The New York Yankees handed the ball to Cam Schlittler for the winner-take-all Wild Card Series finale Thursday. And New York was handsomely rewarded for its faith in the rookie starter. Schlittler dominated the Red Sox in Game 3, as the Yankees eliminated Boston with a 4-0 ALWCS-clinching win.
While New York was fighting to stay alive in the postseason, Schlittler had additional motivation fueling his awe-inspiring outing. Following the clutch victory, the Yankees’ starter acknowledged that beating Boston was “personal for me,” according to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch.
“There was a line they crossed a little bit. I'm a competitor. I'm gonna go out there and make sure I shut them down,” Schlittler added.
The 24-year-old righty did shut the Red Sox down. He racked up 12 strikeouts over eight scoreless innings. But why did his brilliant postseason debut become personal? What line was crossed?
Cam Schlittler ends Red Sox's season with all-time outing
As it turns out, some Red Sox fans reportedly spent the day harassing Schlittler’s mom on social media. The abuse caused Christine Schlittler to set her account to private.
Like any good son, Killa Cam didn’t take kindly to folks talkin’ 'bout his momma. And so he vented his rage on Boston, deleting the Red Sox with a historically great performance.
Making just his 15th-career start for the Yankees, Schlittler hit triple digits with his fastball and mixed the heat with a slick mid-80s curve and a filthy upper-90s sinker. Schlittler proved unsolvable for Boston as he allowed just five base runners over eight innings and only one advanced past first base. No Red Sox made it past second.
Schlittler became the first Yankees starter in 104 years to toss eight scoreless innings in his postseason debut. The rookie pitcher’s heroics allowed New York to advance to the ALDS.
The Red Sox had two opportunities to clinch the Wild Card Series after their win in the opener. But New York staved off elimination in Game 2 and leaned on Schlittler for the decisive Game 3 victory. The Yankees became the first team to lose Game 1 and come back to win a Wild Card Series since MLB moved to the current best-of-three format in 2022.
