New York Yankees at Chicago Cubs

Will Warren had spent the better part of two weeks searching for something that, in his mind, had quietly disappeared. Not velocity. Not movement. Just the freedom to pitch. By Friday afternoon at Wrigley Field, it was back. “I think I had fun today for the first time in a long time,” Warren said. That freedom showed up everywhere. In the confidence to throw a career-high 24 changeups. In the willingness to attack the strike zone. In the pace that barely gave the Cubs a chance to settle in. The result was one of the finest outings of Warren’s young career, leading the Yankees (62-48) to a crisp 2-0 victory over the Cubs and extending what has quietly become one of baseball’s most dominant stretches by a starting rotation. Warren scattered four hits across 6 2/3 scoreless innings, striking out seven without issuing a walk to earn his eighth victory of the season. The outing marked the longest scoreless start of his career and his second-longest outing of the year, while continuing a remarkable run from New York’s rotation. Over the Yankees’ past nine games, their starters have allowed one run or fewer seven times. For a club whose offense has struggled to consistently support them -- a point manager Aaron Boone hammered home after Thursday’s 11-inning loss on the South Side -- the rotation has become its foundation. “They’re all really good and really confident,” Boone said. “It’s a tight group. The pitching group is super diligent in what they do. I think they all really support each other and want to help each other and want to see each other be successful. That’s been much of the story of the year for us. Our starting pitching has been excellent.”