The Yankees just completed their first sweep since the second week of July, taking all three games in Baltimore to finish their road trip 4-2. They return to the Bronx to kick off a grueling home stand with crucial series against the Blue Jays, Astros, and Red Sox. The next 10 days will provide a litmus test for this team’s ceiling and will go a long way toward deciding their fate in the division. The first challenge will be three games against the Blue Jays, whom they lost two of three against at the start of the week.
Cam Schlittler will look to further his AL Cy Young case coming off his previous strong start against the Blue Jays — 5.1 innings allowing a run on four hits and three walks against seven strikeouts. It’s a two-horse race between Schlittler and Dylan Cease for the league’s top pitching prize, and with the Blue Jays’ ace going tomorrow there’s extra motivation for Schlittler to lay down a marker tonight. In 26 starts, Schlittler is 10-6 with an AL-best 2.19 ERA (192 ERA+), 2.59 FIP, and 189 strikeouts in 152 innings.
Mason Fluharty will serve as an opener for the fourth time this season, the lefty more typically used in middle-to-late relief. He has made six relief appearances against the Yankees this season tossing 4.2 scoreless innings. He’s done well to limit damage against them and has not allowed a barreled ball to the 20 Yankees batters he’s faced. Fluharty is mainly a cutter-sweeper guy who will mix in an occasional changeup, his fastball averaging not much over 90 mph. In 67 appearances, Fluharty has a 3.71 ERA (120 ERA+), 3.66 FIP, and 56 strikeouts in 51 innings.
Former Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti is expected to follow Fluharty as the bulk reliever. The righty was acquired at the deadline for Daulton Varsho but has not yet pitched for Toronto after being placed on the 15-day IL with nerve irritation in his right foot. He’s got a six-pitch mix of four-seamer, sinker, cutter, curveball, sweeper, and changeup, the curveball by far his best weapon with a 38.7-percent whiff rate. In 17 starts with Houston, Arrighetti went 7-5 with a 4.60 ERA (91 ERA+), 5.07 FIP, and 87 strikeouts in 88 innings.
The Yankees tailor their lineup to the lefty opener despite the impending righty bulk guy. Paul Goldschmidt gets a rare start and leads off, followed by a pair of struggling bats in Amed Rosario and Heliot Ramos (though the latter at least got his first RBI in pinstripes the other day). George Lombard Jr. moves up to fifth in the batting order while Spencer Jones remains at seventh following his 3-for-4 with a homer last night.
The Blue Jays boast the worst lineup in the AL by wRC+ (92), but that didn’t stop them from winning their recent series against the Yankees in Toronto with New York scoring just one run in each of the first two games. Alejandro Kirk and Ernie Clement always seem to kill the Yankees. Meanwhile, Kazuma Okamoto represents a power threat further down and recently became the Blue Jays franchise record holder for home runs by a rookie with 26 on the year.
How to watch
Location: Yankee Stadium – Bronx, NY
First pitch: 7:05 pm ET
TV broadcast: YES, Sportsnet, TVA Sports
Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | SN590 THE FAN (TOR)
Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)
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