Andres Chavez
New York Yankees lefty Carlos Rodon stepped onto the mound on Thursday to face live hitters, logging the equivalent of two innings of work. While this isn’t his first time facing live competition this spring—having checked that box last week—the left-hander is still very much in the process of re-learning his own mechanics.
It is one thing to throw a ball; it is another to command it with the surgical precision required at the big-league level. Rodon is essentially trying to find his internal compass again after his physical map was redrawn by surgery. He is learning that while the arm is repaired, the muscle memory needs a bit more time to catch up to the speed of the game.
The Long Road Back
For Yankees fans, the context of Rodon’s recovery is vital. Unlike his rotation mate Gerrit Cole, who is sidelined following Tommy John surgery in March 2025, Rodon didn’t spend the last year in a sling. In fact, he was the backbone of the staff last season, turning in a stellar 3.09 ERA and fanning 203 batters over 195.1 innings. However, the engine started sputtering in the postseason.
He didn’t feel like himself, leading to a winter procedure to remove a nagging bone spur in his elbow. It was as if he had been trying to throw through a door that wouldn’t quite open all the way, hindering his natural movement.
The team initially projected a recovery timeline that would see him sidelined for the first month of the regular season, and despite the ups and downs of spring training, that schedule remains the North Star. Recovering from even a minor procedure is often like trying to tune a guitar while someone is playing it; the physical health might be there, but the resonance takes a while to return.
The Yankees have been firm: a return in April or May is the goal. This isn’t just about the elbow being “fixed,” but about the long, grueling ramp-up to a starter’s workload. He needs to stretch out his endurance to ensure he doesn’t hit a wall after three innings once the games actually count.
Patience in the Process
Rodon admitted to Chelsea Janes of SNY that while his body feels fine, the internal calibration is still a work in progress. He noted the difficulty of building up arm strength while simultaneously trying to regain the feel for his secondary pitches. It is a mental tug-of-war, and he expressed a conscious effort to keep frustration at bay while his delivery catches up to his intent. After his recent session, he shared his perspective on the journey:
“[I felt] physically fine. I’m just working to get a feel for things. Obviously, I would like everything to be crisp, but it’s hard to do that when you have to build up and come back from surgery. It’s coming. Trying not to get frustrated with myself.”
Manager Aaron Boone has been transparent about the pace of this comeback, mentioning this week that it is still a coin flip whether Rodon will actually appear in a Grapefruit League game before the team heads north. The priority isn’t the box score in Florida; it’s stretching the southpaw out so he can survive the grind of a 162-game season. Without the luxury of a full spring training, he’s basically conducting his own private training camp.
The organization views these minor hurdles as expected turbulence. As long as the elbow remains structurally sound and the issues are limited to timing and touch, the Yankees are content to let their star lefty find his groove at his own speed. They know that a rushed Rodon is a vulnerable Rodon, and with 203 strikeouts of production to protect, they are choosing the long game over a quick fix.
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