For the Yankees, the injury picture finally started to come into focus this week, and the biggest name on the mound might be the first one back.
Carlos Rodon’s second rehab start Thursday at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater looked like the kind of outing that can close the book on a rehab assignment. Against New Hampshire, he gave up two hits and one walk, struck out seven and threw 58 pitches, 41 of them for strikes. He also piled up 15 swings and misses, a much cleaner showing than the first step back last Saturday, when Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre tagged him for three runs over 2 2/3 innings.
Rodon said afterward that his job was straightforward and that he felt ready for big league hitters.
“I feel like I’m always ready to get big league hitters out,” Rodon told reporters after his outing. “The goal was to go out there and throw as many strikes as I could and be efficient.”
He did not put a date on his own return, though he made it clear he wants back in the mix.
“As far as what’s next, not sure,” Rodon said. “I’d love to go out there, compete and help our team win, but that is not up to me.”
Rodon has only made nine starts this season, going 4-2 with a 3.30 ERA and 52 strikeouts over 46 1/3 innings. His year was delayed by offseason surgery to remove a bone spur in his left elbow, which pushed his debut to May 10, and injuries have continued to interrupt the season since then.
The Yankees are considering a piggyback setup to ease him back into the rotation, with another starter such as Ryan Weathers or Will Warren potentially working behind him. Rodon said he is fine with whatever the club decides.
“I’m willing to do whatever to help our team win,” Rodon said. “If they think that’s the avenue they want to go, I’m ready to perform and help our team win.”
If Rodon is the first piece to return, the Yankees may not be waiting much longer for help in the lineup either. A report from Jon Heyman pointed to Cody Bellinger and Giancarlo Stanton coming back around Sept. 1, which would give New York two big bats for the final stretch.
Bellinger looks like the more realistic target. Before straining his left hamstring July 25 in Philadelphia, he was hitting .259 with a .350 on-base percentage, 11 home runs, 53 RBIs and 21 doubles in 102 games.
The injury was diagnosed as a Grade 2 strain with a four-to-six-week timetable, and he has since resumed baseball activities. The remaining hurdle is getting back to running and playing the outfield without favoring the leg.
Stanton is a trickier case. He hit .256 with three homers and 14 RBIs in 24 games before a right calf strain shut him down in late April, then aggravated the calf again during a June rehab stint. At 36, the Yankees are unlikely to force the issue, and he will need rehab at-bats to get his timing back.
The appeal of both returns is obvious. Bellinger would give the Yankees a left-handed bat, outfield flexibility and a glove they can trust.
Stanton would add the kind of right-handed power the lineup has been missing, especially with Aaron Judge also banged up. Even if he’s only available in a reduced role, he changes the look of the middle of the order against left-handed pitching.
Nothing is locked in. Rodon’s next step depends on the team, and the Sept. 1 target for Bellinger and Stanton is only an estimate. Both hamstring and calf injuries have already shown they can slow things down.
Even so, this was the clearest injury update the Yankees have gotten in a while. They head to Toronto and then Baltimore with their playoff position still in play and a roster that suddenly feels a lot closer to whole.
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