Tarik Skubal (3-4, 3.32 ERA) gets a rematch with the team that roughed him up a week ago, heading back to Yankee Stadium after they tagged him for 4 earned runs — including 3 home runs — across 6 innings in his June 24 loss in Detroit. Waiting for him is Cam Schlittler (8-4, 1.62 ERA), the 25-year-old right-hander who's been the one bright spot in an otherwise chaotic Yankees rotation and is putting up the second-lowest ERA through 17 starts by any Yankees pitcher since 1913. First pitch is at 7:05 PM ET.
The Yankees have now lost 5 consecutive games — 4 to the Red Sox at Fenway, then Monday night's 7-3 thumping at home where things went sideways early. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is now in concussion protocol after Jasson Dominguez's glove caught him in the face chasing a shallow pop-up in the 4th inning. Aaron Judge has been out since early June with a right rib stress fracture, with September being the realistic re-evaluation window. Giancarlo Stanton is on the IL with a calf issue. Ryan McMahon is out with a throat infection. The Yankees are running on fumes in the lineup department, and their most dynamic position player's availability for tonight is genuinely uncertain.
Detroit walked into the Bronx and won game 1 with authority, which is worth noting for a Tigers club that's still 13 games under .500. They're carrying their own injury load — Verlander, Jackson Jobe, Parker Meadows, Wenceel Perez, Javier Baez, and Trey Sweeney are all on the IL — but the guys who are available showed up Monday. Skubal's been working through a stretch of recovery from his elbow procedure and the stuff is clearly still there: 9 strikeouts and 0 walks against these same Yankees on June 24. The home run ball has been the issue, not the miss. That's fixable.
- Day-To-DayJosue Briceno C — Briceno said Friday that he expects to be sidelined a few months after having surgery Wednesday to repair a tendon in his right wrist, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
- 10-Day-ILGleyber Torres 2B — Torres (oblique) received a cortisone injection Friday and is expected to start up his rehab program in the next day or two, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
- 60-Day-ILJackson Jobe SP — Jobe (elbow) will throw live batting practice Saturday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
- 60-Day-ILWenceel Perez RF — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Perez won't require surgery for the left orbital fracture he sustained June 16, but the outfielder lacks a clear timeline for a return, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports. "It's not, from what I understand, where it's going to be something long term," Hinch said of Perez's injury. "But it doesn't mean it heals itself fast. He's feeling better and better and reporting progress."
- 60-Day-ILParker Meadows CF — Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Tuesday that Meadows (forearm) has yet to resume hitting and is without a timeline to return from the 60-day injured list, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
- 60-Day-ILBurch Smith RP — The Tigers transferred Smith (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.
- 60-Day-ILJustin Verlander SP — Verlander (hip) has been scratched from a scheduled start Sunday versus the White Sox due to a left hamstring injury, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
- 60-Day-ILJavier Baez SS — The Tigers transferred Baez (ankle) to the 60-day injured list Thursday, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayJazz Chisholm Jr. 2B — Chisholm has been placed in concussion protocol after exiting Monday's game against the Tigers in the fourth inning following a collision with teammate Jasson Dominguez.
- 10-Day-ILGiancarlo Stanton DH — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Stanton (calf) has restarted a running program and will take live at-bats against rehabbing left-hander Max Fried (elbow) on Tuesday, David Lennon of Newsday reports.
- 10-Day-ILTrent Grisham CF — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that Grisham (hamstring) could be activated from the 10-day injured list Wednesday or Friday, Jorge Castillo of ESPN.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILAaron Judge RF — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Friday that Judge isn't expected to be ready for a re-evaluation later this week, when he'll be at the four-week mark in his recovery from a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
- 10-Day-ILRyan McMahon 3B — The Yankees placed McMahon on the 10-day injured list Wednesday due to a throat infection.
- 15-Day-ILMax Fried SP — Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Fried (elbow) will throw a two-inning simulated game Tuesday, David Lennon of Newsday reports.
- paternityDavid Bednar RP — The Yankees placed Bednar on the paternity list Monday.
- 60-Day-ILClarke Schmidt SP — Schmidt (elbow) tossed a side session Wednesday and is "a couple of weeks" away from facing live hitters, per MLB.com.
Schlittler is the reason to back New York here. His last outing was 5 scoreless innings against the Red Sox — the bullpen gave the lead back and he absorbed the loss — but the performance itself was sharp. He's been that consistent all season, and the Yankees desperately need a dominant start tonight. Dropping a 6th straight to a team well below .500 at home would be a genuinely ugly stretch. Schlittler gives them the best path out of it. Whether a depleted lineup can actually put runs on the board behind him is the real question.