Three cheers, Yankees fans: Aaron Judge is at last coming off the injured list! The slugging superstar returns to the fold just in time for the stretch run, and not a moment too soon. The Bombers have been struggling to close the distance on the Rays in the AL East race with time running out, and the Red Sox remain hot on their trail in the Wild Card hunt. Now, which unfortunate team will be pulling into the Bronx just in time for the captain’s return?
Why, the Colorado Rockies — owners of the National League’s worst record at 55-88. Colorado has shown a bit more panache than their utterly moribund incarnation from last year, but they remain a franchise stuck deep in the cellar. They lost seven straight games, rallied to take a pair in Washington, then lost five more games consecutively before surprising the Orioles with a few plucky wins at home. They just came off a series loss in St. Louis which featured one of the more odious ump shows in recent memory.
All three games of this series will be televised on YES.
Tuesday: Cam Schlittler vs. Gabriel Hughes (7:05 p.m. EST)
This is one of the more lopsided cards you’ll see. Cam Schlittler comes into the series opener with a 2.04 ERA across 171.2 innings as he chases a Cy Young award in his first full MLB season. Rookie Gabriel Hughes has pitched to a 6.19 ERA with six losing decisions (and no wins) in his first 11 appearances in the show.
While he has been a noticeably better pitcher away from home this season, Schlittler is probably thrilled to not have to contend with the mile-high air as he tries to keep his numbers as pristine as possible. Colorado does have some dangerous bats: Hunter Goodman has socked 36 home runs this season and former Yankee farmhand TJ Rumfield has been the team’s most valuable offensive contributor.
Hughes’ numbers didn’t get truly gaudy until he gave up seven earned runs in two straight starts last month. His last time out was a marked improvement against Baltimore, as he limited the O’s to just one run on four hits in a shade under five innings.
Wednesday: Will Warren vs. Tomoyuki Sugano (7:05 p.m. EST)
Warren made just his second appearance out of the bullpen this season on Friday against the Padres, as the Yankees get him ready to fill that role in the postseason. He did well, providing 2.1 innings of hitless relief. He’ll return to the rotation against the Rockies and try to build on a solid little run he’s been on; his previous start against Boston was one of his best as a big-leaguer.
Tomoyuki Sugano came to Colorado to eat innings for an undernourished rotation. The 36-year old’s unglamorous, throwback-to-the-aughts style has allowed him to be a perfectly competent starter for the Rockies, pitching to a 5.18 ERA. He strikes out practically nobody, and issues few walks either. The Yankees saw him four times last year when he was an Oriole, to mixed results. His final two starts of that season were short losing efforts; the final score was 6-1 both times.
Thursday: Max Fried vs. Ryan Feltner (7:05 p.m. EST)
Will Warren’s aforementioned relief outing came after a strong start from Max Fried. In his second start off the IL, he held the Padres to one run on four hits, throwing 72 pitches. Aaron Boone will continue to be cautious with the lefty as the playoffs approach — don’t expect to see him push Fried deep into this game either, especially against another NL West team. His results, sparser as they are, have been better than last year — his 2.66 FIP would be a top-10 figure in baseball right next to Cam Schlittler’s 2.62 if he had enough innings to qualify.
Ryan Feltner is a tough cookie who has stuck it out through an uneven tenure in Denver. Drafted out of Ohio State in 2018 and debuting in 2021, Feltner became a rotation regular the following season. In 2023, he was struck in the head by a line drive and suffered a skull fracture which sidelined him from May to September. After a full 30-start campaign the following year, back issues knocked out most of his 2025. This year, he’s dealt with nerve inflammation, and had to tough it out through a stomach bug last week to try and prevent a sweep in Atlanta (he could not). Feltner has only managed a 5.36 ERA in 90 MLB games with the Rockies — but that’s good for 4.5 career fWAR! Yup, Colorado is just that brutal of a pitching environment.
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