game 1: Schlittler, the best pitcher on the team and potentially the league; or Cole, the nominal ace with a myriad of postseason battles under his belt?
Right now, the Yankees’ rotation is lined up for Cole to take the ball in Game 1 against the Red Sox on Tuesday, on five days’ rest. Schlittler would be the Game 2 starter, also with five days between games to rest. One of Fried or Rodón will be available for a potential Game 3 on four days’ rest, depending on how they’re used this weekend.
What should the Yankees do in Games 1 and 2 regarding their starter? Let’s examine the case for each potential path:
The case for starting Cole in Game 1:
Cole, as explained, is lined up to get the ball in the AL Wild Card Series opener at home on Tuesday with five days’ rest. Traditionally, at least in recent years, the Yankees have preferred to give their pitchers five days to recharge between starts in the postseason whenever possible.
Maybe Cole didn’t have the best regular season statistically, and he did allow eight home runs in his last three starts, but he showed in 2024 that he could be solid in regular season play (3.41 ERA, against a similar 3.63 mark this year) only to lock in during October, when he had a 2.17 ERA in 29 frames and a 0.71 World Series ERA against the Dodgers.
Additionally, opening the Wild Card series with Cole as the Game 1 starter would allow the Yankees to save Schlittler for a pivotal Game 2 in which they could either clinch their spot in the Division Series or tie the best-of-three matchup with Boston. Having the AL Cy Young candidate in the second game could represent a nice way to either save the season or have him as the ‘closer’ of the matchup, depending on Game 1’s result.
On top of that, using Cole in Game 1 and saving Schlittler for the second would, in theory, mean the Yankees could still have Schlittler start Game 2 of the ALDS against the Rays on standard four days’ rest on October 5th, and be available on four days’ rest again for a potential Game 5 on October 10th.
The case for starting Schlittler in Game 1:
If Schlittler toes the rubber in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, the Yankees would have a better chance to go up 1-0 in the best-of-three matchup. He is the best pitcher in the Junior Circuit and has a knack for getting it done against the Red Sox. You can’t underestimate the obvious advantages of going up in the series.
It’s not that Cole can’t toss seven scoreless and guide the Yankees to a 1-0 start, but Schlittler’s chances of doing that are objectively better. After all, the latter has a 1.94 regular-season ERA, and the 2023 AL Cy Young Award winner is at 3.63. Some would also say that not using your absolute best pitcher in Game 1 of such a short series can be counterproductive and extremely risky.
In short, deploying Schlittler as the starting pitcher for the Wild Card series opener could increase the chances of the Yankees taking the field on Wednesday with a 1-0 lead. In any case, he would be slated to pitch two games in the AL Division Series should the Yankees advance.
