Yankees Unveil Starting Pitchers for Reds Series: Schlittler's Cy Young Bid Continues in the Bronx

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The Yankees are filled with confidence after their series win over the White Sox at Yankee Stadium to begin the week. Manager Aaron Boone's squad still has business in the Bronx to handle before returning to the road next week, with the up-and-down Reds coming to visit the Big Apple for a three-game series this weekend.

The Reds just won two of three games against the Mets back in Cincinnati, representing their first series win since the end of May. At the same time, they're 4-9 in their last 13 outing, which is a stretch that includes a 1-5 road record. They're going to be in for a tough battle against a Yankees team that hit the leather off most baseballs that the White Sox threw their way.

As confident as the Bronx Bombers are in their bats, it'll likely be the starting pitchers who decide the upcoming series. Here's a look at the Yankees' starting pitchers—as well as their counterparts—for this weekend's clash with the Reds.

Friday, June 19 (7:05 p.m. ET): Cam Schlittler (NYY) vs. Rhett Lowder (CIN)

Cam Schlittler has been a revelation for the Yankees this season. The 25-year-old righty is already 7-3 through 15 starts (89 innings), and currently leads the American League in ERA (1.82), WAR (3.8), FIP (2.31) and ERA+ (231), as well as both hits (6.4) and home runs (0.5) per nine innings. It's no surprise that he's FanDuel Sportsbook's +165 AL Cy Young favorite as of Thursday afternoon.

Schittler enters Friday's opener after a seven-strikeout outing vs. the Blue Jays last weekend, in which he allowed only one earned run on six hits while walking seven batters. He's now allowed one or fewer earned runs in back-to-back starts, as well as in nine of his last 11 appearances, illustrating his impressive consistency.

An interesting stat, though: Schlittler only has one win at Yankee Stadium this season, coming against the Orioles on May 4. He's since gone 0-2 with a 3.94 ERA in three home outings, leaving it to time to tell if he can finally end that winless bid.

Meanwhile, the Yankees will be facing Rhett Lowder, who's 3-3 with a 4.60 ERA in 10 starts. He just pitched his longest outing in almost two months against the Diamondbacks on Saturday, striking out six batters with one earned run allowed across 5 2/3 innings. He wasn't credited with the win, though, meaning he's still 0-2 with a putrid 7.00 ERA in his last five games since the end of April.

It takes a lot to outperform Schlittler, and Lowder doesn't seem like he has it in him. The Yankees are in a good spot to open this series on a high note.

Game 1 pitching advantage: Yankees

Saturday, June 20 (1:35 p.m. ET): Will Warren (NYY) vs. Andrew Abbott (CIN)

There's a fair argument to be made that Will Warren has forgotten how to lose. The Brandon, MS native is 7-1 through 14 starts, having not lost since a 6-1 loss to the Rangers on May 6. Although he hasn't been credited with the win in every outing since then, Warren has still found a way to go 3-0 with a 3.48 ERA in his last six appearances—all victories for the Yankees.

Warren is without a loss on the road, but he's also been great at home, posting a 4-1 record and 3.96 ERA with 47 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings at Yankee Stadium this season. He also has to be loving the fact that he gets to face the Reds, who rank poorly against right-handed pitchers regarding batting average (.227, 27th), on-base percentage (.309, 24th) and OPS (.695, 23rd).

Also, no other team has more than the Reds' 518 strikeouts vs. righties this season.

Next up for the Reds is Andrew Abbott, who finished eighth in 2025 National League Cy Young voting. Much to his dismay, though, Abbott hasn't been nearly as dominant this season, with his 3.95 ERA over 15 starts serving as the worst mark of his four-year career so far.

Obviously, that's far from a terrible starting performance, but it's worth noting that the Reds aren't playing with much confidence behind Abbott lately. They have only averaged 2.8 runs in his last four starts, playing to a 1-3 team record along the way.

With that being said, Abbott did impressively allow only one earned run with a pair of strikeouts in his lone trip to the Bronx—a 3-2 win for the Reds on July 3, 2024. That was nearly two years ago, but it showed that the recent All-Star can handle pitching against the Yankees in enemy territory.

It's going to be a close one, but Warren's undefeated run should give the Yankees an edge.

Game 2 pitching advantage: Yankees

Sunday, June 21 (1:35 p.m. ET): Gerrit Cole (NYY) vs. Chase Burns (CIN)

Gerrit Cole was the Yankees' starter for Tuesday's 12-2 blowout win over the White Sox, and even though scoring a dozen runs helped, the former AL Cy Young winner was key to the victory. Cole struck out six batters while limiting Chicago to two earned runs on three hits, improving his win-loss record and ERA to 2-1 and 2.57, respectively, on the season.

Surprisingly, Cole hasn't had much success against the Reds in his career, mostly stemming from his time with the Pirates. He's 1-8 with a 4.27 ERA over 14 career starts vs. Cincinnati, having never beaten the NL Central club as the home pitcher. At the same time, he does own a 0.69 ERA with 19 strikeouts over 13 innings in two games against the Reds since leaving Pittsburgh.

Opposing Cole will be Chase Burns, tied for the fifth-best NL Cy Young odds on FanDuel (+3000). The Reds' 23-year-old starter has been credited with wins in eight of his 14 starts so far, losing only once. He's limiting batters to a .192 batting average and .593 OPS, which is a major improvement from last year's respective marks of .240 and .714. He's also allowed two or fewer earned runs in 11 consecutive starts, pitching at least six innings seven times.

Burns did amass eight strikeouts in his first meeting vs. the Yankees last season; however, the Bombers also got three earned runs and six hits off him in five innings—good for a 5.40 ERA. He was the home pitcher this time around, so it'll be interesting to see how he does on the road, where he's yet to lose in 2026.

Between Cole's bounce-back season and Burns's year-long performance, I'd say fans will be in for quite the even pitching duel on Sunday afternoon.

Game 3 pitching advantage: even

Where and how to watch Yankees vs. Reds series

• Game 1: Friday, June 19 at 7:05 p.m. ET—YES Network, MLB.TV
• Game 2: Saturday, June 20 at 1:35 p.m. ET—YES Network, MLB.TV
• Game 3: Sunday, June 21 at 1:35 p.m. ET—YES Network, MLB.TV

Odds update periodically and are subject to change.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.

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Published Jun 19, 2026DEVON PLATANA

With a master's degree in journalism from Carleton University, Devon has spent the last six years in digital sports media, writing for Forbes Advisor, Betting News, Athlon Sports, The Hockey Writers and FanSided. Devon's work at OnSI includes covering the New York Yankees, New York Knicks and New York Jets.

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