The Yankees entered Sunday afternoon’s finale against the Minnesota Twins looking for a split of their four-game series. That’s exactly what happened as Gerrit Cole dominated — both on the mound and in the dugout.
His complete-game, 10-strikeout performance helped the Yankees avoid a series loss. They remain the only MLB club to not lose a series yet in 2023. After getting some rest on Monday, the Brombers are welcoming Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, and the Los Angeles Angels to the Bronx for three games. Here’s what the probable pitching matchups look like at the moment.
Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. ET: Clarke Schmidt vs. Jose Suarez
Due to the Yankees’ rotation injuries to start the year, Clarke Schmidt has gotten an opportunity to show what he can do in the rotation. The immediate results have been less than stellar. Through 10.2 innings, Schmidt has allowed 10 runs on 16 hits (three homers) with five walks and 11 strikeouts. He’s coming off his longest outing of the year, which lasted four innings in Cleveland against the Guardians.
Jose Suarez has outdone Schmidt in just two starts (8.1 innings). He’s allowed 11 runs (10 earned) on 18 hits, which susses out to a 10.80 ERA in the early going. From 2021-22, Suarez posted a 3.86 ERA across 207.1 innings for Los Angeles (45 appearances, 34 of them being starts). In 19 innings against the Yankees in his career, Suarez is 2-1 with a 5.21 ERA and 1.32 WHIP.
Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. ET: Jhony Brito vs. Griffin Canning
You’d have to hope that the only way to go for Jhony Brito is up after his last start against the Minnesota Twins. He couldn’t get out of the inning and allowed seven runs on six hits before getting an incredibly early hook. His season-long ERA went from 0.90 before he took the mound to 6.75 by the time he hit the showers.
Griffin Canning pitched for the Angels on April 12th for the first time since July 2021 because of multiple injuries. He allowed two runs on five hits, no walks, and four strikeouts in five innings. That was against the Washington Nationals, so this will be a little more of a test for the hurler. Canning has been in the big leagues in some capacity since 2019, but this will be his first career start against the Bombers.
Thursday at 4:05 p.m. ET: Nestor Cortes vs. Patrick Sandoval
Despite getting a no-decision in the Yankees’ 4-3 loss to Minnesota, Nestor Cortes put together arguably his most complete outing of the year. He allowed two homers, but they were both solo dingers. Overall, he allowed just those two runs on five hits with no walks and seven strikeouts in seven innings.
Nasty Nestor has appeared against the Angels five times, but his lone start took place last season. It was a gem where he allowed two walks and five hits with seven strikeouts over seven shutout innings.
After his 2022 breakout, the good vibes have continued for Patrick Sandoval this year. He’s twirled a 1.23 ERA and 1.16 WHIP across 14.2 innings. He failed to complete four innings in his last start against the Red Sox while allowing three walks and three hits. However, lackluster fielding played a role, as Sandoval left with two runs allowed, both of them being unearned. His lone start against the Yankees also came in 2022 when he allowed two runs on three hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts in seven innings while securing the victory.
You can reach Matt Musico at matt.musico@xlmedia.com. You can follow him on Twitter: @mmusico8.
