New York Yankees starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt put together one of the best starts of any pitcher in baseball this season when he recorded seven innings of no-hit baseball on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles. And while some wanted the Yankees to allow Schmidt to go for the complete game no-hitter, Mike Francesa believes the Yankees did right by Schmidt in this instance.
The Yankees’ decision to remove Schmidt from the game was seemingly made solely based on the number of pitches he had thrown through seven innings, hitting 103 pitches in the 21 outs he recorded.
Had the Yankees sent Schmidt back out for the eighth and ninth innings to give him a chance of becoming the latest Yankee since Domingo German accomplished the feat in 2023, there is a very real chance it would have taken upwards of 130 pitches from Schmidt.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone decided against giving Schmidt the chance to accomplish this feat. And Mike Francesa, who discussed this topic on Tuesday’s edition of The Mike Francesa Podcast, backed up Boone’s decision while calling anyone who was upset with the decision “clowns”.
“Trust the rotation,” said Francesa. “I mean, you are getting performances from guys in that rotation. Look at what Schmidt has done, he’s got 25 straight scoreless innings. And let me just, in a side… Any clowns, anybody, anywhere, that thinks he should have pitched the eighth and ninth innings really should not only keep that to themselves, they shouldn’t even be able to watch baseball the rest of the year. Are you out of your mind?
“First of all, I can guarantee there was no way he was going to pitch a no-hitter. Secondly, he’s thrown 103 pitches. He has no chance, under any circumstances… He’s 30-1 to throw a no-hitter. He’s never finishing that game. He’s got a no-hitter going into the eighth. They know he’s got 103 pitches. You think they are swinging at the first pitch? I mean, come on, you could have lost him for the season in that game. You know how many times guys have gone for individual achievements on the mount, only to suffer injuries from them?
“Here is a guy who has had a problem. Who is developing into something, may be pretty good. He is in the midst of 25 scoreless innings. And you are worried about whether he is going to throw a no-hitter or not when he’s already got 103 pitches? How clueless can you be? How this was a debate anywhere, I have no idea. It wouldn’t even be a good debate if he had 103 pitches going into the ninth inning. Him going into the eighth inning, it made no sense. You want him throwing 140 pitches? Are you out of your minds?
Schmidt is a competitor. So chances are, if he were asked to go out there and pitch the eighth and the ninth, he probably could have done so.
But given the fact that the Yankees’ pitching staff came into the year banged up as is, it’s truly hard to argue with Francesa here that the Yankees need Schmidt for the long haul if they are going to stick in first place in the AL East.
Initially, it didn’t appear as if Francesa was discussing anyone in particular with his clown reference. But interestingly, WFAN’s Shaun Morash seemingly thinks the shoe may fit for him being the clown that Francesa is referring to, saying that Francesa’s rant “felt personal.”
Morash certainly qualifies as someone who was arguing for Schmidt to stay in Saturday’s game, posting on social media after the game that those who didn’t oppose Boone’s decision to pull Schmidt were “sheep to baseball nerd numbers.”
“You are lost if you aren’t complaining about Clarke Schmidt getting pulled, sorry. You are a sheep to baseball nerd numbers,” wrote Morash.
Maybe it was a shot at Morash. Or, maybe Francesa was simply addressing the topic as a whole. Either way, Francesa clearly values the Yankees’ long-term health over individual accolades in this instance.