Dwight “Doc” Gooden has been where Cam Schlittler is now, and he knows the view from the top comes with a target on your back.
Schlittler, 25, just took home the American League Cy Young Award unanimously after a season that put him squarely in the spotlight. Gooden, who made his MLB debut in the spring of 1984 and later won the National League Cy Young Award unanimously in 1985, sees the same kind of rise in the Yankees right-hander that he once lived through himself.
In a recent conversation with Bob Klapisch of NJ Advance Media, Gooden was asked what he would tell Schlittler if the two crossed paths before the 2027 season begins. His answer was blunt.
“I’d say, 'No matter what you do, people are going to compare you to last year,'” Gooden explained. “It’s going to be tough to top that.
There’s going to be a lot of pressure. Maybe Schlittler can do it, I don’t know.
But if he doesn’t, it’s ok. The most important thing is helping your team win.”
Gooden knows the New York pressure cooker from both sides. He pitched for the Mets and the Yankees, so the expectations that come with working in the Bronx or Queens are nothing new to him. And so far, Schlittler has handled that stage without showing any lasting damage from the noise around him.
He closed the regular season at 14-6 with a 1.95 ERA, a 0.92 WHIP and 239 strikeouts across 193.2 innings. In his first four playoff starts, he went 2-2 with a 1.44 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 25 innings.
That kind of performance is exactly why Gooden thinks Schlittler has already separated himself.
“That kid has so much mound presence,” Gooden added about Schlittler. “It’s his confidence, it’s his mannerisms.
Even when he doesn’t have his best stuff, he knows he can still beat you. I love it.
It’s obvious he’s the Yankees’ best pitcher.”
But Gooden also sees the trap that can come after a breakthrough season. He pointed back to his own 1986 experience, when a dominant outing still left him feeling like he had to answer for not piling up enough strikeouts.
“It’s going to get tougher for him now,” Gooden added about Schlittler. “I shut out the Cardinals (9-0), complete game.
I only gave up five hits, threw the ball really well, but I only had five strikeouts. Afterwards, the only questions I got from the press were about the punchouts.
Like, 'Doc, what’s wrong? What happened?'
I tried to give the reporters the right answer. I said something like, 'Strikeouts aren’t important.
All I care about is winning.' But it was eating at me inside.
I couldn’t stop thinking about it even after I’d gotten home. It totally took the fun out of winning that game.
My next 3-4 starts, I went out there thinking I had to strike out 10-11 guys just to prove myself. That was a mistake.
You can’t dominate every time, especially when everyone in the league is gunning for you.”
Gooden finished that 1986 season as a World Series champion. Schlittler and the Yankees will be hoping for a similar path next year, assuming the season isn’t wiped out by the expected lockout.
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