In this episode

• Yankees shut out 2-0 by a Blue Jays bullpen game, series ends in a split — The Yankees managed three hits and struck out 14 times against Toronto's bullpen day on Thursday night, losing 2-0 to settle for a four-game split. Carlos Rodón was actually the best Yankee on the field — five innings, three hits, three walks, seven strikeouts, one run, what Boone called his best of three starts — but the offense went 0-for-4 with RISP and stranded five. Judge went 0-for-4 with a strikeout looking and a double-play grounder, extending an RBI drought to 10 games. The Yankees have scored one run over the past 18 innings entering tonight's Cole-led series with Tampa.
• Judge's 13-game stretch is the worst of his career — and the lineup is moving with him — Judge has 1 RBI and a .619 OPS over his last 13 games — the first such stretch in his career — and hasn't homered since May 6. His season line is still a 159 wRC+ (16 HR, tied for second in the AL), but underneath: O-Swing% is up to 25.9% from 22.5% last year, K rate has jumped nearly six points to 29.3%, and he is 0-for-11 with 8 K over the last three games. The team has scored 41 runs and struck out 137 times in the same 13-game window — only the second such occurrence in franchise history.
• Cole returns tonight vs. Martinez — 99.6 mph in rehab, no final tune-up needed — Gerrit Cole makes his first MLB start since Game 5 of the 2024 World Series tonight at 7:05 ET against Nick Martinez (4-1, 1.51 ERA). Six rehab starts produced a 4.66 ERA with 28 K to 3 BB in 29 IP — the strikeout-to-walk being the real read, since command was the post-TJ worry. He topped out at 99.6 mph in his final rehab outing (his hardest pitch since August 2023) and told the team he didn't need the final scheduled tune-up. Pitch count tonight is expected to land around 85-90. SportsLine's model projects six innings, 5.3 K, 2.5 ER.
• The closer chair is open again: Bednar's 5.14, Doval's 5+, and a Weathers-as-closer pivot — Bednar has allowed at least one run in 7 of his last 9 outings (5.14 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, baserunners in 16 of 21 appearances), though his 3.09 SIERA and 3.02 xERA with a .377 BABIP suggest a noisy denominator. Doval's ERA is also north of 5.00, with similar walk problems, but he has eight clean innings to Bednar's five and a 100-mph sinker that has jumped from 12.2% to 41.7% usage with Matt Blake — meaningful pitch-design evolution. With Fried activation imminent, the in-house pivot being floated is converting Ryan Weathers (29.9% K, 6.4% BB, 99-mph capability) from rotation depth to a closer role.
• Cole and Caballero activated; Spencer Jones and Yovanny Cruz optioned — The Yankees activated Cole and Jose Caballero (fractured right middle finger) Friday, optioning Yovanny Cruz and Spencer Jones to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Caballero reclaims short, pushing Volpe to the bench. Volpe goes down at .217/.400/.304 in 30 PA but with a notable 7 BB to 5 K split. Jones leaves a 10-game MLB debut at .167/.259/.167 with 12 K in 24 AB (41.7% whiff, 38.6% chase, 50% K rate in the MLB sample), though average exit velo was 95.5 mph and bat speed 77.3 mph — both elite.
• Ben Rice is for real: 191 wRC+, .427 xwOBA, and the lineup's second engine — Through 184 PA, Rice is at .297/.397/.671 with 16 HR (tied with Judge) and a 191 wRC+. The underlying: .450 wOBA, .427 xwOBA, .601 xSLG, .374 ISO, 2.2 fWAR. xwOBA actually sits below wOBA, which means the surface number isn't BABIP heat — if anything, there's room to normalize up. Boone said he's 'not surprised' at the production level. Rice's path to the majors was unusual enough (organized DIY scrimmages during Ivy League shutdown) that the org didn't bake him into the contention timeline a year ago.
• Schlittler's 1.35 ERA holds No. 3 in MLB's fourth-starter rankings; outduels Yesavage by inches — Schlittler and Toronto's Trey Yesavage (1.07 ERA, 1.89 FIP) traded zeros through six innings Wednesday night before Toronto broke through in the seventh on an 11-pitch Andrés Giménez walk against Schlittler, with the bases loaded — Boone left him in over a warming Jake Bird. Yankees lost 2-1. Schlittler now sits at a 1.35 ERA, 1.83 FIP, and leads MLB in Pitching Run Value, with a fastball usage north of 90%. He ranks third in MLB's fourth-edition starter power rankings behind Cristopher Sánchez and only one other.
• McMahon at 62 wRC+: Bohm price climbing, Paredes slumping, Matt Shaw is the buy-low — Ryan McMahon is hitting .189 with a .566 OPS, 62 wRC+, and only seven extra-base hits in 137 PA — mostly opposite-field flares. Alec Bohm has gone .339/4 HR/.985 OPS in May under Don Mattingly, and the Phillies are now unlikely to move him. Isaac Paredes (Astros) is also slumping (.244, 101 OPS+) and Houston isn't reportedly motivated to deal him. Matt Shaw (Cubs, 24, cost-controlled, blocked by Bregman/Hoerner) emerges as the realistic buy-low at $804K with two arb years.
• Rays roll into the Bronx 33-15, MLB's best record, on a 21-4 stretch — Tampa Bay rallied with a four-run eighth to complete their MLB-best sixth sweep of 2026 on Wednesday (over Baltimore) and enter the Bronx at 33-15, 21-4 in their last 25, with a 4.5-game lead. FanGraphs playoff odds have moved them from 30% on Opening Day to 92%. Their formula is run prevention — 3.00 staff ERA, league-best — paired with elite contact (lowest K% in MLB, tied for 27th in HR). At home: 19-5 (.792); on the road: 14-10. Yankees go: 16-8 at home, +47 run differential.
• Series preview: Cole-Martinez tonight, then Weathers-Rasmussen and Warren-McClanahan — Friday 7:05 ET: Cole vs. Nick Martinez (4-1, 1.51 ERA, 3.26 FIP, 91.1% LOB% — historically unsustainable). Saturday: Ryan Weathers vs. Drew Rasmussen (3.19 ERA; threw 6 IP/1 H/0 R against NYY on April 12). Sunday: Will Warren vs. Shane McClanahan (2.82 ERA, 2.73 FIP, returned from two-year TJ layoff with four straight scoreless before allowing 4 ER in 5 IP to Baltimore last time out). Yankees lead MLB in ISO (.191), HR rate (3.8%), BB rate (11.9%); Rays lead AL in lowest K% (18.7%).
• Outfield depth in tatters: Grisham MRI clean but day-to-day, Stanton still can't run, Domínguez at tee work — Trent Grisham's left knee MRI came back without structural damage after he tweaked it Wednesday hustling to second, but he's been chronic on leg issues since 2025 and is uncertain for the weekend. Giancarlo Stanton's calf strain is more serious than disclosed — three weeks in, still unable to run. Jasson Domínguez (AC joint sprain from the May 7 wall collision) received a cortisone injection and has progressed only as far as tee work; no return timetable. Caballero is back, but Spencer Jones is back in Triple-A.
• Doval's sinker usage jumped from 12.2% to 41.7% with Matt Blake — pitch design as bullpen lever — Pinstripe Alley's Sequence of the Week broke down Doval's ninth-inning save against Toronto on May 19, isolating a new 100+ mph sinker developed with Matt Blake that has jumped from 12.2% usage in 2025 to 41.7% usage in 2026. The pitch generates premium ground-ball outcomes; the save itself ended on a mistake against Kazuma Okamoto that he survived. Doval's overall ERA is still north of 5.00 with the same walk problems, but the underlying pitch shape and usage shift are real.
• Goldschmidt's 172 wRC+: deploy-against-lefties has flipped him from useful to elite — Through 87 PA, Goldschmidt is at .284/.391/.581 with a 172 wRC+, 19.3% barrel rate, .448 xwOBA, and 56.6% hard-hit. His first-pitch swing rate (38.6%) is a career high, and his pulled-fly-ball rate (22.6%) is also a career high. The split that matters: 93 wRC+ vs. RHP (up from 74 last year) on top of elite vs. LHP. FanGraphs values his $4M deal at $8M already.
• Lombard Jr. climbs to No. 10 on Kiley McDaniel's top-50 prospects update — ESPN's mid-season top-50 prospect update has George Lombard Jr. at No. 10 overall (ahead of Travis Bazzana and Trey Yesavage), citing improved contact rate that has held through a Triple-A promotion despite a recent cooldown at the higher level. He hit .312 in 20 Somerset games with 4 HR before the bump; recent SWB notes show him at .273 with 3 RBI over five games plus four stolen bases. Somerset hitting coach Mike Fransoso credits a contact-first, 'move the ball forward' philosophy.
• Spencer Jones: 95.5 mph average EV, 77.3 mph bat speed, and a 41.7% MLB whiff rate — boom-or-bust got real fast — Across 24 MLB at-bats, Jones went 4-for-24 (.167) with 12 strikeouts, 3 walks, and one stolen base. The contact metrics: 50% K rate, 41.7% whiff rate, 38.6% chase rate, .156 xBA, .236 xSLG. The power metrics: 95.5 mph average exit velo, 66.7% hard-hit rate, 77.3 mph bat speed (would lead MLB if qualified). He was optioned Thursday to make room for Cole and Caballero, with Triple-A reps as the developmental priority.
• Yovanny Cruz debuts with 101 mph and three Ks in two perfect innings — and is immediately optioned — Yovanny Cruz, a 26-year-old reliever who spent eight years in the minors, struck out three over two perfect innings in his MLB debut Wednesday — 13 strikes in 15 pitches, touched 101 mph. He was optioned Thursday with Spencer Jones to make room for Cole and Caballero, but he is now firmly on the bullpen depth call list.
• Cashman's deadline targets emerging: Riley O'Brien, Pete Fairbanks as buy-low bullpen options — Sourced reporting (Murray, FanSided) grades Cardinals reliever Riley O'Brien (3.13 ERA, controllable through 2027/2031 depending on the framework) as an 8/10 fit for the Yankees' bullpen need. SI separately floats Marlins closer Pete Fairbanks (former Rays closer, 75 career saves, 9.00 ERA in Miami recovering from nerve injury) as a true buy-low — expiring contract, 97-mph fastball, 2.98 ERA with Tampa for reference. The Padres are simultaneously poking at Aroldis Chapman (0.51 ERA with Boston) and Josh Hader.
• Boone's seventh-inning gamble on Schlittler — defensible, but the bullpen state explains it — In Wednesday's 2-1 loss, Boone left Schlittler in for an 11-pitch bases-loaded at-bat against lefty Andrés Giménez in the seventh, with Jake Bird warming. Giménez walked in the go-ahead run. The Yankees' top three hitters went a combined 1-for-12 in the game; Judge struck out four times. Yovanny Cruz then made his electric debut after the damage was done.
• Berríos to Tommy John, Story to sports-hernia surgery — AL East attrition keeps mounting — José Berríos underwent Tommy John surgery this week after a March WBC MRI flagged inflammation, followed by a stress fracture diagnosis. He'll miss the rest of 2026 and most of 2027, leaving Toronto's rotation depth (outside Cease-Gausman-Yesavage) among the league's worst at 11 games back. Separately, Red Sox SS Trevor Story underwent sports-hernia surgery Friday with a recovery window of up to 10 weeks; Boston is considering moving Marcelo Mayer from second to short.
• Judge chasing a fifth 50-HR season — territory no one has ever reached — Even with the current slump, Judge is on pace for his fifth career 50-home-run season, currently tied with Ruth, Sosa, and McGwire at four. No hitter in MLB history has reached five. Bonds didn't. Aaron didn't. The pace is real but contingent on the timing reset happening soon — he's gone 16 games without a homer.

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