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The struggling New York Yankees have taken another big loss, this time on the injury front.
Starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt will “likely” require Tommy John surgery, manager Aaron Boone said on Saturday, according to the New York Post.
Tommy John surgery would sideline Schmidt for the remainder of this season and likely all of next season.
Schmidt, 29, has emerged as a key starter for the Yankees this season as he has a 3.32 ERA in 14 games started this season. He recently set the franchise record with 28 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings.
If Schmidt does indeed need Tommy John surgery, it will be the second time the right-handed pitcher has undergone the surgery in his career. Schmidt underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2017, just a month before the Yankees selected him in the first-round of the MLB Draft out of South Carolina.
“Any time you’re getting an MRI on your forearm, or whatever the body part is, you’re not feeling happy about it,” Schmidt said before learning the results of the testing.
Schmidt was initially placed on the IL with right forearm soreness, which he said began in his June 4 outing against the Cleveland Guardians.
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Schmidt only pitched three innings in the team’s loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday. He allowed three earned runs on four hits in those three innings before he left the game due to injury.
With the loss of Schmidt for the foreseeable future, the Yankees starting rotation is in disarray.
Max Fried and Carlos Rodon are a formidable one-two punch, but after them the rotation is full of question marks.
Ryan Yarbrough is on the injured list with an oblique injury, and he has not started throwing. Reigning AL Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil, threw to hitters for the first time on June 21 as he ramps up from a lat injury.
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Marcus Stroman has made two starts since coming off the IL with a knee injury, but he cannot be relied upon as he has a 7.45 ERA in five starts this season. Rookie Will Warren has shown flashes of brilliance but has struggled at times as he has a 5.02 ERA in 18 games started.
The Yankees are calling up Cam Schlittler to replace Schmidt in the rotation, according to a report from the New York Post.
Schlittler has a 3.52 ERA in 15 games (14 starts) across Double-A and Triple-A this season.
Fried, Rodon, Stroman, Warren and reportedly Schlittler currently makeup the rotation for a floundering Yankees team that has lost five in a row.
The Yankees fell out of first place for the first time since April and trail the Toronto Blue Jays by two games.
The Yankees (48-40) will look to bounce back and snap their losing streak when they take on the New York Mets (51-38) in the second game of their three-game series on Saturday at 4:10 p.m. ET.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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