The Tuesday Discussion: Starting Pitchers

September 10, 2024

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This week we presented the following to our writers:

As we head into the season's final weeks, the Yankees have six starting pitchers.  How would you use them?  (A six-man rotation, a "buddy" system (such as Schmidt to Cortes), make one the closer, or something different...)

Here are their responses:

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Cary Greene - I think a creative approach is in order. On one hand, it would be good to keep each starter's innings consistent at this point in the season. On the other hand, a little extra rest right now might not be a bad thing. So to me the answer is a little bit of creativity could go a long way. 

Changing a starter's role at this point in the season is akin to heresy. Call it the buddy system call it what you want. The right approach is to keep everybody fresh with the ultimate goal of having all handbegins on deck and everyone healthy as soon as the playoffs begin.

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Ethan Semendinger - Out of the six starters that the Yankees have, there are a few that will not be moved from their roles in the rotation: Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, and Marcus Stroman.

Which leaves two spots left in the rotation for the likes of: Clarke Schmidt, Nestor Cortes, and Luis Gil. And each has a 'pro' and a 'con' for being included.

For Clarke Schmidt, the 'pro' is that he only has 65.1 innings on his arm this year. However, this directly related to his 'con', being that he was on the IL from late-May to late-August.

For Nestor Cortes, the 'pro' is that he has experience as a postseason starter. However, his 'con' is that his 2024 season has been very up-and-down with his starting.

For Luis Gil, the 'pro' is that his season has been incredibly amazing. However, his 'con' is that he's never pitched near this amount of innings (so far Gil is at 130.2 innings) in a season before.

If I was in control, I'd keep Schmidt in the rotation and I'd put Cortes and Gil on a starter/reliever plan with the two of them swapping between either position each time their rotation spot gets called. I'd also tell Cortes that he could earn a spot back in the rotation if he starts to put up consistent numbers again.

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Mike Whiteman - I might do a six man rotation once, twice at the very most for the benefit of the returning Gil and Schmidt. For the last couple weeks of the season, I want only the best five starting (and one in the pen) as they battle for the division title. 

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Paul Semendinger - I actually liked the tandem approach they used with Clarke Schmidt and Nestor Cortes. That got them both work, but also gave the weary and ineffective bullpen a rest. I might change some pitchers in this process from week to week (Stroman followed by Gil - or whatever), but it worked and it keeps them all throwing on a regular rotation. I'd keep at it.