Carlos Rodon didn’t shout, didn’t pump his fist, didn’t strut off the mound. He didn’t have to. After carving through a dangerous lineup with six scoreless innings and eight strikeouts in the May 23 game against the Rangers, he calmly handed the ball to Aaron Boone. Yankee Stadium roared anyway. This wasn’t just about a solid outing, it was something more.
For Rodon, it felt like redemption. It was a long-awaited glimpse of the ace the Yankees thought they were getting when they handed him a $218 million deal. In the absence of that towering figure, Gerrit Cole, Rodon has quietly begun rewriting his story.
Make no mistake, the Yankees’ rotation was never supposed to hinge on Rodon alone. That job, in Cole’s absence, has belonged to Max Fried, the offseason prize who’s lived up to the hype with surgical command and icy poise. But while Fried has anchored the staff with his consistency, Rodon has added an edge, the kind of fire and unpredictability that changes a game’s rhythm. After a rocky first year in pinstripes, he’s not just rebounding, he’s evolving.
And that evolution is what’s turning heads.
“He’s doing a good job of finishing guys off,” MLB analyst Xavier Scruggs pointed out recently. “Last year, I felt like guys got back into the count a little bit too much on him. Now, he’s not letting them. He’s putting guys away and getting more of that swing and miss, he’s in the 87th percentile for whiff rate. That tells you a lot.”
Carlos Rodón threw six shutout innings yesterday, giving up just two hits and striking out eight.@Xavier_Scruggs breaks down the #Yankees ace:@Yankees | #RepBX
https://t.co/fGPbvbj8w4 pic.twitter.com/vX73iyIJQc
— MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (@MLBNetworkRadio) May 23, 2025
And it does tell you a lot—because swing and miss isn’t just a stat. It’s the difference between control and chaos.
Rodon has really stepped up his game by mixing things up and keeping hitters on their toes with a variety of pitches. From starting an at-bat with a four-seamer to following it up with a changeup or vice versa. He added a sinker and a curveball to his arsenal with intent and strategy to keep batters guessing and reacting quickly.
The best part?
It doesn’t seem like a coincidence at all. The Yankees needed someone to step up their game. Fried was quick to respond from the start, while Rodon is now ensuring that the team isn’t just getting by without Cole but actually excelling in his absence.
Heading into October with this momentum could well be what sets apart a rotation from a championship-caliber one.
Yankees bullpen backs the effort with elite execution
After Carlos Rodon finished his six scoreless innings and passed the ball to the Yankees bullpen, Mark Leiter Jr. took over with a one-run advantage. Showed no sign of nerves as he pitched a seventh inning that kept Texas guessing all the while. It was a subtle display of control that can sometimes go unnoticed until you understand the crucial importance of every error-free inning in such a closely contested game period.
Devin Williams stepped up next. It’s safe to say that any doubts lingering after his shaky start in May are now gone for good.
Williams delivered a performance in 6.1 innings to secure his fifth hold of the season and push his streak of not conceding any runs. Ever since his game on May 7, against San Diego, where things didn’t go as planned, he’s only given up two hits, walked once, and struck out 10 batters. “Devin’s the man,” Luke Weaver said postgame. “He’s found his rhythm, he’s controlling his game, his tempo, and he’s just dominant.”
Weaver sealed the victory by closing the door for his save with a 1–2–3 ninth inning performance. Sporting a 0.40 ERA across 21 games, the 31-year-old pitcher has subtly established himself as one of the dependable arms in the league. When questioned, he credits his success to teamwork and camaraderie within the team.
“Everybody is rooting hard for each other,” Weaver shared. “There’s different days where, if a guy’s down and we got to go one-plus, we got to figure out ways to piece it together… We always want our starter to go nine, we’re just there as backup.”
In the end, each arm is stepping up in the Bronx, feeding off one another’s momentum. As they head west, this pitching staff looks built for staying power.
The post Competing With Yankees’ $218M Ace, Carlos Rodon’s ‘Unpredictability’ Hailed in Gerrit Cole’s Absence appeared first on EssentiallySports.
