NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees pitcher Clarke Schmidt is back on the injured list and will miss the AL Wild Card Series, sidelined by right biceps neuritis that developed following his return from Tommy John
surgery.
New York made the announcement Thursday as Giancarlo Stanton and Trent Grisham took on-field batting practice, attempting to get consideration for postseason roster spots.
The Yankees also said they will play a doubleheader Friday against Baltimore, moving up Saturday's game by a day because of wet weather in the weekend forecast.
A 30-year-old right-hander, Schmidt had an internal brace procedure on his ulnar collateral ligament on July 11, 2025, and began a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment this past Aug. 29 as a possible bullpen option for the postseason. He threw 24 pitches to four hitters in the seventh inning of New York’s 5-4, 13-inning loss at Minnesota on Sept. 16.
Schmidt warmed up for the sixth inning in Sunday’s 8-4 loss at Arizona but experienced a cramping sensation near his biceps. New York placed him on the 15-day injured list retroactive to Monday and recalled right-hander Bradley Hanner from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
“He just wasn’t getting to a point where he could progress enough,” manager Aaron Boone said before the finale of a four-game series with Tampa Bay. “It does seem like it’s minor enough in scope that it’s not going to be anything that affects him long term."
“As far as getting ready right now, he’s just having a hard time getting to that next level. So, the diagnosis is pretty good. It is something that he should be fine with but obviously the calendar just prevented him getting ramped up to where he needed to.”
Schmidt was 4-4 with a 3.32 ERA in 14 starts last season. He previously had Tommy John surgery in May 2017, a month before the Yankees selected him with the 16th overall pick in the amateur draft out of South Carolina.
The 30-year-old debuted in 2020 and made 27 of his 30 career relief appearances in 2022. He is 23-24 with a 3.82 ERA in 97 games for the Yankees and 5-3 with a 3.18 ERA and two saves as a reliever.
“In the immediate and short term, I think he’s bummed about it because obviously there’s a lot of blood sweat and tears that goes into coming back from this and he’s checked a lot of boxes and gotten to the point where he’s really close now,” Boone said. “So I think there’s that immediate disappointment and some sadness from him but also the hope of knowing he’s in a good spot and moving forward should be fine and should have a normal winter and buildup.”
To replace Schmidt, right-hander Bradley Hanner was called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre. In two stints with the Yankees, Hanner has an 11.81 ERA in four appearances.
Trying to return from injuries to calf muscles in both legs, Stanton took on field-batting practice for about 40 minutes against a high-velocity machine.
Stanton hasn’t played since April 24 because of strained calf muscles in both legs after starting the season with a .256 batting average, three homers and 14 RBIs in 24 games. The 36-year-old former NL MVP had 38 homers and 100 RBIs in his first season with New York in 2018 but has missed 500 of 1,194 games since (41.9%), through the end of this regular season.
Grisham, sidelined since straining his right hamstring on Sept. 4, also joined Stanton in taking batting practice against a pitching machine.
“It’s still days away,” Boone said. “I don’t want to put the cart before the horse, but let’s just get through these next few days and see what we have.”
Because of the forecast of heavy rain this weekend, the Yankees will play a single-admission doubleheader Friday starting at 4:05 p.m.
The ceremony to honor Hall of Fame pitcher CC Sabathia with a plaque in Monument Park will take place before the opener.
New York will be playing its second doubleheader this week and fifth this year, all since the All-Star break.
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