Tonight is the first game in the three-game series of the New York Yankees hosting the Athletics, and Northeastern fans will be eagerly watching. Not because New York is playing, but because for the first time in the modern era, both starting pitchers are Northeastern alumni.
Cam Schlittler is starting for the Yankees, and Aaron Civale will be starting for the A’s. The two never overlapped during their time at Northeastern, as Civale played for the Huskies between 2014 and 2016, while Schlittler wore the uniform from 2020 to 2022.
Civale ended his collegiate career with a 2.34 ERA, pitching 192.2 innings in which he only allowed 174 hits and 60 runs. The East Windsor, Conn. native was drafted by the Cleveland Guardians in 2016.
Civale was called up to the majors in 2019 and stayed in Cleveland until 2023. He was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for two seasons before moving to the Milwaukee Brewers. In 2025, Civale was moved around from the Brewers to the Chicago White Sox before ending the season with the Chicago Cubs.
In the offseason, Civale signed a one-year contract for $6 million with the Athletics. He has only played in one game so far, where the Athletics came away with a win. In the five innings he pitched, Civale struck out three batters, allowing four hits and two runs.
Schlitter has not had the same tenure as Civale, with the East Walpole, Mass. native only being called up last season. But the 2022 seventh-round draft pick made himself known in his rookie season. He was responsible for helping the Yankees eliminate his hometown team, the Boston Red Sox, in the playoffs last season before falling to the Toronto Blue Jays. In the triumph, Schlittler’s scoreless eight innings pitched with 12 strikeouts and no walks made MLB postseason history.
As a Husky, Schlittler posted a 2.67 ERA. In his 182 innings pitched, he struck out 180 batters and allowed 142 hits and 60 runs.
So far this season, Schlittler has pitched in two games, both of which ended in a New York win. In 11.2 innings, he has struck out 15 batters, giving up just three hits and allowing no runs.
The game will begin April 7 at 7:05 p.m. and will be streaming on ESPN+, MLB.TV in the Boston area and NBC Sports California.
