CHICAGO -- An increasingly crowded rotation will force the Yankees to make several tough decisions as they plan for the postseason, but with Clarke Schmidt joining the mix to contribute a strong outing, this may be a good problem to have.

For the second consecutive day, a Yankees starter returned from the injured list to toss scoreless ball. Schmidt followed Luis Gil¡¯s sparkling outing by pitching into the fifth inning, combining with Nestor Cortes on a four-hitter in the Yankees¡¯ 2-0 victory over the Cubs on Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field.

¡°Early in the season, we had probably two or three months where we were the best rotation in baseball, numbers-wise,¡± Schmidt said. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say that¡¯s out of the realm now. We have a lot of talented guys on this staff and we have a lot of depth, which is really good.¡±

A right lat strain had kept Schmidt out of big league action since May 26, but manager Aaron Boone said the right-hander ¡°had a little bit of everything going,¡± limiting the Cubs to four hits in a 75-pitch effort.

¡°I think he¡¯s only going to get better and sharper,¡± said catcher Austin Wells. ¡°It looked the same [as earlier in the season], if not better. Really, it comes down to execution and locations, and I think that¡¯s going to tighten up as we get further along into the end of this month.¡±

Schmidt walked one and struck out two before turning the mound over to Cortes, who held Chicago hitless over 4 1/3 innings in his first relief appearance since 2021.

¡°We feel like we¡¯re moving the needle to be a little bit better as a complete staff,¡± Boone said. ¡°Even though we¡¯re towards the end, we¡¯ve got a long way to go. We¡¯ve got to continue to show up and make sure we¡¯re executing every day. When we do that, we¡¯re able to have games like this.¡±

The Yankees notched their second consecutive shutout to secure their first series victory since taking two of three from the Rockies on Aug. 23-25.

The win also clinched their 32nd consecutive winning season, the second-longest streak in Major League history behind the 1926-64 Yankees, who were winners in 39 straight seasons. Thirty-two straight winning seasons matches the second-longest streak in the four major pro sports, alongside the NHL¡¯s Montreal Canadiens (1952-83).

Cortes, who walked one and struck out three in a 48-pitch appearance, said he was told his next start will come against the Red Sox in New York. Though Cortes said he was initially irked about the move to the bullpen, Boone said that the southpaw handled the assignment as ¡°a professional.¡±

¡°Obviously, I was upset. I feel like amongst all the starters, I¡¯ve been the workhorse here,¡± Cortes said. ¡°Once [Gerrit] Cole went down, they picked me to be the Opening Day starter; not necessarily the No. 1, but the Opening Day starter. I had to switch my routine there, and now they do this.

¡°I¡¯m never going to back down from a challenge. I¡¯m never going to leave my teammates out to dry. You¡¯re always going to get my best effort, no matter if I¡¯m happy or not. That¡¯s what I did today. I just came out there and proved that I can be put in any situation, and from here on out, if that¡¯s what¡¯s my role, then I¡¯ll accept it.¡±

Boone said that he has not yet decided how six arms will fit into a five-man rotation -- and in a playoff series, one fewer. Cole is likely assured of a Game 1 start, but there will be an in-house debate on how best to deploy Carlos Rod¨®n, Marcus Stroman, Cortes, Gil and Schmidt.

¡°I¡¯m sure [Cortes] wasn¡¯t thrilled about it this turn around, but you¡¯ve still got a job to do,¡± Boone said. ¡°He went out and excelled at it.¡±

Wells knocked in Gleyber Torres with the game¡¯s first run on a first-inning groundout, and New York added another run with an aggressive sixth-inning double steal. Catcher Christian Bethancourt¡¯s throw went down the left-field line, allowing Aaron Judge to trot home.

Guiding the Yanks¡¯ staff to more zeros, Wells helped with his arm, throwing out two runners trying to steal second base -- Nico Hoerner in the fourth inning and Pete Crow-Armstrong in the fifth.

¡°Big shoutout to Wells. Two shutouts in a row is very impressive, especially for a young catcher,¡± Schmidt said. ¡°And shoutout to our pitching staff for executing.¡±