Yankees Pitcher Puts Injury Scare to Rest

A nagging lat injury kept this New York Yankees pitcher off the mound to start the Spring, and he looked better than ever in his first start.

Mar 6, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees didn't have many health scares heading into Spring Training. At least, so far, things are clear, outside of what the organization already had. The two biggest question marks were whether Giancarlo Stanton could open a bag of chips and Cam Schlittler's lat.

Stanton quelled any anxieties fast by scorching a single, which, of course, left his bat in the triple digits, in his first game of the Spring. Schlittler did some answering of his own when he took the mound against the Tampa Bay Rays. He was pumping out the kind of high heat that fans had become accustomed to during his rookie season and sensational postseason run.

In 2.1 innings of work and 39 pitches, Schlittler didn't allow an earned run — which feels like the norm for these young Yankee pitchers these days. He struck out four, walked one, and surrendered two hits.

Cam Schlittler had four strikeouts over 2.1 scoreless innings in his spring debut

Schlittler threw 39 pitches, topping out at speeds consistently over 99 MPH pic.twitter.com/TKjrXPRwyT

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) March 7, 2026

Of the balls that the Rays made contact with, the hardest hit was a 96 MPH single by Ryan Vilade. The other single was an 81.2 MPH single that travelled just a foot.

The Cutter

Schlittler also generated six whiffs on 17 swings by the Rays. Four came off his cutter, which hit a different gear in his debut. The other two were off his fastball. The cutter collected two strikeouts, and the heater had two as well.

One thing that stood out, outside of Schlittler's ability to finally get on a mound this Spring, was that afforementioend cutter. Last season, he averaged 91.9 MPH with it. Against the Rays, he averaged a full 3 MPH more, sitting at 94.9. He hit as high as 96 MPH with the cutter three times and 95 three times as well.

Schlittler threw three cutters over 96 MPH twice last season. He hit 95 six times.

Cam Schlittler (NYY) made his 2026 spring debut against the Rays, showcasing a cutter with an increased velocity from 2025 pic.twitter.com/p1e1iAw0lb

— Pitcher List Stats (@PitcherListPLV) March 7, 2026

Impressing the Manager

One person who noticed a difference in that cutter was manager Aaron Boone. He's high on it.

"It's nasty, too," the skipper said, according to the New York Post's Greg Joyce. "Couple of his live [batting practices], just standing behind him, it's kind of wicked. I think if he can get the consistency on that downer curveball that he has, then if you want to count the cutter as the third fastball [along with a four-seam and two-seam], the three fastballs with the curveball, then he gets pretty tough to deal with."

Mar 6, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) is taken out of the game by manager Aaron Boone (17) during the third inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The next step in Schlittler's recovery process will come in the next few days. It will be about how his body recovers after starts. In his case, no news will be good news.

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