Yankees Notes: Will Warren's 'exciting' first start, Clarke Schmidt's expected return date

The Yankees dropped their first game of the season Tuesday night, a 7-5 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The game got away from the Yanks when the bullpen allowed five runs in the eighth inning.

Despite the loss, the Yankees (3-1) are happy with the performance of young right-hander Will Warren. The 25-year-old made his first 2025 start and was impressive. He worked five innings, allowing just two runs to a formidable Diamondbacks lineup.

“That’s an exciting first outing for him," manager Aaron Boone said after the game. "That’s a really good offense to go through and I thought he pitched really well. Even when he had a couple leadoff walks, didn’t come unraveled at all. I thought he did a very good job of changing speeds. His secondary tonight was excellent. But a very encouraging first outing against a good offense there."

Warren made six appearances (five starts) a season ago and struggled. In that time in the big leagues, Warren had a 10.32 ERA. In the past, walks would snowball innings for Warren but Boone was glad to see his young hurler stay composed and get through five, especially in that fifth inning.

After allowing a leadoff walk, Warren got Alek Thomas and Geraldo Perdomo before taking on Corbin Carroll. The former NL Rookie of the Year took Warren deep in the third inning, so this was a huge spot with the Yankees only up 4-2.

Warren fell behind Carroll in the count 2-0 but then got the left-handed hitter swinging on the next three pitches, finishing with a curve ball in the dirt. Warren was visibly pumped up as he walked off the mound and into the dugout.

"I loved seeing the emotion out there," Ben Rice, who went 2-for-4 with a home run, said of Warren. "He's got electric stuff and he showed that he's a competitor. That's what we know he's capable of."

"That was nice. Definitely was emptying the tank there in the fifth," Warren said of his final inning. "That was big for me to try and get through five."

Boone said he believes Warren's time in the majors last year and his impressive spring are reasons for his ability to overcome the walks -- which he had four of on Tuesday.

"I do think that next wave of experience for him, I thought he did a good job of controlling the environment around him," Boone said. "Was poised all night. Yeah, his stuff was good. There was some adversity along the way but he handled it really well."

With injuries to Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt, Warren will be asked to play a big role in the rotation this season.

🗣 WILL WARREN IS FIRED UP

(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/0Nk3ll7R8j

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 2, 2025

Clarke Schmidt's return

Schmidt is starting the 2025 season on the IL with shoulder fatigue but the Yankees now know when they'll get the right-hander back.

"He threw yesterday," Boone said after Tuesday's game. "We have him marked April 15/16. He’s got two more starts. He’ll start this weekend with Somerset up in Hartford and then he’ll have one more and the plan is for him to be with us."

Following Schmidt's two minor league starts, and if all goes well, the Yankees will have him back for their home series against the Kansas City Royals.

The 29-year-old was impressive with the Yanks last season, pitching to a 2.85 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 16 starts. Schmidt's return would bolster a rotation that is, as previously mentioned, without Cole for the entire season and Gil for the first few months.

Yankees bullpen implosion

The Yankees' eighth inning was their downfall. The bullpen allowed five runs including a massive grand slam to Eugenio Suarez.

Tim Hill started off and allowed a scorching double to Randal Grichuk before Geraldo Perdomo hit a single over the first base bag to score Grichuk and bring Arizona within a run.

Hill would rebound by getting Carroll to ground out, and although he struggled, the Yankees skipper felt his southpaw executed well.

"That team creates some challenges for you especially with the platoon advantages they try to create," Boone said. "Grichuk stings the ball up. We want Perdomo on the right side -- he blocked that chopper over there and then [Hill] gets Carroll and we want to keep Marte on the left side. Overall, I thought Timmy threw the ball fine. Grichuk really stung it on him but he executed well against Perdomo and Carroll there."

Boone relieved Hill to bring in Mark Leiter Jr. with one out. The right-hander walked the first two batters he faced before getting Josh Naylor to strike out. He then had Suarez on a 2-2 count but left a splitter over the middle of the plate, which the third baseman smashed to left field for the lead.

"Can’t walk two guys, that’s really it. That’s all I got for you," Leiter said. "Can’t really walk those two guys. Trying to keep Ketel [Marte] close and being a little too quick and falling behind. And not landing the offspeed pitches."

"Just not his sharpest outing," Boone said. "He’s been throwing the ball so well the last month or so especially his first couple of outings. I thought he got himself back on track with the Naylor punch and I thought he executed a couple of good pitches in the Suarez at-bat but it wasn’t a good split there, obviously, that he threw there.

"Just one of those nights where he was just a little bit off there."

One of those nights indeed. Entering Tuesday, Leiter was lights out, pitching two perfect innings with four strikeouts this season. And before that, Leiter didn't allow a run in 4.2 innings during spring training.