Yankees pitching prospect Clarke Schmidt has been shut down due to a common extensor strain in his right elbow, manager Aaron Boone told The Athletic’s Lindsey Adler (Twitter links) and other reporters. This appears to be the only issue with Schmidt’s elbow, as an MRI didn’t reveal any ligament damage.
Boone said Schmidt will be kept out of action for three to four weeks, thus putting Schmidt out of consideration for the Opening Day roster as he’ll need more time to get ramped up. The Yankees will surely be as careful as possible with Schmidt, one of their top prospects and a young arm who was seen as a potential contributor to the pitching staff as early as this season. The Athletic’s Keith Law ranks the right-hander as the 48th-best prospect in the sport, and Schmidt also features in top-100 prospect rankings from Baseball America (64th), Fangraphs (75th), MLB Pipeline (83rd) and Baseball Prospectus (96th)
Schmidt (who just turned 25 two days ago) made his MLB debut in 2020, posting a 7.11 ERA with seven strikeouts and five walks over 6 1/3 innings of work. Selected 16th overall in the 2017 draft, Schmidt pitched well over 114 minor league innings and was expected to make his Triple-A debut in 2020 before the minor league season was canceled, though the Yankees thought enough of his work at their alternate training site to give him a cup of coffee in the Show.
Given his lack of Triple-A experience, Schmidt was probably likely to begin the season in the minors anyway, given how New York has their provisional starting five (Gerrit Cole, Corey Kluber, Jameson Taillon, Jordan Montgomery, Domingo German) already in place. Given the number of injury concerns for those pitchers, however, plus the general need for teams to have as much pitching depth as possible as everyone rebuilds their innings limits after 2020, it certainly isn’t good news that the Yankees are already down a starting option for at least the first few weeks of the 2021 campaign.
Ugh, and it begins……. again.
@Yankee Clipper- better to get hurt now instead of later on. And there is nothing structurally wrong with his elbow. He should be fine. Schmidty probably wasn’t making the opening roster anyway.
@yank4life I have always wanted to know this, but how frustrating is it to have Stanton and Judge always injured. As a Nat fan when Scherzer gets injured its annoying but Judge is much younger
@Luc 2- yeah very frustrating and always expected for Stanton and Judge getting hurt and injured every year. So not surprised anymore. The worst is when their both injured at the same time. I laugh when I hear Scherzer is breaking down I definitely wouldn’t mind him pitching on the Yankees. The guy is a gamer. He’s not going downhill. But Judge’s injury history will likely affect him getting a contract extension with the Yankees.
Not “ugh”. You are an adult- use words, not sounds to express your opinion.
ugh
ugh is a word tho
Uhg
Ugh
Say Ugh?
Ugh…you’re lame dude.
About guarantees the Yankees will keep German.
The owner should be ashamed keeping German n Chapman. I
I’m feeling that way about German but by all accounts, Chapman has gotten his act together.
100% JoeSays. And I think you see that same sentiment resonating within the clubhouse as well; not to mention, when he went to the Yankees Chapman’s incident was in his past.
I think the equivocation with German’s status in an attempt to give him this second chance is a mistake for the organization. Now additional details about more abuse, and involvement of other teammates’ wives for the victim to get help….. recipe for a disastrous ending.
Cut bait – trade or cut losses completely and let another organization give him a second chance if they so choose. Especially after giving Chapman a second chance, Yankees should take a stand when it happens in their own back yard imho.
How was Chapmans incident in the past? The suspension happened once he was a Yankee.
pasha2k Why should the owner be ashamed? If Chapman and German were cut by the Yankees they’d have zero problem finding new teams. In this situation, doing the right thing puts you at a disadvantage to the rest of the league.
Calling on a single team to take a moral stand solves nothing. League’s need to start punishing these guys with lifetime bans, or every GM/Owner needs to agree not to sign them.
i dont know about German to be honest
Sure, just keep them on the roster and call it the New York Wife Beaters!
It needs to start somewhere Rocket. Waiting for everyone else is a total cop-out. So, we’ll stop domestic violence when everyone else does. In the meantime it’s game on. Really? Excuse me while I vomit…..
Go ahead and sign Osuna to have the trio….
@marty you are an adult no need for silly jokes
Use proper statements not poor jokes nobody laughs at or acknowledges
Given that you’re the only one to have never sinned or make mistakes, you should be able to cast the first stone ehhh?
I think what people misunderstand is that the owners have no choice. The players association ensures that these guys get a second chance at the very least it ensures they get paid.
@VonPurple got proof of this? Just asking.
@Boycott China Yes. It’s part of the collective bargaining agreement that allows second chances in situations like tgis. I can’t speak to German’s actions, but Obdubel Herrera for the Phillies was recently invited back to mini camp under the requirements of the collective bargaining agreement. It’s easy to blame the organizations, but sometimes it’s not solely in their control.
Pasha, you morally declare German and Chapman as not worthy of employment yet you probably think its just wonderful that Sox management (their ownership) actually re-hired the convicted cheater Cora right?
You don’t just dump generational talent like German.
When did German become a generational talent? Being a wise guy because it’s the boldest statement I’ve heard in a long time
Lol! Generational talent.
I hope it’s not contagious! J/k in case someone takes me serious here.
Yankee pitchers will be required to wear a mask over their elbows and private parts.
Right?! Sheesh, it hasn’t even been an actual spring training yet and we are getting hurt. Inevitably, I’m awaiting the Sanchez, Judge, Stanton article….. “Mild calf strain” that somehow creates a six-month IL stint…
Sorry, was that out loud?
Rumor is Stanton and Schmidt were sharing the same spoon from the same jar of peanut butter yesterday.
I doubt the Yankees were seriously considering him as a starter for the opening of the season. He showed promise in his brief time with them last season but still has a way to go. Hopefully he can fully recover from this.
Doesnt matter. Yanks don’t want to actually use their prospects, they just want to have them and smile over how great they think they are.
Yes true, they dont use their prospects: Torres, Judge, Andujar, Frazier, Sanchez, Garcia, German, half the bullpen, Higgy, Ford, Gardner…. A large chunk of the roster is actually homegrown. Now your turn, do your roster!
And Severino and Montgomery.
Deivi Garcia? He is MLB Ready and proved it.
I like Deivi. He seems ready for the show. They may have some concerns over his durability, but I think he has the potential to be an above average starter this season.
yeah I dont see how German nessicarily has a spot locked down coming in cold and with Garcia, Loaisiga, etc breathing down his neck. could just be biding their time to release him to appease the union.
Only problem with Garcia (as with the others named) is that they’re relatively unproven. I know that’s the deal when bringing up prospects and I’m not opposed, but even if he is ready, it doesn’t necessarily translate to success. So the more pitchers we lose early (Schmidt), the more limited our selection is if the Garcias don’t work out.
to be fair German is a 4.50 career ERA pitcher. not exactly much more established.
Has MLB or the union made any statements regarding this matter or that he should be released? AFAIK, he’s talking to his teammates and will soon addressing the media. That’s doesn’t sound like the Yankees are cutting bait.
Yes, that’s what has been published. I still think it detracts too much from the issues the team needs to be focused on and will be ever-present if he is afforded the #5 slot.
Garcia has all the makings of being something very special. From an M’s fan
So the nightmare season begins. Wtf yankees what do you get a team with injury problems the last few years. 2 injury prone pitchers and no pitcher who can At least eat up innings like Tanaka did. Its going to be a long season
Schmidt really wasn’t projected to be in starting pitching competiton anyway. I’d much rather he be shelved than any other guy.
another highly regarded yankee prospect who will be worth little and never pan out b/c Cash waited too long to capitalize…..
Thanks for showing us your crystal ball. Or is it a magic 8 ball?
chamberlin, hughes, kennedy, brackman, banuelos, adams, plus i am sure there have been a couple of more yankee pitching prospects in the top 100… None worked out in the rotation and none were traded for something good.
I stand by trashing of cashman and his holding on too long.
It’s tough to draft for really good pitching prospects when the Yankees are one of the winning-est teams. Their best chances are in the int’l market and via trades.
agree, but he doesn’t trade any of them either and it never pans out. The Yankee rotation is a constant issue. I like schmidt a lot, but would bet anything he does not make it. The Yankees have not developed a SP since Petite. Montgomery hasn’t made the cut yet and seve is always hurt.
We need a new GM willing to take some risk, not high risk but some risk. Otherwise its the same old same old.
I think he’s taking some risk this year with Kluber and Tallion. If they want safe, they could’ve resigned Tanaka. Signed Realmuto and Bauer while ballooning their payroll. There’s not a whole lot he can do if the owners want to stay below the tax threshold.
Starting to look more and more like the Yankees and Red Sox are gonna be battling for 3rd place in the AL East. This pitching staff is not going to be good. Clarke Schmidt is out. Domingo German will be out. Already down 2 arms. An awful lot riding on Severino being healthy and productive. He is my bet to be the next Yankee arm to go down. Jameson Taillon??? This guy has never made it though a season without getting hurt. Why will 2021 be any different? Corey Kluber??? The $11 million man? I am guessing that $11 million is going to equal about 11 starts before he is shut down. Cashman just had one of the worst offseasons in Yankee history.
Don’t look up! The sky is falling!
@Very Barry- keep dreaming. 3rd place will likely be between the Rays and the Blue Jays (the battle of Florida) Schmidty was unlikely to make the Yankee 26 man roster out of spring training anyhow.
as a Rays fan I actually hate that the Yankees keep getting bludgeoned with injuries. Games are much more exciting when everyone is full throttle
And that goes for every team in baseball. Why anyone would wish upon and cheer on injuries to players resulting in a diminished product is beyond me.
THAT’S IT. I am shutting this comment section down for this post… too controversial!!!
Bad troll do better next time
I will!! I must!
Stop trying to be cute and funny. You are neither.
Starting pitching is as fragile as ever which is why depth is so important. You really need about 9 SP’s capable of giving you some innings in your system.
How about we switch it up and actually report when a SP is healthy bc that is actually when it’s news these days. Injured pitching is BAU in baseball.
Don’t understand the Yankees approach! They’ve had historically high injuries for the past three years, so they decide to use their limited financial resources to sign pitchers that have injury histories (Kluber, Taillion). Schmidt has already had TJ surgery so naturally they took him in the first round of the draft a couple of years ago. Depth is key this year and we’re already down 1 pitcher.
They also hired Eric Cressey to revamp strength and condonitioing. They have changed the entire pitching development dept. and pitching coach. We’ll see how it goes.
It’s Clarke, who will most likely get time in AAA, for 3-4 weeks.
Relax.
Well, with Yankee injuries you have to automatically double the expected missed time estimate. Followed by a misdiagnosis revelation and underwhelming performance to finish the season.
Pretty soon we need to consider eliminating the pitcher all together and just put a machine out on the mound this generation can’t pitch if they feel the slightest bit of discomfort
Max scherzer says hello
Clayton Kershaw stopped by for a beer
Pitchers have always gotten hurt. Except now we have the technology to detect the slightest of in juries
Pitchers used to reach 200+ innings and could do it for many years. Clearly there are some differences between today’s game and what it used to be, which is causing many pitchers to break down quicker despite shorten outings, stricter pitch counts and less wear and tear.