Cam Schlittler draws comparison to Dodgers legend ahead of Yankees postseason

As the 2026 MLB season comes to a close, the New York Yankees are playing to get the No. 1 seed in the American League. They are chasing their division rival Tampa Bay Rays and are four games behind them with nine games to play.

The Yankees will play a four-game midweek series with the Rays at Yankee Stadium starting this Tuesday, which will be a prime opportunity to gain some ground. For that series, it appears New York will get to throw their four best arms.

In a loaded starting rotation, there has been a clear No. 1 ace. That would be Cam Schlittler , the 25-year-old in his first full big league season. He has been so dominant that he is the runaway favorite to win the AL Cy Young Award.

Sep 8, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) pitches against the Colorado Rockies during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images Credit: IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect (Reuters)

Schlittler has been elite to the point that he has been getting some MVP consideration from the media. The race in the AL this season is admittedly weak, with no one really having a season that stacks up to past winners.

That has opened the door for Schlittler, a pitcher, to perhaps get some first-place votes. The right-hander has made 31 starts this season, tossing 184 ⅔ innings. He is 14-6 with a 1.95 ERA, striking out 228 and walking 44.

This is one of the best pitching seasons the sport has seen in recent memory. On Saturday, MLB's official X account posted a comparison of him versus 2014 National League MVP Clayton Kershaw .

Kershaw was the last full-time pitcher to win the award, and did so by putting up statistics in the ballpark of Schlittler's. Kershaw only made 27 starts, but did throw more innings than Schlittler and did have a noticeably better ERA.

The Yankee ace probably will not win the award, but the fact that he is getting any consideration speaks to how good he has been. Schlittler was a seventh round draft pick by the team in 2022, so this run is honestly unprecedented.

The right-hander's next start will come Saturday at the Arizona Diamondbacks at 8:10 p.m. ET. This will be his second-to-last start of the regular season, as it has been reported he will likely go Thursday against the Rays in that crucial matchup.