Yankees, Will Warren try to claim series victory over woeful Rockies

The New York Yankees got another great outing from Max Fried in Saturday’s 13-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies, and Will Warren will try to get a series win for the Yankees on Sunday afternoon.

Warren (3-2, 4.05 ERA) will oppose fellow right-hander Antonio Senzatela (1-8, 6.34) in the finale of a three-game series in Denver. Colorado won 3-2 on Friday night, just its ninth victory of the season.

Warren, 25, has only 15 career starts, but one of those came against the Rockies at New York last Aug. 24, and he did not fare well. Warren allowed six runs — five earned — on seven hits over three innings and took the loss in a 9-2 Colorado victory.

Warren, who finished 2024 with an 0-3 record, earned his first career win April 12 in an 8-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants and has emerged as a reliable starter for the Yankees.

“He’s going to be a big piece for us down the road, and he’s a big piece for us right now,” superstar Aaron Judge said.

Warren could benefit from the kind of run support Fried (who gave up only one run in 7 1/3 innings) got on Saturday. Despite playing at hitter-friendly Coors Field, the Yankees scored just three runs through the first 13 innings of the weekend, and two came on solo homers by Judge.

Judge homered in the fifth inning on Friday and in the first inning on Saturday. He briefly raised his average to .401 after his home run on Saturday and ended the day hitting .395.

The trickle of runs turned into a flood when the Yankees put up 10 runs in the fifth inning.

Colorado missed an opportunity Saturday to have a two-game winning streak but has a chance to win its first series of the season. It will fall to Senzatela to try to accomplish it in his second career start against New York.

The other time he faced the Yankees was on July 20, 2019, when he gave up six runs on seven hits in 1 1/3 innings.

The Rockies (9-43) are in the midst of the worst start to a major league season in the modern era and are relying on young talent this year. One is Adael Amador, who has been a fixture at second base since making his season debut April 13.

Although he has struggled at the plate — he is batting just .146 — he has flashed a strong glove and poise in the field. In Friday’s win, he grabbed Austin Wells’ sharp grounder to start a double play in the fourth inning.

Colorado interim manager Warren Schaeffer said he has confidence in the 22-year-old Amador.

“I’ve always let him know that I believe in him,” said Schaeffer, who worked with Amador when he was the third base and infield coach before being promoted. “The more that you as a manager and as a staff promote confidence with a young player, the quicker he’s going to succeed and you’re going to see if he’s got what it takes.”

–Field Level Media