Yankees’ Rodón points toward a fresh start
TAMPA, Fla. – Carlos Rodon was among the earliest to arrive at Yankees camp, eager for a fresh start to 2024.
“That speaks to his dedication and desire to improve on last year,’’ Gerrit Cole said as pitchers and catchers officially reported, and Rodon’s importance has grown since then.
Dealing with elbow nerve irritation, Cole will be out of the Yankees’ rotation for about two months, and Rodon is the Yanks’ next most expensive starter, coming off a forgettable 2023 season.
“Now, it’s real. Now, these games matter,’’ Rodon said Saturday afternoon, following the lefty’s final exhibition start, a 6-6 tie with the Philadelphia Phillies at Steinbrenner Field.
Yankees rotation picture still incomplete
Next up for Rodon is Friday’s start against the Astros at Houston, in the second game of the regular season.
Nestor Cortes draws Opening Day, replacing Cole, with Marcus Stroman and Clarke Schmidt set to follow Rodon, 31, in rotation.
It’s still a contest for the last rotation vacancy, with Luis Gil, Will Warren, Cody Poteet and Luke Weaver in the mix.
And it’s a measure of their thin rotation depth and high expectations that free agent Jordan Montgomery remains a figure of some interest, though the Yanks – at their extreme luxury tax threshold – haven’t acted aggressively.
That could change if another injury situation occurs, but the Yankees generally feel good about their current No. 5 starter choices and the status of Rodon, whom they signed for $162 million last offseason.
“He’s in a good space physically,’’ said manager Aaron Boone. “The biggest thing is, his stuff ’s in a good place right now. He’s laid a nice foundation to go out there and be successful.’’
Rodon’s encouraging sign entering the season
Coming off a sharp, 5.2-inning scoreless, hitless outing, Rodon was “frustrated with the results’’ Saturday in his second straight outing against the Phillies.
Bryce Harper returned to Philadelphia’s lineup after a back problem and made two loud outs against Rodon, one on a drive tracked down by Aaron Judge at the center field wall. Overall, Rodon’s slider command was a bit shaky during his 82-pitch outing, charged with five runs on seven hits and a walk in fourplus innings, with two strikeouts.
“Luckily those don’t count,’’ said Rodon, mindful of the 6.85 ERA he posted over 14 starts last year, following forearm and back issues that wrecked his first Yanks camp and delayed his season.
But it’s been an encouraging camp, and Rodon felt he had “more in the tank’’ to pitch longer if needed Saturday, and “that’s a good sign.’’
What the Yankees want to see Rodon incorporate in 2024
In addition to working on a more efficient drive toward the plate, Rodon incorporated more cutters into his mainly fastball-slider arsenal this spring.
“He’s going to have to use them from time to time,’’ Boone said of throwing more cutters, curveballs and changeups, pitches he threw roughly 10.8 percent of the time compared with the fastball-slider, according to Statcast.
Developing a deeper pitch mix was something the Yankees wanted to see with Rodon, though he suggested Saturday that other factors might weigh into how deep that mix becomes, start to start.
“There’s going to be times when the fastball-slider (combo) is so good that we can rely on those,’’ said Rodon, with his preseason work behind him and a fresh, new season ahead.
Over the next five days, “(I’ll) work on a few things and get ready for Houston,’’ said Rodon. “I feel confident in myself.’’