The Yankees only came through August with more wins than losses because of their starting rotation and a few elite relievers. The batters contributed little. The fielding was often gauche and clumsy.

In the month, they used 7 starters. This heightened number was necessary because Max Fried went on the the Injured list (IL) (17th, retroactive to 14th), Ryan Weathers went onto the IL (23rd, left forearm flexor strain), and Elmer Rodriguez was recalled from Scranton (Triple-A). Oh, what a merry-go-round!. Let’s see how it all went.

These are all the players who pitched in order of those with lowest ERA.

Name/Pos	W	L	ERA	G	GS	GF	CG	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	WHIP
Brendan Beck rp/sp	0	0	0.00	1	0	1	0	0	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0.00
Paul Blackburn rp/sp	4	1	0.00	14	0	2	0	0	16.2	10	1	0	8	15	1.08
Kervin Castro rp	0	0	0.00	3	0	0	0	0	3.2	1	0	0	2	4	0.82
Justin Topa rp	0	0	0.00	2	0	1	0	0	3.0	4	1	0	1	3	1.67
Max Fried sp	0	1	1.33	4	4	0	0	0	20.1	13	3	3	6	22	0.93
Yerry De Los Santos rp	1	0	1.59	10	0	2	0	0	11.1	8	2	2	4	8	1.06
Ryan Weathers sp	1	1	1.61	4	4	0	0	0	22.1	20	4	4	5	17	1.12
Cam Schlittler sp	2	0	2.33	5	5	0	0	0	27.0	19	7	7	16	36	1.30
Gerrit Cole sp	3	2	2.35	5	5	0	0	0	30.2	25	9	8	7	32	1.04
Carlos Rodon sp	0	1	2.84	3	3	0	0	0	12.2	7	5	4	5	11	0.95
David Bednar rp	2	0	2.92	11	0	10	0	8	12.1	7	5	4	4	12	0.89
Michael Fulmer rp	0	0	3.38	3	0	0	0	0	2.2	3	2	1	1	3	1.50
Tim Hill rp	1	0	3.65	11	0	3	0	1	12.1	8	6	5	1	4	0.73
Luis Gil rp/sp	0	0	4.50	1	0	0	0	0	2.0	1	1	1	1	3	1.00
Will Warren sp/rp	1	1	4.62	5	5	0	0	0	25.1	29	14	13	10	24	1.54
Brent Headrick rp	1	2	4.73	15	0	1	0	o	13.1	20	7	7	3	21	1.73
Ryan Yarbrough rp	0	0	5.40	5	0	2	0	1	10.0	7	6	6	3	9	1.00
Elmer Rodriguez sp	0	1	6.52	2	2	0	0	0	9.2	7	7	7	5	11	1.24
Fernando Cruz rp	0	1	6.75	10	0	3	0	0	8.0	8	6	6	3	9	1.38
Bradley Hanner rp	0	0	6.75	3	0	2	0	0	4.0	6	3	3	0	6	1.33
Yovanny Cruz rp	0	0	9.00	1	0	1	0	0	1.0	2	1	1	1	0	3.00
Angel Chivilli rp	0	1	32.40	2	0	0	0	0	1.2	5	6	6	3	0	4.80
Name/Pos	W	L	ERA	G	GS	GF	CG	Sv	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K	WHIP

Starters

Those in the rotation who pitched most often were Cam Schlittler, Gerrit Cole, and Will Warren.

A strong argument can be made for Schlittler winning the American League Cy Young award on his current form. This month, he took 2 wins, 3 no decisions and no losses. His ERA at 2.33 was marginally better than Cole’s, but Cole’s WHIP was better than Schlittler’s on the month. Cole took 3 wins, but also gave up 2 losses – in this month of so little run support.

Warren’s ERA and WHIP rather ballooned in August (4.62/1.54), and his Win / Loss record was 1-1 with 3 no decisions. Based on ERA alone, he was the weakest of the Yankees’ starting pitchers in August and with players returning from injury, there is a good argument for moving him into long relief.

Of those returning from injury, a good argument can be made that Max Fried had the edge on Carlos Rodon, but both pitched extremely well.

Fried had a WHIP of 0.93. Rodon’s was 0.95. Again, the lack of runs and hits make this difficult to assess and neither of these 2 pitchers came out of their appearances with a “W” next to theri name. Fried had a 1.33 ERA in 4 starts one of which was a loss. Rodon also had a loss and an ERA of 2.84 in 3 starts.

Ryan Weathers, who is now injured, had one of his best months as a Yankee. His ERA (1.16) and his WHIP (1.12) show how strong he was and there were ony 5 walks in 22.1 innings in his 4 starts.

Finally, there was Elmer Rodriguez who still has progess to make. His August ERA of 6.52 needs substantial improvement.

Relievers

The most used members of the bullpen in August were Brent Headrick (15 games), and Paul Blackburn (14). To say this is surprising is a massive understatement. In 2025, Brent Headrick appeared in only 17 games in the whole season. His ERA was a fraction over 3. This year, he has probably been the Yankees’ best reliever. Paul Blackburn was picked up by the Yankees in 2025 when he was surplus to requirements at the New York Mets. That season, he was used as the guy who would mop up innings in games that the Yankees had already effectively lost – it was a role he handled well, but let’s face it, there is not a lot of future in a role like that no matter how well you do. He needed to advance and impress someone and indeed in Spring Training, the Yankees evidently saw more in his game than they’d anticipated and he has been a tremendous asset to the team in his more prominent role.

However. this month, Headrick had probably his weakest stint this season, giving up 7 runs and 20 hits in 13.1 innings. Meanwhile, Blackburn was having probably his best month, picking up 4 wins and an ERA of 0.00. He did lose one game on an unearned run, but then he also had a WHIP of 1.08 which shows he was a little unfortunate.

Closer David Bednar continues to dominate his rivals. He appeared in 11 games, collecting 8 saves from 9 opportunities. His WHIP for the month came in under 1 and his ERA 2.92. Just for good measure, he also collected 2 Wins.

Outgoing at the trade deadline were Camilo Doval, and Jake Bird both of whom arrived at the trade deadline last year. Doval went to Pittsburgh for c Omar Alfonzo and of Luis Cruz and both were assigned to the minors. Jake Bird was one of 4 outgoing players in the Luis Garcia Jr trade. Another departee was Yovanny Cruz who was also included in that same deal, two days after being called up again to the Bronx. Recalled to add to the major league roster to fill the spaces left by those leaving were Yerry De Los Santos, Bradley Hanner, Kervin Castro and free agents Justin Topa and Michael Fulmer.

Of these, Castro pitched well and maintained a 0.00 ERA before then going on the 60 day injured list with right elbow neuritis. De Los Santos did extremely well and picked up a win and a 1.59 ERA in 10 games with a 1.06 WHIP. Hanner found himself back in the minor leagues after collecting a 6.75 ERA. Topa pitched well but was reassigned and was offered a minors assignment which he declined in order to become a free agent. Peculiarly, he then accepted an assignment to Scranton. Fulmer appeared in 3 games, collecting a 3.38 ERA along the way.

Righthanders Tim Hill and Ryan Yarbrough have done well for most of the season but have lost form recently. Hill no longer seems to baffle batters as he once did. His WHIP is still notably strong but his ERA has been poor. Yarbrough who shared the long relief role with Blackburn, shows nothing of the variety that the other man can offer, and this month has a 5.40 ERA and appeared in just 5 games.

Angel Chivilli had a great month in July and at times this season, his form has been a revelation. In his second and last appearance in August, he was hit every which way, His monthly ERA was 32.40 and his WHIP 4.80. He was immediately reassigned to Scranton for the coaches to look at his mechanics. Previously, he had looked so promising. Whither now for him?

Fernando Cruz has struggled recently and the need for rest was obvious and he went on the IL with right elbow discomfort on the 26th. At the end of the month, John Schreiber was claimed off waivers from the Kansas City Royals and he will take on Cruz’s role.

Brendan Beck has made 1 start (in July) and 2 relief appearances (firstly in May, and then pitching against Boston this month). This time he pitched the 9th versus Boston in a 9-2 victory. This was his best appearance for the Yankees.

Luis Gil returned on the last day of the month, and is now working out of the ‘pen. He did okay, giving up 1 run in 2 innings, striking out three.