Will Warren did exactly what Yankees fans demand of their struggling starters (and it worked)

The simplest thing to beg for from the couch is for a scuffling pitcher to "make adjustments". It's, of course, not that easy. Pitchers are always seeking an edge. They're always experimenting. If they have a lingering weakness, it's not for lack of trying to solve it. Sometimes, after years of trying, it's finally time to throw in the towel on a given project — a pitcher who can't retire lefties will never be able to retire lefties, and it's fine to admit defeat. But sometimes, as the data builds and frustration mounts, things finally click.

And, as Yankees No. 5 starter Will Warren has shown us in recent weeks, it's not as simple as making an adjustment. You might have to make a whole pile of them, doing endless work behind the scenes, and then it might just pan out at the exact right time, mid-pennant race and with a grip on a rotation spot loosening.

After pitching the Yankees' postseason clincher on Monday in Minnesota, let down by his defense but otherwise holding steady, Warren made it clear that his behind-the-scenes adjustments helped propel a mentality adjustment, too. "I'm not really worried about what's going to happen after I release the ball, so I'm just throwing it with some more attitude, I guess," Warren told Meredith Marakovits in Monday's postgame about the four-outing span that's changed his reality.

Warren carries an 0.96 ERA in his past three starts (a dominant home tilt against the Red Sox that earned the Yankees the tiebreaker and changed everything, followed by the Rockies and a wet and sloppy game in Minnesota). That's the best three-start stretch of his career, and it also sandwiches a 2 1/3 inning scoreless relief appearance against the Padres in San Diego. That's likely where he winds up in October, a reality he's embraced among so many other changes.

"I'm just going to go out there and get as many outs as I can, whenever that is," he told Marakovits Monday, drenched in champagne.

So what shifted? Warren was the Yankees' worst starting pitcher by default much of the season, but looked no worse than a prototypical No. 5 on a playoff team (aka, still fairly solid). In mid-August, he unveiled a new gyro slider, gripped and thrown differently, which starred in the Boston game and earned national acclaim.

But ... again ... Warren changed so much more than that.

Will Warren's major Yankees changes should translate to playoff bullpen role

It's easy to sit on the sidelines and scream, "Do something!" as a frustrating pitcher loses control of the zone once again and makes himself hittable and predictable. Will Warren did 12 different somethings this summer, and it's turned him from "unworkable" to "viable" to "exceptional" in a matter of weeks.

Trusting Warren in high-leverage bullpen opportunities in October is still one final, lengthy bridge that aggressive fans must cross, but his first unveiling in San Diego went well, and with every start he piles up more data that indicates he finally solved the vexing formula that had previously limited his potential. The new Warren is not succeeding by accident. He flipped the tenor of the Yankees-Red Sox Wild Card race, then proceeded to shut down the Wild Card hopeful Padres in an unfamiliar role. The Rockies' offense is Coors-aided, but still ranks sixth in the game in runs scored.

Warren listened to the noise and tuned seven different levers to get the mix he's comfortable with that works. He should be commended — and his transformation should make it clear to fans just how hard these guys are always working, even when things are not responding. Glad he wasn't traded for Adrian Morejon.

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