The New York Yankees just suffered their sixth straight defeat, their biggest slide of the season. And starter Cam Schlittler allowed 3 homers in the very first inning in the 9-3 loss against the Detroit Tigers. The first one shouldn’t have counted. Kerry Carpenter’s fly ball to center looked like an out until it hit the wall and popped loose from Spencer Jones’ glove. But the rookie pitcher didn’t try to deflect blame after another disappointing night.

“It’s frustrating. Just not playing good ball right now. Just didn’t make the right pitches when it mattered,” Schlittler was upfront facing the reporters postgame. “It’s my job to come in here and try and stop that bleeding, and I couldn’t get that done, so put the team down four in the first. It’s not encouraging.”

The Yankees went 4-0 in the top of the 1st. And that was just the beginning. The 25-year-old allowed 7 hits, 6 runs, and a walk, managing just 5 strikeouts over 4.0 innings. This was his most expensive outing in 2026. But not the only one. 

Schlittler allowed 5 hits and 4 runs in his last start against the Boston Red Sox and gave up 5 runs while facing the Cleveland Guardians in early June. But before Schlittler faced the questions, it was manager Aaron Boone’s turn. And he didn’t try to shy away from admitting the worries either. 

“Bottom line is we’ve got to do a better job,” he explained. 

Still, the manager didn’t feel the need to put it all on the rookie. Instead, he had his back, saying, “Just some mistake locations and some good at-bats against them.”

Boone focused on the broader picture, as the offense hasn’t been able to help the team for a while. The Yankees managed just 16 hits in their last 5 games. That’s not a good number to go beside the most successful team in MLB history. 

“We’re just not creating enough traffic,” Boone bluntly admitted. 

The Yankees have lost 10 of their last 13 games. And the manager wasn’t happy when the club suffered a series sweep against the Boston Red Sox last weekend. New York was able to reclaim the AL East throne from the Tampa Bay Rays for a brief period, but they have surrendered it again. The Pinstripes are now 2.5 games behind the leaders. Meanwhile, the Tigers hit 5 home runs against the Yankees in a single game for the first time since August 2018. 

Boone and his boys are struggling with both hitting and pitching. But neither Cam Schlittler nor his manager let the negatives overshadow them. 

The way Schlittler took accountability and highlighted how it “comes down to execution” shows he remained focused and invested despite the rough outings. And while Aaron Boone reflected faith in him, he is ready to “take what [he] can from it and get ready for next week.”