Evaluating Yankees' Fifth Starter Options for 2027: Will New York's Unique Depth Create a Problem?

The Yankees have a lot of unrest and uncertainty surrounding them following their sudden crash-and- burn in the ALDS. They're heading into an offseason that will not only be condensed by a lockout, but will also raise questions about MLB's financial system as a whole.

The one question that the Yankees do not have in any sense of the word is their starting rotation.

Headlined by presumptive AL Cy Young Cam Schlittler, the Yankees have four starters who've been named to All-Star teams in the last four years, including the 2023 Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole and 2025 All-Stars Carlos Rodón and Max Fried.

It's an embarrassment of riches to have all four still performing at a high level, especially with three on long-term contracts and entering their mid-to-late 30s, but their age means that it would be nice to have depth behind them.

Good thing the Yankees have that in spades. In fact, they might have too many MLB-caliber starters.

Until six-man rotations become a norm around baseball, there will only be room for one of the four players who've shown they can compete at the major league level in the starting rotation next year, barring injury. Whenever this lockout ends, it'll be a top priority for the Yankees to sort out the pecking order among this group.

Ryan Weathers

The leader in the clubhouse for the fifth starter spot might be Ryan Weathers after his terrific 2026 season.

Acquired for three minor leaguers ahead of the 2026 season, Weathers was everything the Yankees wanted and more in his debut in pinstripes. He was surprisingly sharp with his command, stayed durable for large swaths of the season when injuries hampered the rotation, and made a critical midseason adjustment to rely on more spin and break to drastically drop the barrel rate against him.

By the time he stepped on the mound against the Blue Jays in late August, Weathers had a 3.60 ERA, with 143 strikeouts in 137.1 innings across 25 starts. He had been especially strong after adjusting to throw fewer fastballs, allowing just three of the 18 home runs he allowed all season in his final 12 starts. People were even arguing he should start over Rodón in a potential playoff setting.

Ultimately, his body eventually gave out after a career-high in innings, as he suffered a forearm flexor strain on August 22 that ended his season. The Yankees clearly avoided a worst-case scenario with that arm injury and even got him back to throw a few innings in the playoffs, but it was a big blow down the stretch.

With Weathers, there's still hesitancy about whether his body will hold up. He routinely pitched deep into games and looked like a workhorse at times in 2026, but he still only went 137 innings before his arm gave out. Can they rely on him to build up to that full workload, or will the injury reverb come back to get him?

If it doesn't, he's the clear frontrunner for this job. The adjustments he made during the season were not only great for his short-term results, but also a clear sign that the 26-year-old still has a world of upside. He did that by throwing his high-90s fastball less and less, but imagine if he could start throwing that consistency for strikes?

Will Warren

Durability is a fallacy among pitchers, given how spontaneously an elbow injury can flare up and end your season. But in Will Warren's case, he's arguably their most durable starter.

Aside from Schlittler, he was the only Yankee to throw 150 innings in 2026. He's only the third Yankees pitcher to throw 150 innings in consecutive seasons, behind Cole (2021-23) and Rodón (2024-25). This matters in a day and age where teams need more starters than ever to get through a season.

He's the least flashy guy out there. While he'll occasionally wow you with filthy breaking balls and backdoor sinkers that flash his promise, Warren has inconsistent command and maddening stretches that frustrate fans to no end.

He ultimately finished 2026 on a high note, rebounding from a dreadful midseason slide to pitch to a 3.92 ERA with 158 strikeouts in 156 innings across 32 games with some big-time moments down the stretch, including his seven brilliant frames against Boston to lock up the first wild card spot in late August.

There's a lot of potential in the 27-year-old, but the Yankees might look at his bullpen play down the stretch and wonder whether it's worth attempting to turn him into the man he was compared to when he debuted, Michael King.

Especially if the Yankees decide to spend much of their offseason budget on the offense and leave the bullpen vulnerable, they might not be able to pass on the possibility of having Warren dial his fastball up to 97 for two innings at a time in the bullpen, something that he was able to do in October to great effect.

Clarke Schmidt

The wild card that many people have forgotten about is Clarke Schmidt and what he can do as a starter.

It was a rough 2026 for Schmidt, who spent much of the season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. An internal brace procedure allowed him to return and debut in mid-September as a relief option. But he suffered bicep soreness while throwing a bullpen and was eventually shut down ahead of the playoffs, finishing the season with just 0.2 innings pitched.

It's been a while since we've seen Schmidt at full go, but this is a guy who threw seven no-hit innings in his third-to-last start before surgery in June 2025 as part of what looked to be a breakout season. Even after back-to-back shoddy outings before getting hurt, Schmidt had a 3.32 ERA in 78.2 innings.

Schmidt's career has been mired by injuries, pitching more than 100 innings once in his career, but he's been effective when he's been on the mound. Across 30 starts in 2024-25, as he battled multiple arm ailments, Schmidt pitched to a 3.07 ERA over a full season's worth of innings.

Entering his final year before free agency, Schmidt will have a lot to prove, but will be a considerable underdog behind Warren and Weathers. However, his presence is valuable, as an injury or two would mean the Yankees would be wise to keep him stretched out.

Elmer Rodríguez

There's also the young gun, Elmer Rodríguez, who made a major league cameo in 2026.

His stuff and pitch diversity were intriguing at times this year, and he seems to have conquered Triple-A. While he's only 23, he's reached the point where someone needs to give him a chance to sink or swim at the big-league level.

Will he get that opportunity with the Yankees? It's hard to say. He's far down the depth chart in an unfortunate situation, but opportunities can arise elsewhere. Could he go to the bullpen to harness that high-90s sinker? Is he trade bait? Will injuries force him to take a bigger role than expected?

Starting pitching will once again be a clear strength of the 2027 Yankees. The only question will be who will factor into it.

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