Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice Will Extend Yankees Title Window Beyond Aaron Judge's Prime
When Walker Buehler collected the final out of the 2024 World Series by getting Alex Verdugo to whiff on a knuckle curve in the dirt, it felt like the New York Yankees didn't have many more opportunities to get back to that point. They were favorites to win the American League again the next year, but, with Aaron Judge being north of 30, Giancarlo Stanton at the tail end of his deal, and the youngest of the two of them, Juan Soto, eventually hightailing it to Queens, it was hard to envision what their future could be.
Less than a year later, two New England kids changed the complexion of the franchise. Ben Rice was running into bad luck all year, but lived up to a hot spring where he outperformed veteran Dominic Smith. Then, in early July, Cam Schlittler, who hadn't been on many people's radar when Rice was going off that March, came up in July and put a bow on his season by sending the Boston Red Sox home single-handedly.
Now, 598 days from that final out of the World Series, the Yankees have seen a glimpse of what a future without Aaron Judge could potentially look like, and both Schlittler and Rice are at center stage. That first game against the Cincinnati Reds showcased just how good the two of them are, with Rice as the game-wrecker and Schlittler the ace of the staff.
Schlittler, who saw a career high 13 strikeouts, shut the Reds down with blistering high heat that they couldn't lay off of, and, in the second inning, Rice put the game out of reach. With Anthony Volpe and Spencer Jones on first and third, Rice managed to pull a 1-1 fastball on the outer corner of the plate to right center field. Rhett Lowder watched as the ball was barreled off his bat at 109.1 MPH and landed 433 feet from home plate.
Thriving in Judge's absence
That was just one of many nights in which both Rice, who is authoring an MVP case for himself, and Schlittler, who furthered his own Cy Young cause, played hero. What makes it even more incredible is that it's happening with the captain, Aaron Judge, who, for years, had dragged the Yankees to October, season-after-season.
Previously, Judge's supporting cast featured the likes of Josh Donaldson and Isiah Kiner-Falefa, and, if he did go down, the season was essentially over. Just look at what happened when he crashed into a wall at Dodger Stadium in 2023.
Rice and Schlittler are not the only supporting cast carrying a Judge-less Yankees, and keeping them in sole possession of first place in his absence, but it's clear they're the two staples of the organization at this point. They are also two of the most valuable players in the league in general, after all.
Rice's 2.9 WAR is sixth behind the likes of Bobby Witt Jr., Yordan Alvarez, and Nick Kurtz. His 1.005 OPS is second behind Alvarez, and his 173 wRC+ is also second to the Astros slugger.
Schlittler, on the other hand, owns a 1.71 ERA, which is first in baseball by a mile. Second is Drew Rasmussen with 2.59. The same can be said about his 3.6 WAR. He's first in that category as well. In second place is Reid Detmers with 2.8.
Barring any injuries, the future is bright with these two. It will just be about staying on the field, because the sky is the limit for a pair of youngsters who were late draft picks and were never considered top prospects in baseball.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/yankees/onsi as Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice Will Extend Yankees Title Window Beyond Aaron Judge's Prime.
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This story was originally published June 20, 2026 at 8:00 AM.