The New York Yankees now know that they will have to play in a best-of-three Wild Card Series in the Bronx starting on Tuesday.
Gerrit Cole is set to pitch on Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Rays, and that would put him on five days of rest before the Wild Card Series starts. Cam Schlittler will pitch on Thursday, giving him four days of rest if the Yankees plan to start him in Game 1.
Schlittler has had no problems working on four days of rest this season, so he should still draw the Game 1 start. Max Fried and Carlos Rodón both pitched on Tuesday, so assuming neither one makes another traditional start in the regular season, both would be available to pitch in the Wild Card Series with some extra rest.
Essentially the Yankees have to decide whether to start Cole or Rodón as the third starter in a Wild Card Series, assuming Fried and Schlittler both get starts. Aaron Boone has already noted that fans should expect Cole to get a start in the Wild Card Series, and judging by how things are lining up, that start could come in Game 1 or 2. He would be going into Game 1 with five days of rest, setting Schlittler up to pitch in Game 2 on five days of rest if the Yankees want to make sure he doesn't pitch on four days' rest.
Then, Fried or Rodón would start Game 3 with extended rest. It's safe to assume that if one of them starts in the regular season finale, the other would start Game 3 on extended rest. However, the reality is, starting Cole over either of them is a mistake.
Cole has a 5.34 ERA this month and also struggles against the Red Sox. Since 2020, when Cole joined the Yankees, he has had a 5.93 ERA against the Red Sox in the regular season. In his postseason career, he has faced the Red Sox twice, allowing seven runs in eight innings.
Fans already know how god Fried and Schlittler are, and they both deserve to start. However, Rodón should be the one getting the nod over Cole in a best-of-three series against the Red Sox. Rodón has a 1.89 ERA since returning from the injured list in August. He has delivered three straight quality starts, and the Yankees should ride the hot hand.