Yankees still being wishy-washy about Clarke Schmidt return creates cause for concern

Clarke Schmidt last pitched for the New York Yankees on May 26 (he hit the IL on May 30). That's nearly three months ago. And yet, there's no possible way the team can provide a concrete timeline for his return. It's either they're constantly dishonest or are drastically ill-informated. At least it feels that way.

There's no downplaying Schmidt's lat strain. Those types of injuries have a way of lingering and knocking guys out for a decent while. But we are now less than two weeks away from Schmidt being on the shelf for a full 90 days, and the lack of certainty regarding his return from manager Aaron Boone and general manager Brian Cashman can't have fans feeling good.

Schmidt threw a live batting practice session over the weekend and Boone said he was pleased with the progress, but beyond that, we have nothing other than vague estimations for the right-hander's eventual return to the rotation.

The New York Post reported "it's very realistic" Schmidt could be back before the end of the month. Cashman said he could go out on a rehab assignment "around Aug. 22"? Huh? What does that even mean? What significance does the date Aug. 22 have that you must add "around" as a descriptor?

What's even more concerning is how quickly time is running out. If Schmidt can get back to the active roster by the end of the month, that will give him exactly 30 days to work out the kinks and get himself ready for the postseason. But again, there's no certainty, and any further delay will impact his playoff influence.

Clarke Schmidt Injury Update: Yankees kind of know return timetable

Oh yeah, and remember Cody Poteet? He last pitched on June 12 before going down with a triceps strain. It was said he wouldn't throw for 1-2 weeks before determining next steps. That was two months ago. And he's behind Schmidt's timetable. More lack of clarity!

Whatever the case, there's no reason to suspect anything is off with Schmidt's rehab process. The larger point here is this organization with a history of lying about injuries, withholding information, and watching guys suffer setback after setback is once again providing an update that's open for interpretation or leaves fans asking questions.

Overall, we guess the updates on Schmidt are good. He's throwing again and he's expected to slot right back into the rotation when the times comes. At the time of the injury, he was shut down for 4-6 weeks. Even if the Yankees had proceeded with caution and kept Schmidt down for eight weeks (he'd be starting throwing again by July 21), he'd be further along in his recovery process than he is now.

We're hoping for all the best with Schmidt, and we curse the Yankees for even allowing us to think the opposite could eventually be the case. Given how nothing adds up with this timeline, coupled with the lack of certainty from the team, we simply can't help it.