The Yankees have managed to right the ship a little bit this weekend, taking the first two games of this series versus the Royals. After a bit of a rocky week or so, the way to really get back on track isn\u2019t just to win a series, but to sweep it, and ahead of a road trip that would be exactly the kind of momentum the team could really use. On a more personal level, a nice easy blowout win like yesterday would be welcome for hard-luck starter Ryan Weathers, who hasn\u2019t seen a single run in support in his first four starts as a Yankee.<\/p>\n
Weathers has been \u2026 interesting to watch in those four starts. In his worst outing, earlier this week against the Angels, he had a 5:1 K:BB ratio that if replicated over a full season would almost guarantee a unanimous Cy Young season. He also gave up five runs in five innings, including back-to-back-to-back homers. Every start made by the triumvirate of Weathers, Will Warren<\/a>, and Luis Gil<\/a> seems like a mini-audition to stay in the rotation when Gerrit Cole<\/a> and Carlos Rod\u00f3n<\/a> return from injury, and if that happened today I\u2019m not sure Weathers wins that contest for the final spot (even if Gil is left out as well, as he was at the start of 2026). Then again, if Weathers replicates that eight-inning, one-run showing against the Athletics<\/a> two weeks ago, he\u2019ll be back on the inside track, run support or no.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Cole Ragans<\/a>, meanwhile, has been a pitcher I\u2019ve enjoyed watching for a while, even during his injury-hampered 2025. In some ways he\u2019s a classic crafty lefty, not having a dominant or overwhelming pitch but controlling contact quality and taking advantage of a strong Royals defense. His walk rate has been quite high to start the year, which is one avenue the Yankees could use to gameplan against him.<\/p>\n Ben Rice<\/a> is your leadoff hitter today, taking over the DH spot while Giancarlo Stanton<\/a> gets a day off amid a 1-for-22 skid (also allowing one of those back-to-back days off situations since New York doesn\u2019t play tomorrow). Facing a lefty, Paul Goldschmidt<\/a> will be at first. As Aaron Boone previously hinted, Ryan McMahon<\/a> is back in the lineup today due in part to Ragans\u2019 reverse splits, but Amed Rosario<\/a> will start anyway \u2014 this time at second as Jazz Chisholm Jr.<\/a> gets a day to clear his head. His 49 wRC+ ranks fifth-worst among all American League players with at least 80 PA on the young season. Fortunately for the Yankees I suppose, two of those four worse than Jazz<\/a> are in today\u2019s Royals lineup, Sal Perez (36) and Vinnie Pasquantino<\/a> (46).<\/p>\n Please be advised the team does not expect to start the game on time.<\/p>\n How to watch<\/p>\n Location: Yankee Stadium \u2014 Bronx, NY<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n First pitch: 1:35 pm ET TBD<\/p>\n TV broadcast: YES (NYY) | Royals.TV (KC)<\/p>\n Radio broadcast: WFAN 660\/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | 96.5 The Fan, Royals Radio Network (KC)<\/p>\n Streaming:\u00a0MLB.tv, Gotham Sports App<\/p>\n For updates, follow us on\u00a0BlueSky<\/a>,\u00a0Twitter<\/a>, and\u00a0Instagram<\/a>, and like us on\u00a0Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n Join the conversation!<\/p>\n