Across Major League Baseball, there has certainly been the presence of parity as a new team seems to win the World Series each year. While many teams have certainly enjoyed this, the New York Yankees have not. Each offseason, their front office makes free agent signings in hopes of ending the drought but to no avail. This past offseason, the Yankees inked former NC State baseball left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodón to a six-year, $162 million contract. With Rodón now in their pitching rotation, the Yankees certainly have increased their chances of bringing a World Series trophy back to the Bronx.
Over the course of his career, Rodón has continued to assert himself on baseball’s biggest stage. A first-round pick by the Chicago White Sox, he made his professional debut during the 2015 season. Over the course of his first few seasons, he put up rather average numbers despite showing potential amid a struggling White Sox organization. However, any form of progress he was able to make was halted over the course of the next four seasons as he battled multiple injuries.
After leading many to question his sustainability, Rodón helped silence his doubters in 2021. He recorded a career-best 2.37 ERA (earned run average) and collected 13 wins. He also posted a very impressive 0.957 WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched). These numbers helped contribute to his first All-Star nomination.
Following the 2021 season, he was a hot commodity in the free agent market, and ultimately, it was the San Francisco Giants who signed him to a two-year, $44 million contract. In the Bay, he continued to thrive as he found a way to continuously improve his numbers. In doing so, he compiled a 2.88 ERA which ranked 13th best in all of MLB. His WHIP saw a slight regression, but his strikeout totals improved drastically. After tossing a respectable 185 in 2021, he recorded an astounding 237 punch outs in 2022 which ranked third best in the league. After continuing to build momentum, it was no shock that he was nominated for his second straight All-Star game appearance.
During this past offseason, Rodón once again appeared on the top of the free agency boards after he decided to opt out of the remaining year in his contract with San Francisco. As a result, he decided to take his talents to the Big Apple, home of arguably the biggest market in all of professional sports. However, within a few months of Rodón’s arrival, he sustained an injury to his forearm during a spring training game. This is certainly a disappointing beginning for Rodón as his Yankee debut looks to be delayed until the middle of May.
Last season, the Yankees hit the ground rolling throughout the first few months of the season. Before the All-Star break, New York held a record of 64-28, and it appeared as if the team was primed for a division crown. However, the second half of the season was not so kind to the pinstripes as a 35-35 record saw their divisional lead, which had been as high as 15.5 games, begin to slowly fade away. Even though the Yankees were ultimately able to get back on track, the team once again suffered an early exit in the postseason. Part of the problem could be attributed to the pitching rotation as it struggled multiple times in the back half of the season.
As Rodón establishes himself with his new team, he looks to help find solutions to a rather uncertain rotation. Outside of pitching ace Gerrit Cole and emerging star Nestor Cortes, there lies a rather considerable amount of uncertainty. Part of this is because New York lost multiple veteran pitchers to free agency which leaves the pitching core largely inexperienced outside of Cole and Cortes.
The addition of Rodón helps to alleviate this problem. Over the course of his career, he has seen action in 20 or more games in five different seasons. With the addition of Rodón, the Yankees also get a proven commodity that has shown he can be a valuable addition to any team. With two recent All-Star appearances under his belt, his career is certainly trending in the right direction.
His presence will be crucial as the team looks to be more multidimensional in the sense of adding another potent threat on the mound. The upcoming season appears to be a crucial one for New York as it finds itself competing in one of the toughest divisions in baseball — the AL East. If Rodón and the Yankees can play to their potential, it should be no surprise to see a championship soon return to New York.
