There was a crossroads moment for Yankees starter Carlos Rodón on Friday night when he buckled slightly in the fourth inning with a comfortable lead against the crosstown rival Mets in the opener of a super-charged Subway Series at Yankee Stadium.
Rodón opened the frame by walking Juan Soto and, judging by the southpaw’s body language, he appeared to disagree with some of the ball-strike calls in that particular at-bat.
He then managed to strikeout Pete Alonso, but gave up consecutive singles that yielded one run. One out later, the veteran left-hander walked Francisco Alvarez on a full count to load the bases.
At times during his tenure in pinstripes, Rodón has come undone in moments like these, as one foul inning has grown into a game-ruining blotch. This time, however, he threw a 95 mph fastball to get Luisangel Acuña to fly out to right field, ending the inning. Crisis averted and the Yankees went on to beat the Mets, 6-2, in large part because of Rodón’s performance.
If this is the kind of grit Rodón can show all year, the Yankees may have another ace-level lefty they need for a deep postseason run. The stuff is clearly there — he’s exceptionally hard to hit.
After giving up one run and two hits in five innings against the Mets, Rodón (5-3) has allowed four hits or fewer in nine of his 10 starts this season. That’s the most such starts in MLB. In six of those starts, he’s allowed three hits or fewer. Opposing hitters are batting just .167 against him, the best mark in the majors.
“Good stuff again,” is how Yankees manager Aaron Boone described Rodon’s outing. “They made him work for it, really drove [his pitch count] up there. … All in all, five strong innings of one-run on a night when they pressured him, made him work, and he made some really big pitches when he needed to.”
Rodón induced 15 swings and misses on the night — the Mets swung at 11 sliders and missed seven times. He also got some help when first baseman Paul Goldschmidt sprinted in the outfield to snare a pop fly hit by Tyrone Taylor to open the fifth inning. It was a sparkling play that helped Rodón get through his final inning, which he finished with a second strikeout of Alonso.
“That was a lot of range for, I think, a 37, 38-year-old,” a smiling Rodón said of Goldschmidt, who is in fact 37. “That’s a heck of a play.”
In six starts since April 18, Rodón is 4-0 with a 1.72 ERA. During this span, he’s allowed just 21 hits and 12 walks while striking out 44.
“I thought Carlos was really good,” said teammate Cody Bellinger, who went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs scored. “He’s mixing it really well and lately he’s been pounding the zone. He’s got a bunch of really good pitches, so it’s just kind of difficult to hit him if he’s on.”
Rodón likely would’ve pitched deeper into the game, but his pitch count soared as the Mets took careful at-bats. He came out after the fifth having thrown 102 pitches (60 for strikes). Rodón also walked his former teammate Soto three times.
“I was trying to get him to swing and miss every time,” Rodón said. “And he was, as he always is, real patient. He knows his zone. I wanted to get him.”
Of the Mets overall, he said, “They drove up the pitch count and had some good at-bats, but we got out of there with a win.”
And with a prime example of Rodón squashing that one moment of trouble that once might have bedeviled him, that’s huge for a Yankees squad with lofty goals.
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