Rain forces Yanks to play two today vs. Guardians

Wet and windy weather washed away the Yankees’ series opener Friday night in Cleveland, setting up a Saturday doubleheader.

The rescheduled game is now set to begin at 12:10 p.m. ET at Progressive Field, with Saturday’s original game still slated to start at 6:10 p.m. as part of a split doubleheader.

Clarke Schmidt (0-0, 4.66 ERA), who was originally scheduled to pitch Friday night, is now slated to start the first game of the doubleheader for the Yankees. Cody Poteet, whom the Yankees signed in the offseason, is set start the second game in his team debut.

The right-handed Poteet owns a 4.45 ERA over 19 MLB appearances, all with the Miami Marlins. He spent 2023 in the Kansas City Royals organization but did not appear in an MLB game as he worked his way back from Tommy John surgery.

The National Weather Service predicted “several rounds of moderate to heavy rain” in Cleveland, which was under a flood watch and wind advisory.

The postponement marked the first of the year for the Yankees, who are scheduled to play three games in Cleveland to begin a six-game road trip that also includes a stop in Toronto next week.

This weekend’s series features two of MLB’s hottest teams, with the Yankees (103) leading the American League East and the Guardians (9-3) in first place in the AL Central.

Both teams have been buoyed by their pitching thus far, with the Yankees’ team ERA of 2.67 ranking third in the majors, and a spot ahead of Cleveland’s 2.69. Cleveland suffered a blow to its rotation, however, when ace Shane Bieber — the 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner — was diagnosed with an elbow tear requiring season-ending surgery after his second start.

The series features several of baseball’s hottest hitters. Cleveland’s Steven Kwan leads the AL with a .386 batting average, while the Yankees’ Anthony Volpe (.372) ranks second and Juan Soto (.360) ranks fourth.

Despite ranking in the bottom third among MLB teams with 11 home runs through 12 games, Cleveland entered Friday ninth in the majors with 69 runs, thanks largely to a contact-hitting lineup that’s batting .264 as a team.

The Yankees went 6-1 on their season-opening road trip and have won all four of their series thus far.

Aaron Judge has a chance to make history in Cleveland, as he enters with 259 career home runs — one shy of the previous Yankees captain, Derek Jeter, for ninth place on the team’s all-time list.