No One Would Have Guessed this Yankees Cy Young Candidate 1/3 of the Season

The Yankees have had one of the best rotations in baseball, and that has been without Gerrit Cole for most of the year.

New York Yankees pitcher Ryan Weathers (40) pitches against the Tampa Bay Rays during the second inning at Yankee Stadium. | John Jones-Imagn Images

If the season ended today, and the league handed out its Most Valuable Player and Cy Young awards, the New York Yankees would have two guys at the top of everybody's list. Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice are dominating baseball, and, at one point, were relative unknowns on everybody's prospect boards.

Another guy who should get some love and has also been pivotal during this 2026 campaign is Ryan Weathers. During a time when the Yankees have had extended stretches without Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, and now Max Fried, Weathers has been a staple of the rotation in a way nobody could have anticipated.

In Weathers most recent start against the Tampa Bay Rays, he held the AL East leaders scoreless through seven innings. He only struck out four and walked three, but his success was due in part to generating a ton of soft contact. The Rays were only able to muster up four hard-hit balls against him.

New York Yankees pitcher Ryan Weathers (40) and catcher J.C. Escarra (25) walk in before the game against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

What was once a 5.5 game lead in the East is now 1.5. Give credit to Weathers for that start, and playing a part in cutting that lead down some.

Weathers' numbers

As it stands, Weathers' 3.14 ERA is 14th in the American League among qualified starters. His 1.2 WAR, according to FanGraphs, is 16th.

Weathers' best attribute is striking out batters. His 10.20 K/9 is 5th in baseball, and he is one of eight pitchers in the AL to have a K/9 north of 10. Funny enough, he shares that space with two teammates. Will Warren has a 10.03 K/9, and Schlittler's is 10.13. These strikeout machines are all under team control for the next few years.

One of Weathers' biggest strengths has been his ability to command the strike zone. Hence, the number of starts in which he can pitch deep into games. It looked like a bad omen for his season when, in a game against the Miami Marlins early in the year, he allowed six hits, walked three batters, and couldn't escape the third inning. It didn't help that, in those 3.2 innings pitched, the Marlins had six hard-hit balls off him.

That game looked more like an outlier than anything. According to the stat Location+ on FanGraphs, he specifically has a 114 Loc+ on his fastball. That's fifth in baseball. Ahead of him are some heavy hitters in Jacob deGrom, George Kirby, and Nathan Eovaldi. First is Seattle's Emerson Hancock, who is having a breakout year of his own.

Yankees will have to make a choice between Weathers and Warren

At some point, the Yankees will have to decide between Weathers and Warren once Fried is healthy again. The debate about what would happen to either of them was put to bed once Fried went down. At some point, he'll be back, though, and one will have to be ousted from the rotation.

Not many teams can say that they have to choose between two upper-tier middle-of-the-rotation starters. A few teams in this league would boast either of them as a two-starter or even a one.