Rodón, on IL, won’t pitch in Giants-Yankees opening series originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
It appears that Carlos Rodón won’t face his former team in the New York Yankees’ 2023 home opener against the Giants.
Rodón will start the season on the injured list due to a left forearm muscle strain, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters Thursday, and won’t throw for seven to 10 days.
Cashman later referred to the injury as “not serious” and added that it’s something Rodón went through last season and didn’t miss any time.
When Rodón left San Francisco for the Bronx after signing a six-year, $162 million contract with the Yankees in December, the Giants knew it was only a matter of time before they had to face their former ace in pinstripes.
That exact time was expected to come during the opening series between the two clubs on March 30 and March 31, with Yankees manager Aaron Boone predicting Rodón could have been on the mound against his former team during the second game of the series. Gerrit Cole is expected to get the Opening Day nod.
In 31 starts with the Giants last year, Rodón posted a 2.88 ERA and 2.25 FIP, which led MLB. He also led MLB in strikeouts-per-nine, finishing with 237 overall, the second-most by a Giants lefty in the last 100 years.
Rodón set a franchise record by throwing 11 double-digit strikeout games, and he finished the season ranked second among all MLB pitchers in FanGraphs’ version of Wins Above Replacement. He was an All-Star for a second consecutive season and finished sixth in NL Cy Young Award voting.
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And while the Giants won’t come head-to-head against their former ace, they’ll see another familiar face at Yankee Stadium when Aaron Judge, whom San Francisco heavily pursued in free agency, takes on his hometown team.
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