Schmidt had allowed three earned runs in his past four starts
The New York Yankees’ starting rotation has the best ERA in the American League, but just suffered a setback that could affect the team into the summer. Pitcher Clarke Schmidt was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain.
Schmidt’s IL stint is retroactive to May 27, which means the right-hander is eligible to return on June 11. That will depend on the seriousness of the injury. Lat strains can be relatively serious. As NJ.com’s Randy Miller points out, Luis Severino was on the IL for two months with a similar injury in 2022.
In 11 starts this season, Schmidt compiled a 2.52 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 60 1/3 innings and a 5–3 record. He last pitched on Sunday, allowing one earned run and three hits in five innings versus the San Diego Padres. It was his fourth consecutive start of allowing two earned runs or fewer, a span during which he allowed three earned runs over 24 2/3 innings.
Schmidt’s success is part of a MLB-record streak by Yankees starters, who have pitched 16 consecutive starts of at least five innings while allowing two runs or fewer going into Thursday’s matchup with the Los Angeles Angels.
Going into Thursday’s play, Yankees starters had a 2.69 ERA, just behind the Philadelphia Phillies’ ERA of 2.68.
Clarke Schmidt, Nasty 87mph Sweeper. 😨 pic.twitter.com/l7UYSXtiP4
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 26, 2024
The Yankees’ rotation was shorthanded going into the 2024 season with Gerrit Cole, who was shut down during spring training due to right elbow inflammation. The reigning AL Cy Young Award winner hopes to be rejoin the roster in June after three recent throwing sessions. If Cole doesn’t encounter any setbacks, he could begin a minor league rehab assignment next week.
If Cole can return within the next couple of weeks, Schmidt’s injury likely prevents the Yankees from facing a decision on who could be removed from the rotation. That is, unless manager Aaron Boone decides to go with a six-man staff in the short term.
Reliever Cody Morris was called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to take Schmidt’s spot on the Yankees’ 26-man roster. The right-hander joined the Yankees this season after six years in the Cleveland Guardians organization. In 13 appearances, Morris has a 2.82 ERA with 32 strikeouts and 14 walks in 22 1/3 innings.
Mets reliever Jorge López says his ‘worst team’ line was a misquote after getting DFA’d
López’s statement contradicts his answer when he was asked for clarification Wednesday
New York Mets reliever Jorge López was designated for assignment on Thursday, ending his tenure with the team. According to him, there was some confusion on the way out.
López found infamy on Thursday via a sequence of events that saw him give up a two-run homer, get ejected for arguing over a checked swing with the third base ump, toss his glove into the crowd, then give a series of emotional quotes to reporters.
The quote that triggered the firestorm was widely reported, including by the Mets’ cable network SNY, as “I think I’ve been on the worst team in probably the whole f***ing MLB.”
“I think I’ve been on the worst team in probably the whole f–king MLB.”
– Jorge López pic.twitter.com/NB0cDJ5w0i
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 30, 2024
A Mets player calling the team the worst in MLB, combined with the Mets’ reported decision to DFA him as the quote started circling, saw plenty of interest and assorted reactions.
However, a day later, López posted on his Instagram story that he actually was saying “the worst teammate probably in the whole f***ing MLB” and said “thanks media for making it worse.”
He expanded those thoughts in a statement posted to Instagram, saying he had no intention of disparaging the Mets:
“First and foremost, I apologize to my teammates, coaches, fans, and front office. I feel that I let them down yesterday, both on and off the field. I also want to clarify my post-game remarks, because I had no intention of disparaging the New York Mets organization.
“During that interview, I spoke candidly about my frustrations with my personal performance and how I felt it made me ‘the worst teammate in the entire league.’ Unfortunately, my efforts to address the media in English created some confusion and generated headlines that do not reflect what i was trying to express. I wish the team the best and hope that God continues to give me strength and guidance in my personal and professional life.”
When a player says something as seemingly inflammatory as López supposedly did, it’s best practice for the media to request clarification or further details to ensure what they report is accurate, especially when that player isn’t a native English speaker.
Unfortunately for López’s argument here, that is exactly what the media did.
Jorge López was asked to clarify his comments about the Mets being “the worst team in the whole f–king MLB” pic.twitter.com/xjaJhGsCOz
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 30, 2024
The exchange between SNY’s Steve Gelbs and López:
“Just to clarify because I didn’t fully understand, did you say “I’m on the worst team”? Is that what you had said?”
“Yeah, probably. It looked like.”
MLB.com writer Anthony DiComo also reported that he sought clarification between “the worst team” and “the worst teammate” and was told López actually meant “the worst teammate on the worst team.”
So there appears to have been more than one misunderstanding over what López actually said.
Or maybe López was just emotional about playing badly and getting ejected, tripped over his words, then lashed out when asked for clarification right after he was told he was getting DFA’d. The whole thing was a very sensitive situation in which he could have received more empathy.
It should also be explicitly that it wasn’t like the Mets heard what López said and decided to cut him for being a distraction. DiComo reported Thursday that López was DFA’d because “he embarrassed the organization with his actions and words, throwing his glove into the stands, lying about meeting with management and offering zero remorse.”
The big quote was just one part of a very bad day for López, who was apparently less than truthful at one point when speaking with Mets management. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza declined to go into detail about the DFA decision, but implied López failed to meet the team’s standards:
“We have standards here and I told you guys yesterday that behaviors like that, we weren’t going to tolerate that. That’s why we made the decision. We addressed it and now we’ve got the Diamondbacks in town.”
Whatever confusion remains, the outcome is the same for López. The career journeyman will be looking for a new team after playing for four different ones between 2023 and 2024. The 31-year-old holds a career 5.42 ERA.