Carlos Rodon took the mound on Friday afternoon at George M. Steinbrenner Field to throw his first official live batting practice of spring training.
After twelve pitches, neither Jose Trevino nor Ben Rortvedt had moved their bats from their shoulders.
Rodon questioned aloud, using colorful language and a hint of sarcasm, whether the Yankees batters were going to swing at all.
Rodon’s catcher, Kyle Higashioka, remarked, “I was laughing pretty hard behind the plate.”
The new Yankees left-handed pitcher returned to strike out the following batter on three pitches to conclude the simulated inning, demonstrating both the edge and high-end stuff he was advertised to possess when he signed a six-year, $162 million contract in December.
“It was entertaining to see how competitive he can be,” manager Aaron Boone stated. “Trevy was tracking our first at-bat against him, and he’s annoyed that we’re not swinging, so he ups his game a bit.”
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Rodon, who has been one of the best starting pitchers in baseball over the past two seasons, will join the Yankees’ rotation, and the team expects to see more of the same, as well as results. The 30-year-old Rodon is anticipated to slot in as a solid No. 2 pitcher behind Gerrit Cole, with the combination having the potential to improve each other’s performances.
Rodon stated, “We can definitely push each other to begin with.” “This is one of those inner contests. But, everyone has observed Gerrit for some time. He is entertaining to watch. He makes everything appear simple.”
The Yankees intend to add Luis Severino and Nestor Cortes to a rotation that will contain four former All-Stars. Domingo German and Clarke Schmidt will compete for the fifth position left vacant by Frankie Montas’ upcoming shoulder surgery.
Two weeks prior to the start of the season, Rodon arrived in Tampa to begin his preparations. When asked about his initial views of the Yankees, he stated, “everything is first-rate.” Playing for his third squad in as many years, he is still adjusting to his new surroundings, but according to Boone, he is growing more at ease.
The competitive fire with which he pitches, however, was on full show on Friday, even during a 30-to-35-pitch at-bat against batters that was largely meaningless.
Boone stated, “He’s just a little bit brash and confident.” “He is simply competitive. You observe this each time we enter a live environment. Yet, he comes with a reputation for being a bit fiery. He is also friendly and easy to get along with. I believe he is off to a strong start.”
After suffering injuries early in his career, Rodon has been healthy for the past two seasons, allowing him to pitch up to his old No. 3 overall draft position. He pitched to a 2.67 ERA with 422 strikeouts in 310 2/3 innings over the past two years while utilizing his four-seam fastball and slider nearly exclusively. In 2022, they represented 92,3 percent of his pitches, compared to 85,9 percent in 2021.
At the close of last season, Rodon began to utilize more curveballs. He stated on Friday that he hopes to continue doing so this season, while also attempting to develop the profile of his changeup to make it a viable alternative.
Higashioka, who caught him for the second time on Friday, found his arsenal on that day to be rather outstanding.
“Slider was filthy, curveball was filthy, and fastball appears to explode from his hand,” stated Higashioka.
As for whether Rodon already feels like a Yankee, that remains to be seen. This may have to wait around six weeks.
“I believe it will happen once I throw my first pitch at Yankee Stadium while wearing pinstripes,” he remarked. “It feels real, but I’ll feel solidified and a part of the fraternity, I suppose.”
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