{"id":303980,"date":"2025-09-09T19:31:23","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T19:31:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/303980\/"},"modified":"2025-09-09T19:31:23","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T19:31:23","slug":"yankees-5-things-to-watch-vs-al-playoff-contenders-tigers-and-red-sox-this-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/303980\/","title":{"rendered":"Yankees’ 5 things to watch vs AL playoff contenders Tigers and Red Sox this week"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK \u2013 Sticking to Sunday\u2019s postgame Yankee script, Max Fried wasn\u2019t looking much beyond the next series.<\/p>\n

An MLB-best stretch 20 wins in their last 29 games has revived the Yankees\u2019 chance of repeating as AL East champs<\/a>, with 19 regular-season games remaining \u2013 none against first-place Toronto.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe\u2019ve got to lock in and take care of business on our end,\u2019\u2019 Fried said straightforwardly, after Sunday\u2019s 4-3 victory over the Blue Jays, completing their season series.<\/p>\n

Here are five things to watch this week:<\/p>\n

Aaron Judge vs. Giancarlo Stanton in right field\"Sep<\/p>\n

Sep 7, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) fields the ball during the fourth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

As mentioned by manager Aaron Boone, this is about as healthy as the Yankees have been all season, but there are still some concerns.<\/p>\n

Aaron Judge\u2019s right arm strength is compromised due to a flexor tendon issue.<\/p>\n

Boone initially said he didn\u2019t anticipate Judge\u2019s throwing to be at full capacity, and the early returns suggest this will be something to watch for the balance of 2025.<\/p>\n

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With some caution, Judge made two throws to second base on Sunday but chose not to challenge a throw home on a sacrifice fly in his second right field start since Friday\u2019s defensive return.<\/p>\n

Choosing between a subpar defender in Giancarlo Stanton (with all the inherent injury risk) and a compromised Judge is a daily decision for Boone, and the Blue Jays were clearly eager to test Judge\u2019s arm with aggressive baserunning.<\/p>\n

How Yankees relay signs to each other on field\"Sep<\/p>\n

Sep 7, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice (22) runs the bases during his homerun against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Smith-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Are the Yankees just a little too obvious with their sign-signaling stuff?<\/p>\n

Before a Max Scherzer delivery, Judge waved his arms in an exaggerated gesture, signaling during a 10-pitch at-bat that led to a key Ben Rice three-run homer.<\/p>\n

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Afterward, Toronto manager John Schneider acknowledged that the \u201cYankees were good\u2019\u2019 at relaying pitches, that \u201cit was fair game\u2019\u2019 and it\u2019s on Scherzer to better conceal his grip.<\/p>\n

Anything that can be picked up by the naked eye and relayed on the field in real time is fair, but there are more subtle ways to accomplish that aim.<\/p>\n

And these two clubs have warred on related issues, like that time in 2023 when Judge\u2019s eyes darted toward the dugout before a pitch, with speculation that he was receiving pitch location.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s at least something to watch if they meet in postseason, and with how other opposing clubs might deal with similar unsubtle signaling in the Yanks\u2019 final six series.<\/p>\n

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Anthony Volpe and Jose Caballero: Yankees’ daily choice at shortstop\"Aug<\/p>\n

Aug 1, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; New York Yankees pinch runner Jose Caballero (72) celebrates after scoring against the Miami Marlins during the ninth inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Speaking of day-to-day starting decisions, are we there yet at the shortstop position?<\/p>\n

Anthony Volpe is coming off a rough game Sunday, lost at the plate with an 0-for-3 and three strikeouts, with some swings indicating he was either indecisive or badly fooled.<\/p>\n

Defensively, Volpe\u2019s third inning throwing error was his MLB-leading 19th error of the year, part of a season-long trend, though he did make two very good plays as well.<\/p>\n

But with Jose Caballero available and able to impact games with his speed (he leads the AL with 43 steals) and daring, he ought to be an increasing option for Boone down the stretch.<\/p>\n

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Bounce-back start for Cam Schlittler\"Aug<\/p>\n

Aug 25, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) pitches in the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

As the AL Central-leading Detroit Tigers arrive Tuesday for a three-game set at Yankee Stadium, Cam Schlittler is scheduled to start Thursday\u2019s finale.<\/p>\n

After posting a 1.26 ERA over his previous five starts, the Yankees\u2019 hard-throwing rookie right-hander did not get out of Friday\u2019s second inning versus Toronto, yielding four runs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s frustrating\u2026we\u2019re playing a division rival, you can\u2019t go 1.2 innings,\u2019\u2019 Schlittler told reporters after a 40-pitch inning was his downfall against a Blue Jays lineup expert at putting the ball in play.<\/p>\n

Per MLB.com, 24 of Schlittler\u2019s 66 pitches were fouled off by Toronto hitters.<\/p>\n

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This is Schlittler\u2019s 11th MLB start, and how he adjusts to teams (who now have a better book on him) will be something to watch down the stretch.<\/p>\n

Yankees vs. Red Sox at Fenway Park\"Aug<\/p>\n

Aug 22, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Brayan Bello (66) delivers a pitch against the New York Yankees during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

This weekend, the Yankees wrap up a Defining Dozen games versus current AL division leaders and playoff teams (they’re 4-2 so far) with three games at Fenway Park.<\/p>\n

As you might’ve heard, the Yanks are just 2-8 against Boston this year, but Boone’s club held a 1.5-game advantage on Boston for the top AL wild card spot entering Tuesday.<\/p>\n

And if these two teams are destined to play in a wild card series, it’s best that the Yankees maintain this edge and avoid a return trip to Fenway.<\/p>\n

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Rotation-wise, the Yankees line up to send Luis Gil, Max Fried and Will Warren against the Red Sox.<\/p>\n

After Sunday night’s series finale, the Yankees’ remaining schedule gets a lot easier on paper, with series at Minnesota and Baltimore, and home series against the White Sox and Orioles.<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Yankees’ 5 things to watch vs Detroit Tigers and Boston Red Sox this week<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEW YORK \u2013 Sticking to Sunday\u2019s postgame Yankee script, Max Fried wasn\u2019t looking much beyond the next series.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":303981,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2288],"tags":[1797,106,1205,143,5,731,377,141,20455,53,310,1965,2277,2328,2304,108,381,822,4,2305,2303,89,282,396,772,142],"class_list":{"0":"post-303980","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mlb-postseason","8":"tag-aaron-boone","9":"tag-aaron-judge","10":"tag-anthony-volpe","11":"tag-baltimore","12":"tag-baseball","13":"tag-ben-rice","14":"tag-blue-jays","15":"tag-boston","16":"tag-cam-schlittler","17":"tag-detroit-tigers","18":"tag-giancarlo-stanton","19":"tag-jose-caballero","20":"tag-luis-gil","21":"tag-major-league-baseball-playoffs","22":"tag-major-league-baseball-postseason","23":"tag-max-fried","24":"tag-max-scherzer","25":"tag-minnesota","26":"tag-mlb","27":"tag-mlb-playoffs","28":"tag-mlb-postseason","29":"tag-red-sox","30":"tag-toronto","31":"tag-white-sox","32":"tag-will-warren","33":"tag-yankees"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115176006309994635","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=303980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303980\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/303981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=303980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=303980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}