Daily Report – 5/29/25

Yankees

Last night in Anaheim, Clarke Schmidt twirled six scoreless innings to conclude an incredible set of starts by the Yankees’ rotation. Since Max Fried’s start on Saturday, Yankees starting pitchers have given up no more than two runs per start, including back-to-back scoreless outings from Carlos Rodón on Tuesday (seven innings) and Clarke Schmidt last night. The Yankees beat the Angels 1-0 last night to secure a series sweep, thanks to Clarke Schmidt and the back end of the Yankees’ bullpen.

Today, the Yankees have the day off, and they can relax before their epic return trip to Dodger Stadium. “It’s going to be great to see how we stack up against [the Dodgers],” said Yankees captain Aaron Judge. The 2025 Yankees feel like a deeper team than the 2024 World Series team that featured Juan Soto. “I think the boys in here are all excited and ready to go.”

The Yankees can fly on their broomsticks from Anaheim to Chavez Ravine. “Anytime you get a sweep,” said manager Aaron Boone, “that’s not easy to do in this league, so there’s that excitement, knowing we’re going into an off day, we’re not going far. You kind of look to those off days, and when you get a sweep into an off day and you do it on a night when you’re staying away from a few [bullpen arms], some other guys really stepped up in some big roles.”

Ian Hamilton followed Clarke Schmidt’s six shutout innings by allowing one hit across 1 2/3 innings. Tim Hill finished off the eighth inning with one pitch, and Mark Leiter Jr. tossed a clean ninth inning to earn his second save of the season. Had Carlos Rodón not lasted seven innings on Tuesday, the Yankees would have had to mitigate a tricky bullpen situation last night. The Yankees didn’t have any available high-leverage arms yesterday, so they were grateful to their middle relievers for coming through with one run to work with.

“We have guys with great stuff, and guys who throw strikes and execute,” said Clarke Schmidt. “It’s a credit to this pitching staff. It seems like every year we talk about how good our pitching staff is, and it’s like everybody steps up and does their jobs.” Assembling a top-five MLB bullpen has become an expectation for the Yankees’ front office, but the starting rotation’s success so far this season has been astonishing, especially because of Gerrit Cole’s absence. In this series against Anaheim, Yankees starters Ryan Yarbrough, Carlos Rodón, and Clarke Schmidt combined for 19 innings and 21 strikeouts, with one run allowed on 11 hits and two walks.

Aaron Judge didn’t record any hits last night, but he became the first Yankee since Gene Woodling in 1953 to be intentionally walked twice in the first two innings of a game (YES Network). After his second intentional walk, he exchanged some words with Angels manager Ron Washington, who responded with a laugh. “He’s dangerous,” said Washington on his decision to walk Judge twice, who was batting .450 with runners in scoring position entering last night’s game. “I don’t know what would’ve happened in that game if I wouldn’t have walked him those first two times.”

The Yankees’ only run in yesterday’s game came in the first inning via a one-out sacrifice fly by Anthony Volpe that scored Paul Goldschmidt from third base. This was Volpe’s career-high fourth sacrifice fly of the season, and as a team, the Yankees’ 24 sacrifice flies lead the Majors.

Mark Leiter Jr. ended the game with his second save of the season. His final pitch was a 74.8 mph curveball to Logan O’Hoppe that catcher JC Escarra hauled in for a called strike three. “Definitely a ball, way out there,” said Escarra. “That’s what we work on every day, to help our pitchers and steal strikes.”

As for Mark Leiter Jr., who struggled last season after being traded to the Yankees but recovered in the postseason, he was thrilled to seal the tight win. “A 1-0 game is always intense,” he said. “Everybody else did their job, it’s my turn to come in and do my job. Get a little more emotion coming out of that last out, trying to hold it together throughout the game, and not riding the emotion of the game. But definitely feels good once you get that last out.”

The Yankees are happy to be succeeding thus far on their final West Coast road trip of the season. Before the regular season concludes, Texas will be the furthest destination from the Bronx to which they will travel.

Knicks Playoff GAME NIGHT: 8:00 PM – 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, Game 5 – NYK (1-3) at IND (3-1); TNT, TruTV, MAX

Here we are. Backs against the wall. An elimination Game 5 at The World’s Most Famous Arena. Tonight is the ultimate test for Tom Thibodeau’s Knicks as they look to stay alive amid a 3-1 series deficit to the Indiana Pacers.

When Madison Square Garden gets loud, the Pacers play better. Road rage has fueled them this postseason, and historically speaking, especially in New York. The Knicks will have to pull off something shocking if they want to stay in this series. It’s hard for me to imagine them winning tonight.

But it’s never wise to enter any playoff game – especially an elimination game – with a negative attitude. I’ll save the criticism for another day, the hope being I’ll never have to unleash it. Instead, I’ll focus on how the Knicks can win tonight, because as captain Jalen Brunson said, “Nothing else matters at this point. You’ve gotta give it your all. It’s that simple.”

First, the Knicks must reduce their turnovers. Winning the turnover battle is crucial for winning Game 5. The Knicks have averaged 15 turnovers per game in this series, and they have struggled to get back and defend in transition. They cannot improve their transition defense unless they commit fewer turnovers. One of the biggest culprits here is Jalen Brunson, who has averaged four turnovers per game in this series. As a result, he has received fewer minutes on the court, and Tyrese Haliburton has outshone him in this series.

Jalen Brunson is yet to have a marquee moment in this series.

Before this series, there was a competitive narrative present between Brunson and Haliburton following their WWE faceoff last summer, after which Haliburton proclaimed he’d return to Madison Square Garden and get his revenge. So far, he’s torched Jalen Brunson and the Knicks, but if Brunson can reduce his turnovers, maybe he can have his moment.

Next, the Knicks need to have a defense-first mindset for all 48 minutes of tonight’s game. That attitude helped them in Game 3. It doesn’t matter if it’s OG Anunoby or Deuce McBride who defends best for the Knicks tonight. Someone must step up.

Finally, Karl-Anthony Towns needs to make his presence known. He must reduce his fouls and drive the ball to the net more often, just like he did in the fourth quarter of Game 3. As I’ve said before, without Towns, the Knicks have no backbone. However, Towns is currently listed as a game-time decision to play tonight due to a knee injury he suffered late in Game 4, so hopefully he plays tonight.

Soon, we’ll see who Tom Thibodeau deploys in his starting lineup, we’ll see how well the Knicks play, and we’ll see if their magical playoff run comes to a halt. Hearts will be thumping at the Garden tonight, and the Knicks must ignite the atmosphere.

Catch tonight’s game on TNT, TruTV, and streaming on MAX.

Schedule

8:00 PM: 2025 NBA Eastern Conference Finals, Game 5 – NYK (1-3) vs. IND (3-1); TNT, TRUTV, MAX

• 7:00 PM: Knicks Playoff Pregame; MSG