NEW YORK — New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodón reflected on the severity of his elbow problems from the previous season.
“I couldn’t really bend my arm. I couldn’t button a shirt,” the left-handed pitcher explained. “I couldn’t scratch my face. I couldn’t take a drink of water. … I could definitely never comb my hair.”
After seven months of recovery following elbow surgery, the 33-year-old athlete is scheduled to take the mound this Sunday when the Yankees face the Milwaukee Brewers. Though he’s feeling significantly better, Rodón acknowledges his arm isn’t what it was when he first entered the majors with Chicago a decade ago.
“That’s almost a virgin arm then,” he joked.
Throughout his 11 seasons in Major League Baseball, Rodón has compiled a 93-72 record with a 3.73 ERA. Since joining the Yankees on a six-year, $162 million deal in December 2023, he’s posted a 37-26 record.
Despite his arm troubles, Rodón managed an 18-9 record with a 3.09 ERA during last season. His four-seam fastball speed, which averaged 95.3 mph during his initial Yankees campaign, decreased to 94.4 mph in the first half of last year before falling further to 93.8 mph in the season’s latter half.
“He was great last year. So, just had to do it a different way. He didn’t have the range of motion,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone commented. “But I think if you talk to major league pitchers, especially ones that have done it for a while, you’re kind of always dealing with different stuff. So credit to him for being able to navigate it last year and with excellence.”
During his Division Series appearance against Toronto, Rodón’s fastball velocity fell to 93.4 mph as he surrendered six runs in just 2 1/3 innings.
“They were mending to him every day to get him to post,” pitching coach Matt Blake noted.
According to Rodón, his elbow problems developed gradually over three to four years. Despite the discomfort, he chose to push through last season rather than step away.
“Did it hurt? Sometimes sure, pitching, but I’d rather go out there and compete,” he stated. “I was throwing well, so I couldn’t just say, ‘Oh, I can’t pitch,’ but it was manageable.”
On October 15, Rodón underwent surgery to extract loose debris from his left elbow and smooth down a bone spur. His recovery hit a snag in late March when he experienced hamstring tightness while training at the Yankees’ Florida facility.
His rehabilitation process included two platelet-rich plasma treatments.
“The first one was early. I really remember it because it was vivid because my arm felt like it got ran over by a bus,” he recalled.
When spring training began, Rodón weighed in the mid-to-upper 250s, roughly 10 pounds over his ideal weight, though he expected to shed the extra pounds as he prepared for his comeback.
“I guess a happy offseason,” he said with a laugh. “I enjoy food.”
Starting April 24, Rodón completed three minor league rehabilitation starts, posting a 3.38 ERA with 16 strikeouts against three walks and three home runs across 16 innings.
His final rehab outing saw him throw 83 pitches, and he’ll face a similar limit when he takes on the Brewers.
“Not as daunting as Tommy John’s surgery,” said Rodón, who had UCL repair surgery in 2019. “You never want to go under the knife, for sure, but it’s good to be at the end of the road.”
Blake has observed improvements in Rodón’s pitching mechanics following the surgery.
“You can see there’s just a little more freedom of motion in the arm action,” he explained. “It looks a little easier. It’s not as much body creating the power.”
However, with his improved range of motion, Rodón must work to regain his pitching precision.
“I’m happy with the recovery,” he said. “So just keep going.”
