With Aaron Judge out, Yankees need Will Warren, rest of rotation to be an anchor

CLEVELAND – The No. 1 element that just might allow the Yankees to keep their head above water – and maybe even do a bit better than that – with Aaron Judge out for at least the next two months was on display Monday night against the Guardians at Progressive Field in the form of Will Warren.

Not Warren in and of himself – and certainly not on this night as the 26-year-old turned in a rare dud in lasting 4 1 1/3 innings – but because of what the pitcher represents.

“That rotation looks so much better top to bottom than everyone else’s [in the American League],” one rival scout said. “And that’s without Max Fried.”

The Yankees earned a 7-5 victory over the Guardians on a Cody Bellinger two-run single to left with the bases loaded in the 10th.

Indeed, the rotation, even with Fried on the injured list since May 14 with a left elbow bone bruise, entered Monday ranked first in the AL in ERA (3.12), WHIP (1.10), opponents’ on-base percentage (.280), and opponents OPS (.615).

Warren, though not nearly as crisp as in most of his outings that allowed him to enter the night 7-1 with a 3.22 ERA, didn’t completely bury his team, departing one out in the fifth and with two runners on, the Yankees ahead 4-3 (lefthander Brent Headrick stranded the runners to keep the lead intact).

“When you hand him the ball,” manager Aaron Boone said of Warren before the game, “you feel like he’s got a chance to give you an excellent chance to win.”

Warren, victimized by a three-run, 28-pitch third that saw his pitch count balloon as the Guardians sent eight to the plate, had done that far more often than not this season.

Counting Monday, Warren has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 10 of his 12 starts (he allowed three runs Monday but one of those was unearned), the fourth-most such starts in the AL.

Warren also had a rare off night of strike throwing, walking two batters, hitting one and throwing a wild pitch. Of his 87 pitches, just 54 were strikes.

But Warren came in with seven starts of one walk or fewer – tied for the 10th-most such starts in the AL – having walked just 19 of 271 batters faced.

Since news of Judge’s prolonged absence became official, multiple Yankees hitters – primarily Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger – have been asked about feeling any additional “pressure” with the three-time AL MVP out of the lineup.

There have been no such inquiries made of members of the rotation as, when Judge was healthy, they collectively have been a standout unit all season.

“We’ve got a great pitching staff [that’s] going to continue to carry this team,” Judge said last Friday in his first public comments since being diagnosed with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side that will have him shut down from any and all baseball activities for the next 4-6 weeks.

In the early going Monday, Warren had the look of a pitcher ready to carry the Yankees to another victory.

Pitching on seven days’ rest (his scheduled start Saturday against Boston was rained out), Warren had a 2-0 lead before throwing his first pitch, courtesy of Paul Goldschmidt’s two-run homer in the first off tough Cleveland righty Gavin Williams (the latter entered the night 9-3 with a 3.20 ERA).

Warren, who tied rotation mate Carlos Rodon for the AL lead in starts last season (33), came out sharp. The 26-year-old struck out leadoff man Travis Bazzana looking at a four-seam 95-mph fastball and struck out Jose Ramirez, who routinely abuses Yankees pitching, including a 7-for-13 performance last week in The Bronx when the Guardians took two of three, swinging at a curveball. Warren finished off the 20-pitch first, with 14 of those pitches strikes, by getting Chase DeLauter looking at another four-seam 95-mph fastball.

“He’s got the ability. That’s something we talked about going back to ’24,” manager Aaron Boone said of Warren, who debuted in 2024, before the game. “He flashed all the skills that suggested he had a chance to be a really good starting pitcher…He’s got a lot of different weapons to beat you.”

That includes both a four-seam and two-seam fastball, curveball, sweeper and a changeup that continues to improve.

“To his credit, he’s just continued to get steadily better since Day 1,” Boone said.

One tough outing on Monday doesn’t change that, for either Warren or overall for a rotation that remains that Yankees’ best chance to stay afloat without the sport’s best player.

By Erik Boland

erik.boland@newsday.comeboland11

Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.