The absence of Ryan Weathers, at least in a starting role, adds some extra pressure on the members of the Yankees’ rotation.
This includes Carlos Rodón, who noted that his progress is going well, even if it’s not quite perfect.
Rodón described his performance as “good enough” after pitching four innings in an 8-3 victory over the Blue Jays on Sunday, where he extended his pitch count to 76.
Out of those pitches, only 42 were strikes, and he issued two walks. Given the Toronto lineup’s reputation for contact hitting, Rodón managed to generate just four swings and misses, striking out two batters.
However, he only allowed two runs (one earned) and gave up merely two hits. Feeling good about his performance and recovery from elbow inflammation, he expressed satisfaction with how things went.
“It’s good,” he remarked about his pitches, noting that his fastball reached an average of 94.4 mph and his slider resulted in a few strikeouts. “There’s definitely areas I want to improve on, especially being more consistent in the strike zone, throwing crisper strikes, and working ahead in counts.”
“So, there are things to refine,” he added.
If he aims for heightened command, he has over a month to perfect it.
In that game, Rodón faced trouble in the third inning, walking the No. 8 hitter, which allowed for a double and subsequent run on a sacrifice fly after the bases were loaded due to a missed double play opportunity by rookie shortstop George Lombard Jr. The young player seemed to take his eye off the ball, resulting in a critical error.
“I believe he’s in a really good place,” said manager Aaron Boone regarding Rodón. “Physically, his pitches are where they need to be. Hopefully, he’ll get sharper as he continues to build up.”
With the Yankees placing Weathers (due to a flexor strain) on the injured list, they called up Brendan Beck, who was slated to start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre but got scratched.
However, Beck’s role in the rotation isn’t confirmed yet. The Yankees have Will Warren set as the starter for Tuesday and another starter listed as TBA for Wednesday, followed by Gerrit Cole on Thursday.
Top prospect Elmer Rodríguez has been impressive, showing a 1.38 ERA over his last five starts.
“We’ll see how things develop in the next several days,” Boone commented about the starter for Wednesday. “Elmer could be a factor, and Brendan Beck is here now.”
Clarke Schmidt, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery and a forearm issue, is expected to throw live batting practice on Tuesday. If that goes well, he will start a rehab assignment and potentially join the Yankees’ bullpen afterward.
Meanwhile, Cody Bellinger made a comeback, going 1-for-4 with a run after a four-week absence due to a hamstring strain. “I felt really good,” he shared. “Honestly, it felt like I was back to 100 percent.”
