The Yankees blew a seven-run lead going into the top of the ninth inning and lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-7, on Saturday afternoon.
Here are the takeaways…
-Still fighting for a roster spot and having made it this far, RHP Cam Schlittler took the ball for New York in his fifth and final appearance of the spring and left on a high note after going four scoreless innings while giving up just three hits, a walk and striking out two on 57 pitches (36 strikes). He relied on a lot of ground balls and induced two double plays to help him get through his outing.
Aside from one rough start, the 24-year-old pitched great for the Yanks during camp as a non-roster invitee following a solid minor league season in 2024 in which he pitched for all three levels, tallying a 3.36 ERA over 120.2 innings.
While Schlittler will likely begin the season in the minors to continue to improve upon his breakout year that included a 2.60 ERA in 17 Single-A starts, New York has got to be pleased with how its right-hander performed in his first taste of big league camp. And with so many injuries to the pitching staff already, Schlittler could just be a phone call away from making his MLB debut at some point this season.
-Without a ton of hits, the Yankees’ offense was able to push across seven runs, spearheaded by a four-run fourth inning. Before that, though, Aaron Judge smashed a two-run home run in the third inning for his first spring training homer this season. The three-time MVP hasn’t had his best camp, hitting .138 (4-for-29), so it was good to see him connect with one and leave the yard before the start of the regular season. Judge finished 1-for-3 with three RBI and a strikeout as the DH.
-New York’s crooked number in the fourth was mostly due to poor pitching by Philadelphia who walked three in the inning and hit another. However, Jasson Dominguez had an RBI single in the frame to keep up his solid spring at the plate and J.C. Escarra, a candidate to be the backup catcher, also had a run-scoring hit.
Escarra has really impressed in camp, hitting .333 with three home runs, eight RBI, seven runs scored to go along with a .936 OPS. All of this after the 29-year-old slashed .302/.403/.527 in 52 games in Triple-A in 2024 — his first season back in the minors since 2021.
-The Yankees bullpen, including Mark Leiter Jr. (1 IP, 3 Ks), Geoff Hartlieb (1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 Ks), Colten Brewer (1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K) and Rob Zastryzny (1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K), was lights out. That’s before Eric Reyzelman came in for the ninth inning looking to slam the door of a 7-0 lead. Instead, the right-hander allowed five earned runs on four hits and a walk before getting pulled for Leonardo Pestana.
With New York’s lead shaved to two runs, Pestana couldn’t seal the deal either, giving up a three-run bomb that pulled the Phillies all the way back and in front for the first time all day.
The Yanks had the tying and winning runners on base in the bottom half of the inning, but came up empty.
Highlights
Aaron Judge’s first home run of the spring! 👨⚖️
(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/eZ1DFePpjr
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) March 22, 2025
Jasson Dominguez brings in a run with an infield hit!
(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/riYRyhnljm
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) March 22, 2025
An RBI single for J.C. Escarra!
(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/4Ew4mIwx1g
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) March 22, 2025
What’s next
The Yankees play a Sunday matinee against the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:05 p.m. at George M. Steinbrenner Field. It will be their final home game of the spring before handing the keys to the Rays for the regular season.
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