Ryan Parry/Archive
Sophomore pitcher Carlos Rodon pitches against Appalachian State University Friday, Feb.15, 2013. Rodon suffered his first loss of his collegiate career falling to the Mountaineers 6-3 at Doak Field at Dail Park.
Since signing with the San Francisco Giants in March, left-handed pitcher Carlos Rodón has been nothing short of fantastic through his first three starts with his new team. With his season ERA hovering just above 1.00, Rodón’s made himself worth every penny of the two year, $44 million deal that he agreed to.
As of now, Rodón is thriving in the leaderboards as his 1.06 ERA is tied for fourth best all across Major League Baseball. His WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched), which has seen major improvement, is currently 0.82, and 10th best in the league. Perhaps more impressive is the fact that his 29 strikeouts rank first in the MLB.
In comparison, during his 2021 campaign, Rodón posted a 2.37 ERA through 24 games, with a WHIP total of 0.957. His win/loss percentage, which was the best of his career, was slated at 0.722 and tied for sixth best. His strikeout total was 185, which he should easily break if he continues to produce good outings like he has so far. It should be noted that besides his win/loss percentage, he did not break the top ten in the other stats. He currently sits either in the top 10 or right outside for all of the stats listed.
Rodón played for the Wolfpack from 2012 to 2014. During his time with the program, he shined; proving to be one of the best baseball players NC State has ever seen. He would then be drafted by the Chicago White Sox as the third overall pick in the 2014 MLB Draft, where he spent seven seasons with the team.
The reasons behind Rodón’s warm start could stem from several different factors. The looming one includes the fact that during his time in Chicago, he was never truly the number one pitcher. Even in the 2021 season where he saw lots of improvement in his game, he still started the fifth most games on the team. So far in San Francisco, he is tied for the most starts on the team.
Also, his number of strikeouts and home runs allowed have contributed to his performance. In the best years of his career, the amount of strikeouts posted by Rodón have been very high. So far, he has thrown a remarkably high number of them, greatly limiting opposing batters’ opportunities. He is also known for not allowing a lot of homers, never allowing more than 23 in a season. So far, he has yet to allow one. This has helped show that he has been able to build off his past strengths to accompany a possible new role.
Even though it is still very early in the season, Rodón is proving to be one of the best pitchers in the game. It would not be surprising if he took another step forward this season after the one he had last year. Even though he is on contract until 2024, there is a great possibility that next offseason Rodón signs a longer deal with the team. This would give him the prime opportunity to cement himself as one of the best in the game.