It seems that Carlos Rodon having a nice bounceback season for the New York Yankees has been assisted by one of the team’s greatest pitchers of all time.
The expectations for Carlos Rodon were high after the Yankees gave him a six-year, $162 million contract two offseasons ago. Unfortunately, like many big-time New York free agent signings before him, he had a terrible first season due to injuries and pressure.
However, the two-time All-Star entered 2024 healthy and has been a key part of the team’s route to the best record in the American League this season. This year Rodon led the team in wins (16) and innings pitched (175). Unfortunately, his first postseason game in pinstripes was nearly as disappointing as his debut season for the franchise.
In Game 2 of their Divisional Series against the Kansas City Royals, Carlos Rodon was battered around for four runs and seven hits over just 3.2 innings. That was the only defeat the Yanks suffered against the Royals last week. It also led to shocking blowback on social media from unhappy Yankees fans. He knew he had to do far better in Game 1 of the ALCS versus the Cleveland Guardians.
To improve his chances for a better showing, Carlos Rodon reportedly turned to a person who has played a key role in his 2024 resurgence, New York Yankees legend Andy Pettitte.
New York Yankees great had a unique role in Carlos Rodon’s ALCS Game 1 victory
“Pettitte called Rodón on Sunday,” The Athletic revealed on Tuesday morning. “The Yankees postseason legend, now a special advisor for the organization, has been a sounding board and a mentor for Rodón. All season long, Pettitte would watch Rodón’s bullpen sessions and offer advice. But no advice stuck as well as their conversation on Sunday did.
“’We were just talking about how do we stay composed,” Rodón told the outlet. “The energy here in The Bronx is pretty high. I do feed off that. How do you channel that energy? How do you stay composed, even when it’s going well or when it’s going bad? It’s hard to do. It’s not easy for me.”
The conversation clearly was beneficial. In Game 1 versus the Guardians, Rodon had one of his best performances of the season. Giving up just one run and three hits, while striking out nine over six impressive innings.
The Yankees legend is one of the franchise’s greatest performers in the playoffs. Winning 18 games and pitching well over 100 innings in the postseason.
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