Yankees Could Make Big Move with Rookie Pitcher

The New York Yankees have quite a few irons in the fire as today's 6:00 p.m. EST trade deadline rapidly approaches, with reinforcing the bullpen remaining the club's primary focus.

The market is saturated with relievers, leaving no shortage of options for the Yankees even after several of the top options in Ryan Helsley and Jhoan Durán flew off the board on Wednesday. New York is bound to land at least one, if not two arms throughout the day, though it may also find a solution on its current roster.

According to the New York Post's Jon Heyman, the Yankees may consider sliding right-hander Cam Schlittler to the bullpen as a means of shoring up a unit that's posted the second-worst ERA in the league since July 1 at 5.72.

Yankees looking hard at pitching: Pen is the priority. One other option would be to move 100-mph-throwing Cam Schlittler to the pen.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 31, 2025

Schlittler, a seventh-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, is currently ranked as the team's No. 3 prospect by MLB Pipeline. He made his major league debut on July 9 against the Seattle Mariners and has recorded a 4.91 ERA with 15 strikeouts across three starts totaling 14 2/3 innings on the year.

The 24-year-old threw 120 2/3 innings in the minor leagues last year. He won't exceed that total for the Yankees during the regular season, so their potential decision to move him to the bullpen likely isn't based upon limiting his workload.

With Luis Gil's return from the injured list appearing imminent while Will Warren is coming off a pair of strong back-to-back outings as the team remains on the prowl for another starter via trade, however, there's no guarantee that Schlittler will have a rotation spot available to him moving forward this season.

His velocity, as Heyman noted, would be a major asset out of the Yankees' bullpen, and the same goes for his ability to get hitters to chase (31.8 percent rate).

Schlittler still profiles as a potential long-term rotation stalwart for New York, but his role may change for the time being given the club's needs.

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