Big bucks? More like big buck
White Sox lefty Rodon takes down ‘ Mini Load’ during offseason hunt
White Sox left- hander Carlos Rodon made the most of his second chance at ‘‘ Mini Load.’’
Life is about second chances, whether in deer hunting or pitching. Take Rodon and ‘‘ Mini Load.’’
Rodon’s deer- hunting season started slowly for ‘‘ Mini Load’’ in Vermillion County in Indiana. Nicknaming storied big bucks has a long tradition, especially with the spread of trail cams.
‘‘ Mini Load’’ was an offspring of ‘‘ Wide Load,’’ a massive buck who died of natural causes. Rodon said the antlers of ‘‘ Wide Load,’’ which were found, would’ve scored around 180. Deer racks are scored in inches from adding and subtracting various measurements.
‘‘ Mini Load looked just like his papa,’’ Rodon said during a phone interview Wednesday from Sox spring training. ‘‘[ But] as soon as the season came around, he disappeared and he went nocturnal.’’
Rodon, who was drafted third overall in 2014, was called up by the Sox on April 20, 2015. He had arthroscopic shoulder surgery Sept. 28, 2017. He threw off a mound for the second time Thursday, but he will miss the start of the season.
That injury meant Rodon hunted with a crossbow for the first time during archery season.
In early November, ‘‘ Mini Load’’ showed up again. Rodon managed an encounter where he hunts from a little tree by a ravine. He hunts land managed by his father- in- law, ‘‘ Lucky Chuck’’ Paddock.
Rodon was introduced to deer hunting by his wife, Ashley.
‘‘ I grew up fishing a lot; my dad was a big fisherman,’’ said Rodon, who started saltwater fishing in Florida.
When he was 8, his family moved to North Carolina. From there, it was catfish and bass.
‘‘ My wife grew up hunting,’’ Rodon said. ‘‘ My father- in- law taught me everything.’’
Back to the hunt. As that morning wore on, Rodon was thinking, ‘‘ I gotta go soon’’ to rehab.
‘‘ Then a group of does walked in, and they were skittish,’’ Rodon said. ‘‘ Sure enough, ‘ Mini Load’ came up.’’
Rodon tried to get ‘‘ Mini Load’’ to stop, then made a shot with his crossbow. He thought it sounded good, but it was too high.
Later in the month, during gun season, Rodon hunted with a blackpowder gun. ‘‘ Mini Load’’ showed again in the beanfield.
‘‘ At 107 yards, I hit him right where I needed to,’’ said Rodon, who dropped the 10- point. ‘‘ That would be the biggest. On my wall of shame, there are some bigger ones I’ve missed.’’
The rack is thick, but it would be difficult to score and wasn’t. The right G3 is busted. The left G2 has a ‘‘ turkey foot.’’
On Twitter in December, Rodon explained the advantage of hunting and eating grass- fed venison.
‘‘ The meat is a lot more pure and better than the chicken or beef we get from the store,’’ Rodon said. ‘‘ And it is part of conservation, control of the herd.’’ The real draw is more cerebral. ‘‘ It is just away from the game,’’ he said. ‘‘ Peace and quiet and away from cellphones.’’
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