Will Warren pitched in relief for the New York Yankees during the second game of a doubleheader against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, helping secure a 2-0 victory and allowing the team to split the twin bill at Yankee Stadium. The game extended the Yankees' series win over Pittsburgh.

The Yankees expended much of their bullpen during the first game, which went 10 innings and resulted in a 5-3 loss. Closer David Bednar threw 22 pitches in that contest, while the second game saw two more relievers, including Paul Blackburn, who delivered two scoreless innings on 34 pitches. With options limited, manager Aaron Boone turned to Warren—a regular starter with only one previous relief appearance in his career—to begin the ninth inning with a two-run lead.

Warren responded by retiring two batters before handing the ball to left-hander Tim Hill, who recorded the final out and earned the save. Warren threw 16 pitches, averaging 95.2 mph with his sinker, a notable increase from his usual 93.3 mph average as a starter. He relied mainly on his sinker, four-seam fastball, and sweeper, simplifying his typically five-pitch repertoire.

“I want to win games any way possible,” Warren said after the game. “As soon as they said it, I locked in and tried to get prepared for the moment.” The 27-year-old right-hander, currently 7-4 with a 4.00 ERA in 99 innings this season, acknowledged the difference in approach between starting and relief roles but expressed confidence in handling bullpen duties.

Warren’s relief appearance aligned with the Yankees’ current rotation dynamics. Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, and Cam Schlittler are healthy, while Carlos Rodón is working back from elbow inflammation. This quartet is expected to fill most of the postseason rotation slots, potentially leaving one rotation spot open late in the regular season. Warren, who logged 162.1 innings in 33 starts last year, may serve as a versatile bullpen option when the rotation is at full strength or during the playoffs.

The Yankees’ bullpen currently ranks second-best in MLB with a 3.06 ERA but seeks to improve its strikeout rate, standing in the middle of the league at 8.57 strikeouts per nine innings. Warren’s strikeout rate stands at 8.82, while fellow bullpen candidate Ryan Weathers boasts 10.11 K/9. Weathers, a left-hander, has pitched a career-high 102.1 innings this season and may eventually shift to the bullpen to manage workload and leverage his fastball’s effectiveness in relief.

Wednesday’s game marked Warren’s most effective relief outing in limited opportunities. Previously, he allowed three runs in one inning earlier this season and gave up six runs over 4.2 innings in relief during last year’s American League Division Series. Originally slated to start Tuesday before that game was rained out, Warren’s use in relief kept him available for his scheduled start Friday against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Due to Warren’s bullpen appearance, the Yankees activated Fried from the injured list and used him on a pitch limit in the nightcap, bypassing a planned Triple-A rehabilitation outing. Warren’s next scheduled start is Sunday at Citizens Bank Park against Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez, the National League’s All-Star Game starter. The rotation for Friday and Saturday’s games is set with Schlittler and Weathers, respectively.

Warren came within one out of securing his first career save, a feat he last achieved at the college level in 2020. “I wanted it bad,” he said. “But hey, we won.”