DON'T LOOK NOW, BUT IS CARLOS RODON FINALLY A "RELIABLE" PITCHER?

Miracles do happen! By miracles, I mean I saw a game that Carlos Rodon pitched in and he did well so I didn't want to throw something at my television. I guess anything is possible. He did his job. He should do it consistently.

That's honestly how I feel. I'm not having a fangirl moment like Mark W Sanchez of the New York Post is HERE. We've all been waiting for Rodon to show us that he is a big gamer pitcher and can handle the Bronx. The pitcher he was with the White Sox and Giants hasn't been seen here. 2023 was a disaster, and this year was supposed to be different. This was to be his redemption year....it hasn't gone as planned until recently.

Give credit where credit is due (and I always do), he's pitched well his last three starts. I give extra credit for pitching well against division rivals in all three of those starts because that's what we need. The Yankees struggle across the board when it comes to division rivals, so I haven't overlooked his accomplishment there. However, I stopped short of Sanchez's enthusiasm when he asked "is Carlos Rodon, a flop last season, suddenly the most dependable Yankees starter?"

Woah...let's take a step back now. His last three starts as a win does not a "dependable" starter make. Consistency matters. The ability to be a big game pitcher against any team also matters. Oh and let's not overlook durability here. I'll join in on the Rodon fangirl club when he can pitch past the fifth inning AND pitch well against the better teams in the game. As much as I enjoyed watching him pitch against the Blue Jays, I had agita watching him against the Braves last month.

So, can we say he's suddenly the most dependable Yankees starter? not yet. Can we say he's more reliable than Marcus Stroman? Yeah, he's pitching batting practice to everyone in the batters box. I'm still not convinced that Rodon and Gerrit Cole are our most reliable starters as we pitch late into the season. He is on the right track, and I can appreciate that he's dropped his ERA down to 4.37 but show me some consistency down the stretch.

It looks like Rodon has made some adjustments, and they have worked well so far. Let's see more of that down the stretch against some good teams that could give the Yankees a run for their money heading into the postseason and then I will be convinced that he is the excellent starter the Yankees thought they were getting as a free agent.

Baby steps.... but I appreciate the progress.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj