The Yankees have announced that they have activated Carlos Rodón off the 15-day injured list. Right-hander Kervin Castro was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move. Rodón will start today’s game against the Brewers.
Rodón underwent surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow in October and opened this season on the injured list to finish his recovery. He made his first rehab start near the end of April and was projected for two more before making his return to the Majors. That has now come to pass. Rodón built up to 6 1/3 innings in his most recent appearance with the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate, so he is at more or less full strength. He now steps into New York’s rotation in a mid-rotation role behind Max Fried and Cam Schlittler.
The 2025 season was Rodón’s third with the Yankees. It was easily his best with the club, as he pitched to a 3.09 ERA over 195 1/3 innings with 203 strikeouts. Rodón also increased his groundball rate by about 10% and cut back on home runs, allowing just over one per nine innings after surrendering 31 homers the year before. Altogether, Rodón’s contributions were worth 3.2 fWAR and re-established his reputation among Yankees fans following injuries and underperformance in 2023-24.
Rodón won’t be expected to pitch at his 2025 levels right away, nor is that a grave need for the Yankees. Despite the absences of Rodón and Gerrit Cole, New York’s rotation has been the best in the league. The group’s 3.01 ERA leads the Majors, as does their combined 5.2 fWAR. Fried and Schlittler have both been excellent, with Schlittler’s 1.35 ERA leading the pack among qualified starters. Will Warren is striking out more hitters and issuing fewer walks than last year. Ryan Weathers has also done well as a complementary piece. It’s only a quarter of the way into the season, but those four are all performing as expected or within reasonable projections. The return of Rodón figures to make the group even stronger.
Former Rookie of the Year Luis Gil was recently optioned to Triple-A after struggling in four starts. He was later shut down with shoulder inflammation, so he won’t be returning any time soon. Paul Blackburn got a spot start in the meantime, though he will stick to his familiar long relief role going forward. The open rotation spot allows Rodón to step in without demoting another starter for now. Cole is still a few rehab starts from returning, so the next rotation move will probably come at that point, barring an injury.
Meanwhile, Castro is heading back to Triple-A after making an appearance on Friday in the series opener. In two innings, he allowed one earned run on two hits and struck out two hitters. Though unremarkable on its own, it was a personal milestone for Castro, as it marked his first appearance in the Majors since 2022 with the Cubs. He spent 2023 in the Tigers’ system but only made 10 appearances, and he missed all of 2024 while recovering from his second Tommy John surgery. Castro’s demotion returns the Yankees’ bullpen from nine players to eight. As for Castro himself, he’ll stick around at Triple-A and could get another call when needed.
Photo courtesy of Brad Penner, Imagn Images
