Boone Coy on Yankees' Game 1 Starter vs. Red Sox Despite Informing Fried, Schlittler of Decision

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone apparently isn't planning on giving the Boston Red Sox advance notice of which starting pitcher they'll be facing in Game 1 of the Wild Card round.

Boone told reporters Sunday the Yankees have decided on a Game 1 starter but will not yet announce the decision, per MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.

He added Max Fried and Cam Schlittler have already been informed as to who will start, per Hoch.

The Yankees are set to begin their upcoming series against the Red Sox Tuesday at Yankee Stadium.

The series will resume Wednesday and, if necessary, continue Thursday with a decisive third game.

Should the Yankees advance to the ALDS, the club is scheduled to begin the series with away games the following Saturday and Monday.

Right-handed Schlittler last pitched three innings Sept. 24 against the Tampa Bay Rays. He finished the season with a 1.95 ERA, the lowest from any Yankees pitcher since 1978.

Fried, a southpaw, last pitched 6.2 innings Sept. 22, also against the Rays, on his way to a 2.80 season-long ERA.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported Saturday morning the Yankees were expected to start Fried in Game 1 while putting Schlittler on the mound for Wednesday's Game 2.

That schedule "still allows Schlittler to pitch Games 2 and 5 in a potential ALDS," Nightengale noted.

Fried has held Red Sox batters to a .146 batting average and .473 OPS in two starts this season, while the rival club batted .174 with a .560 OPS against Schlittler.

Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake said last Thursday Fried was "obviously in heavy consideration" to start Game 1, in part to give Schlittler more time between outings, per Hoch.

"Max is on extended rest, and Cam would be on his third five day in a row," Blake said Thursday, per Hoch. "So just making sure he's in a good spot before we make any rash decisions."

The Yankees dropped Game 1 of the ALDS to the Red Sox last fall with Fried starting, then came back to win the series behind starts from Carlos Rodón and Schlittler.

Last season marked just the third time since the Wild Card round was introduced in 2020 a club recovered from losing Game 1 to advance to the divisional series. The Yankees will hope whichever pitcher is named starter can help the club avoid the need for another comeback next week.