Alexander Wilson
The New York Yankees have Carlos Rodon back, which is objectively good news. They also have a version of Rodon that looks like he needs a few more starts before anyone should feel comfortable calling him stable.
That trade-off comes with a starter returning from a real layoff. Rodon missed the start of the season after offseason left elbow surgery, then had right hamstring tightness slow the buildup, and the Yankees knew this might be clunky. You can throw rehab innings and bullpens all you want, but major-league hitters do not care that you are still trying to get your sea legs.
Rodon is getting hit with that reality right now.
The command is not there yet
Through two starts, Rodon owns a 5.63 ERA, 1.63 WHIP, 10 strikeouts, and eight walks over eight innings. The strikeout stuff is still present, which matters, but the walk total is the flashing red light.
Saturday against the Mets was not a total disaster, but it was not clean either. Rodon lasted just 3.2 innings, giving up three runs, two earned, three hits, three walks, and six strikeouts on 88 pitches in a 6-3 loss. He threw strikes at a better clip than he did in his season debut, but the inning efficiency was bad, and he made the Yankees cover too much game too early.
That creates strain, because the Yankees can live with some rust, but they cannot have the bullpen absorbing five-plus innings every time Rodon takes the ball.
The Yankees need to buy him time
Rodon was excellent last season, going 18-9 with a 3.09 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, and 203 strikeouts over 195.1 innings. That pitcher is still in there, but it would be naive to expect him to snap right back into that form two starts into his return.
The Yankees probably need to budget another three or four starts before the command tightens and the rhythm looks normal. That is not an excuse, just the reality of a pitcher coming off elbow surgery and a shortened ramp-up. He is still rebuilding feel under real game pressure.
The offense has to understand that, too. If Rodon is going to be uneven for the next month or two, the Yankees need to score when he pitches. They cannot treat his outings like low-scoring duels, especially with Max Fried already on the injured list and the rotation moving pieces around.
Reinforcements help, but they do not erase the issue
The good news is that Gerrit Cole is getting closer, and his latest rehab start brought a loud velocity sign. Once Cole is back, the Yankees will have more breathing room. They will not need Rodon to carry the rotation every fifth day.
But they do need Rodon to stabilize. There is a big difference between a rusty starter working through command issues and a pitcher who keeps forcing the bullpen into emergency mode. Right now, he is much closer to the first bucket, but the Yankees cannot let it drift into the second.
Rodon deserves some runway because of what he did last season and because the arm still has swing-and-miss in it. But this is not the time for blind faith. The Yankees need the offense to pick him up, the bullpen to be protected where possible, and Rodon to start turning stuff into outs before this rough return becomes a real problem.
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