Ryan Garcia
SOMERSET, NJ — Carlos Rodon took the mound for the Somerset Patriots, as the Yankees’ left-hander continued his rehab assigment.
The grizzled veteran would pitch in Double-A for just the third time in his career, with his previous two appearances coming in 2023 during a rehab assigment with the Yankees.
Working at around 92-94 MPH on his fastball, Rodon had been efficient and effective throughout the contest as he displayed an excellent feel for his changeup.
He finished with 8 strikeouts across 5.1 innings of one-run ball, as he is now just one start away from rejoining the Yankees if all goes well in his recovery.
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Carlos Rodon Reflects on Time With Yankees After Successful Rehab Start
In his first outing with the Somerset Patriots since 2023, Carlos Rodon’s fastball sat around 93.1 MPH, topping out at 95 MPH in the outing.
He worked around 92-93 MPH in the first inning before sitting around 93-94 in the following innings of work.
Rodon had the changeup working as he recorded the vast majority of his strikeouts on that pitch, as he was highly efficient in the outing.
The lone blemish of the game was a hanging offspeed pitch to Red Sox prospect Miguel Bleis, who blasted a solo home run out to left field.
Up to 75 pitches, the next step for Carlos Rodon is another rehab outing, although the location of this outing is still to be determined.
I asked Carlos Rodon about his evolution from a fastball-slider power pitcher into a more well-rounded veteran, and here’s what he had to say:
“The usage has gone up on all of my pitches…there’s been a lot more pitches to the arsenal and I feel like the secondary command has gotten better too”
Rodon used his changeup over 20% of the time during this outing and used his four-seamer under 35% of the time.
When asked if there would be any further changes made, he said “we’ll see”, leaving the door open for potential expansions or additions to the mix.
It’s worth noting that he previously mentioned his cutter when answering my first question, as he had been working on that pitch for years but hasn’t masterd it.
Carlos Rodon would not commit to a finalized rehab plan, but the initial reports indicated he’d need three rehab starts, so might need one more outing before he’s back.
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