David Ortiz certainly has a bias toward the Boston Red Sox, but that doesn’t preclude him from acknowledging a great pitching performance even if it comes from a member of the New York Yankees.
After Cam Schlittler ended Boston’s season with a dominant performance in Game 3 of the American League Wild Card series (starts at :30 mark), Ortiz told TMZ Sports he could tell the Yankees had an “ace” on their staff the first time he saw him.
“He’s got it, bro,” Ortiz said of Schlittler. “He’s got it. He’s got it.”
Schlittler, who made just 14 starts in the regular season after being called up on July 9, was tasked with taking the ball for the Yankees in a winner-take-all Game 3 against the Red Sox on Thursday.
The 24-year-old responded with a historic performance that saw him rack up 12 strikeouts without allowing a walk and giving up just four singles in eight innings.
Of the 107 pitches Schlittler threw against the Red Sox, 64 were at least 98.0 mph. This is just two years after his fastball averaged 90.0 mph when he was in A ball.
The combination of Schlittler’s development and the Yankees molding his arm into what it is right now has given them an opportunity to make a deep playoff run.
Instead of worrying about who his No. 3 starter would be after Max Fried and Carlos Rodón as it appeared he might when the postseason began, Yankees manager Aaron Boone suddenly finds himself with three pitchers he can trust in a big spot.
Making matters worse for the rest of the AL looking ahead to 2026 and beyond is Schlittler doesn’t really have a secondary pitch yet. He used his fastball 55 percentof the time in the regular season, but opposing hitters only had a .281 slugging percentage against it in 160 plate appearances.
Schlittler still has some work to do before elevating into the top tier of a starting pitchers, but the initial returns suggest he is on that track. If he helps the Yankees reach the World Series again this season, he will become a folk hero in the Bronx.
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