Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Clarke Schmidt Injury Update: When Will Yankees Pitcher Return Amidst Rotation Troubles?

Help can’t arrive soon enough!

Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The Yankees are getting some much-needed relief for a rotation that’s stumbled out of the gate, and it might come as soon as next week.

Right-hander Clarke Schmidt is slated for one final rehab outing on Thursday with Double-A Somerset. If all goes well, he’s expected to rejoin the Yankees rotation during their upcoming series against the Royals, likely taking the mound on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Clarꓘe is bacꓘ.@Yankees RHP Clarke Schmidt tossed a gem in his rehab assignment with Somerset.

3.1 IP | 1 H | 0 R | 7 K
Pitches (Strikes): 52 (37) pic.twitter.com/F2TyfjhaMS
— Somerset Patriots (@SOMPatriots) April 5, 2025

Schmidt’s road back has been a slow burn. He was limited early in spring by a lingering back issue, and just as that cleared up, right rotator cuff tendinitis sidelined him for the start of the regular season. But with his rehab progressing smoothly and the big-league staff in flux, his timing couldn’t be better.

Max Fried provided a rare bright spot with a stellar outing on Wednesday, but outside of him, the Yankees’ rotation has been more volatile than reliable. Through nine starts not made by Fried, New York starters are carrying a bloated 6.04 ERA, starkly higher than Fried’s 1.88 ERA through three turns. Over the past week, the Yankees’ team ERA sat at 6.02, seventh-highest in the league during that stretch.

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In short: help can’t arrive soon enough.

Schmidt’s return would offer some immediate reinforcement, but the Yankees are still a long way from full strength.

When Will Luis Gil Return?

Luis Gil, last year’s AL Rookie of the Year, has been shut down for nearly six weeks with a high-grade lat strain. He’s expected to begin a throwing program in the coming days, which will mark his first steps back toward the mound.

While there’s still no concrete timeline for Gil, the earliest possible return would likely come sometime in June, if all goes according to plan. It’s a small step, but for a Yankees rotation currently running thin, even the smallest progress counts.

Clarke Schmidt

Yankees

Mohsin Baldiwala

mlb

Mohsin Baldiwala is a Master’s student in Journalism and freelance content producer who got hooked on baseball through Seinfeld’s hapless George Costanza. The same reason why he’s a Yankees fan. He writes about sports because he believes it can offer a brief escape from the world’s chaos. Even if that means enduring the heartbreak of the 2024 World Series.