What Yankees' Clarke Schmidt Learned During Brief Demotion to Minors

Schmidt was sent down to Triple-A a few weeks ago, but the right-hander is back with the Yankees in Chicago.

The Yankees have been rolling, winning 17 of their last 19 games to improve to a major league-best 24-8 to open up the season.

New York’s pitching staff, which is third in MLB with a 2.78 ERA, has been one of the main driving factors to the team’s special start. And on Friday, they recalled another weapon to make an already rich unit even richer.

Right-handed pitcher Clarke Schmidt has returned to the big-leagues after a brief stint in Triple A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Although Schmidt pitched to a 1.08 ERA out of the Yankees’ bullpen across 8 1/3 innings, he was a victim of roster cutdowns on May 2. Schmidt learned of this news following a strong performance, in which he picked up the win in the Yankees’ 6-4 victory over the Kansas City Royals – and initially – he did not take this news well.

This time around, he isn’t taking anything for granted now that he is back in the big-leagues.

“It takes time to process stuff like that, but you learn how to adapt with these things the more they come,” Schmidt said. “You’re going to take things like that on the chin.

“It’s good to be back here. I’m blessed to be here. Opportunities like this I don’t take for granted; I’m appreciative of it and I’m ready to go out there and pitch.”

Mowin’ them down in Motown.@ClarkeSchmidt 👏 pic.twitter.com/mi9gn7v55U

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 20, 2022

Schmidt was unsure of his exact role moving forward, but expects to pitch in long relief, where he found success in his first stint in the majors this season.

The 26-year-old also discussed the challenges of obtaining adrenaline on the mound at the minor league level, in which the crowds are miniscule compared to pitching in an MLB ballpark.

“It’s definitely a shock. I was talking with J.P. Sears about it. Just trying to find ways to get adrenaline while I’m down there. You go down there, and you can find yourself getting a bit monotonous, and getting too much into a routine, so you have to find ways to make yourself nervous and treat it like a major league game to get real game experience. It’s almost like throwing a live bullpen when you don’t have any adrenaline. Your tissue and body can’t really get used to it.”

Schmidt made one start for Scranton on May 7, allowing two runs, one earned, three hits, while walking two and striking out three across 2 1/3 innings. During his latest stay in the minors, the righty tinkered with his changeup, as well as throwing different pitches in his repertoire. He also increased his fastball usage.

After dealing with elbow issues across his career, Schmidt, whom the Yankees selected at No. 16 overall in the 2017 MLB draft, is finally hitting his stride now that he’s healthy. He has yet to emerge as a top starter in the rotation, but he is dominating out of the Yankees’ bullpen in his first real taste as a major leaguer. 

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