When the Yankees released Marcus Stroman last week, they did more than cut ties with a struggling veteran.

They also demonstrated a show of faith in rookie starter Cam Schlittler, choosing to move forward with the flame-throwing right-hander in their rotation despite his lack of MLB experience.

Schlittler largely continued to reward that faith on Friday night in the Bronx, limiting the American League West-leading Houston Astros to two runs over five innings in the Yankees’ 5-3 loss in 10 innings.

But Schlittler believes there’s an area he must improve in order to take the next step.

“If I clean up those one, two mistakes a game, those turn into good outings,” Schlittler said.

The mistake he referred to Friday was a two-run home run he surrendered to Jose Altuve in the first inning.

Schlittler hung a first-pitch sweeper to Altuve, who shook off unrelenting boos from a sellout crowd of 46,027 to drive the ball 389 feet into the left-field stands.

“[Austin Wells] called a slider. I threw a sweeper. Should have thrown the cutter,” Schlittler said. “That’s what he wanted. Just kind of a mishap on my end. Just threw him the wrong pitch, where it was slow enough for him to catch up.”

Schlittler, 24, locked in from there, using a fastball he dialed up to 99.7 mph to keep Houston off the board for the rest of his outing. He worked around seven hits and a walk over a career-high 97 pitches and stranded a runner in scoring position in each of his final three frames.

“I thought he did well,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Giving up the two-run homer right away [is] not how you want to start it, and then he got into some trouble at times, but I thought overall [he] threw the ball really well and made some really big pitches to keep us right there.”

Schlittler recorded three strikeouts and 11 swings and misses against a battle-tested Astros lineup that was without Yordan Alvarez (hand) and Isaac Paredes (hamstring) but that still boasts plenty of firepower with Altuve, Jeremy Peña and the recently re-acquired Carlos Correa.

It was significant for Schlittler to limit the damage on a night Hunter Brown — a first-time All-Star and AL Cy Young contender — was on the mound for Houston. The Yankees trailed, 2-0, when Schlittler exited, but they rallied to tie the game in the sixth, ensuring Schlittler a no-decision.

“The goal is just to put the team in a position to win, so I’m glad I was able to do that a little bit,” Schlittler said.

Friday’s start was Schlittler’s fifth in the majors. He is yet to exceed 5.1 innings, but he has not allowed more than three runs in an outing. Altuve’s home run was the sixth given up by Schlittler since his call-up.

“Continuing to make the same mistake over and over, just one or two a game, that can kind of impact the outcome,” Schlittler said. “It’s something I’m trying to work on and get better at.”

After losing ace Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt to season-ending elbow surgeries, the Yankees did not acquire a starting pitcher before last week’s trade deadline. During that week of dealing, the Yankees held onto Schlittler, whom MLB Pipeline ranks as their No. 3 prospect.

Still, the Yankees faced a rotation crunch ahead of right-hander Luis Gil’s return last weekend from a high-grade lat strain that cropped up during spring training. Schlittler had made only three MLB starts at that point.

But the Yankees opted to release the 34-year-old Stroman — a two-time All-Star with a 6.23 ERA in nine starts this season — and roll into the stretch run with a rotation of Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Gil, Schlittler and another promising rookie in right-hander Will Warren.

Schlittler held the Miami Marlins to two runs in five innings with six strikeouts last weekend in his first start after that decision. With Friday’s performance, Schlittler lowered his ERA to 4.38.

“Still trying to figure out the ropes,” Schlittler said. “I’ve got a lot to work on.”

Originally Published: August 8, 2025 at 9:53 PM EDT