Clarke Schmidt deserves Yankees rotation spot (with no restrictions) after injury return

It's been months since Yankees fans have watched the 2024 edition of Clarke Schmidt deal, and his final outing before hitting the IL left a semi-sour taste in their collective mouths, but don't let it get lost to history. When Schmidt came up lame, he was in the process of putting together a stellar season.

"Such-and-such injured player is like a trade deadline addition" has become a tired trope, but in the case of Schmidt, getting him back really will be huge, even if it takes a few weeks to get his feet wet. That will still leave enough time for him to get revved up, rocking and firing for a potential playoff run.

And, don't get it twisted: if Schmidt is ready to give five or six innings by the end of October, he belongs on the mound to start a playoff game. Even if he's only ready to give four full-throttle, imagine Luis Gil entering for the fifth behind him?

As Marcus Stroman loses energy, Schmidt appears to be gaining steam, and reported positively after getting a live BP session in prior to Tuesday's washout. He's prepared to return as a starter, and given his 2.52 ERA, nearly 10 whiffs per nine innings, and 94th percentile breaking run value on his patented knuckle curve, the Yankees shouldn't give it a second thought.

Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt should return directly into playoff rotation

It's too soon to be considering a playoff rotation, given the number of complications that could arise down the stretch as well as the Yankees' far-from-locked-down berth. Still, Schmidt proved in April and May that something clicked in his powerful right arm between 2023 and 2024. He was no longer beholden to lefties; one season after he'd allowed them to bat .303 against him with an .875 OPS, he'd learned to bury the knuckle curve and hold them to a .209 average/.614 OPS mark. Not only was that sterling, but suddenly it outclassed his work against righties (.239/.706) in a total pivot.

The dogged Schmidt racked up a remarkable 1.9 bWAR in just 11 starts before succumbing to injury this season. Though some of our fond feelings towards the right-hander stem from his absence wiping out any chance of an in-season regression (like what Stroman and Carlos Rodón faced), that gap in contribution has also led to Schmidt being far fresher than his cohorts down the stretch.

If he truly is ready to return by the end of August, then the Yankees will have a month to confirm that the dawg he left with remains within him. As long as all goes smoothly, the Schmidt we watched in April and May deserves a prominent seat at the playoff table, and should be allowed to give however much he can.