After barely escaping with a win last night due to some Devin Williams theatrics, the Yankees will go for their fourth sweep of the season tonight at Angel Stadium.

Clarke Schmidt will make his eighth start of the season. The 29-year-old right-hander all of a sudden has the worst ERA among the active rotation, something inconceivable just a month ago when Carlos Carrasco and Marcus Stroman were in the rotation and Will Warren was on the struggle bus.

After allowing three runs in 4.2 sluggish innings at Coors Field last weekend, Schmidt has a 4.58 ERA (86 ERA+), a 4.30 FIP, and has experienced some newfound command issues, with his walk rate (12.1 percent) being his highest since becoming a full-time MLB player in 2022. Despite some choppy numbers at the surface, his peripherals look solid, especially in terms of strikeouts, whiffs, and suppressing hard contact. His eight strikeouts last Friday were a season high. In two career outings (one start) against the Angels, he’s allowed five runs in just 4.2 innings.

Yusei Kikuchi has sneakily bounced back following a choppy start to his Angels career. After signing a three-year, $63.7 million contract in the offseason, he entered May with some mediocre numbers. However, in five May starts, he has a 1.91 ERA in 28.1 innings. Overall, his full-season numbers come out to a 3.17 ERA and 4.34 FIP in 59.2 innings. Kikuchi’s walk rate is also elevated from prior years. The left-hander’s underlying metrics grade out poorly with an 18th-percentile walk rate, a 17th-percentile chase rate, and a 25th-percentile whiff rate. If nothing else, he has always been a steady middle-of-the-pack starter whose ERA hangs around four all year.

This year, Kikuchi is throwing a lot more sliders, to the point where his slider and four-seamer are being used at identical 37 percent rates. However, his better-performing pitches are his changeup and curveball, which are used about a quarter of the time combined. The former Blue Jay has always been tough on the Yankees, posting a 3.38 ERA in 11 career starts, his best against any opponent he’s made more than seven starts against. Last year, he struck out 23 in just 16.2 innings with a 2.76 ERA in three starts. Despite that experience, only Aaron Judge, DJ LeMahieu, and Anthony Volpe have had more than four at-bats against him in their careers on the team.

Paul Goldschmidt will lead off for the 18th time this season, most on the team. Judge will DH, allowing all three of Trent Grisham, Cody Bellinger, and Jasson Domínguez to play, but at the expense of Ben Rice, who will get the day off. Rice’s absence is most likely due to Kikuchi’s suppression of lefty batters (zero extra base hits this season). LeMahieu and Oswald Peraza will man second and third base with J.C. Escarra behind the plate.

Logan O’Hoppe is back in the Angels’ starting lineup at DH, as Travis d’Arnaud catches. Zach Neto is leading off, and Jo Adell, who’s had a strong series, gets the day off.

How to watch

Location: Angel Stadium – Anaheim, CA

First pitch: 9:38 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, FanDuel Sports Network West

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | KLAA 830 (LAA)

Online stream: MLB.tv, Gotham Sports App

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