On Friday night, it was the Reds.
Next month, it may be the National League All-Stars that Cam Schlittler is starting against.
The Yankees’ budding ace turned in a downright dominant outing Friday, striking out a career-high 13 across six shutout innings on the way to a 5-0 win over the Reds in The Bronx.
Lowering his ERA to 1.71 — the lowest by a Yankee through his first 16 starts of a season since Whitey Ford in 1964 — Schlittler added another highlight to his crowded résumé to start the All-Star Game for the American League. His biggest opponent Friday was his pitch count, as he needed 96 pitches to get through the sixth or else he might have kept going.
“He was feeling it tonight,” manager Aaron Boone said.
The Reds (35-39), who entered the night with the second-highest strikeout rate (24.5 percent) of any team, fell right into Schlittler’s hands as he became the first Yankee to record 13 strikeouts since Max Fried last September. The right-hander scattered just four hits (one of them a dropped fly ball by Jasson Domínguez in right field) while walking none as the Yankees (46-28) won for the 10th time in their last 13 games.
In the process, the 25-year-old Schlittler became the youngest pitcher in Yankees history to record 13 strikeouts and no walks in a game, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.
“It’s been kind of tough the last couple starts, just been a grind, especially pitching in New York,” Schlittler said. “I haven’t done an excellent job over the past month or so pitching here. So it’s important to go out there and have a dominant start.”
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Schlittler has spent the past few weeks working on his mechanics, getting down the mound without opening up his frame, and it finally clicked Friday. With a four-seam fastball that averaged 98 mph, a sinker that averaged 98.1 mph and a cutter that averaged 95.6 mph, his heat kept the Reds guessing all night long as he racked up 18 whiffs.
“We always expect to watch him go out and do something special, so it wasn’t very surprising,” said Ben Rice, who provided most of the offense with a three-run shot in the second inning.
Schlittler, who was not all that interested in thinking about a potential All-Star Game start next month in Philadelphia, at least acknowledged a social media post from Knicks star and freshly crowned NBA champion Josh Hart, who wrote, “Schlittly is the Cy Young winner hands down.”
“That’s a good thing to hear, Josh is a great guy,” said Schlittler, who has gotten to know Hart. “I’m pumped for him and the city of New York, just being able to finish that off. It’s great to have his support.”
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Jazz Chisholm Jr. led off the second inning with a home run and Rice capped it off with his 21st blast of the season to make it 4-0, giving Schlittler all the support he needed before Anthony Volpe added an RBI single in the eighth.
Jake Bird, Brent Headrick and David Bednar each threw a scoreless inning of relief to finish off the shutout.
Entering Friday, Schlittler’s regular-season career high was nine strikeouts. He surpassed that by fanning Eugenio Suárez on a 99 mph sinker to end the fourth inning, when he struck out the side.
His overall career high was the 12 strikeouts he had in the AL wild-card series against his hometown Red Sox last October. But he beat that mark by the fifth inning, blowing a 98 mph heater past JJ Bleday for a three-pitch strikeout.
Schlittler’s night actually got off to an inauspicious start, when his first pitch was a sinker that ran in and hit Blake Dunn. But by the time he walked off the mound for the final time, he received a standing ovation from the crowd of 42,420 for his efforts.
“I think it would be pretty cool to see him out there pitching in the All-Star Game,” Chisholm said, “knowing he’s one of the best pitchers in the world.”
