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TAMPA — A coach coming to the mound beforehand led to one in every of Carlos Rodon’s worst moments as a Yankee.
On Monday, the scene served as a feel-good second, as a lot because it might for a spring coaching sport.
Rodon had simply thrown his 72nd and closing pitch throughout 5 ²/₃ no-hit innings in opposition to the Phillies when Joe Torre, a particular visitor at camp for just a few days, started his stroll out to the mound to take the ball.
The aggressive Rodon, nonetheless within the zone, knew he had three pitches remaining in his allotment and was about to face a left-handed hitter.
“I used to be like, ‘What the hell, it’s a lefty?’ I search for and I used to be like, ‘Oh, it’s Joe Torre. I ought to give him the ball,’ ” Rodon stated with amusing. “I used to be like, ‘All proper, I can’t actually say a lot right here.’ Spring coaching sport, Joe Torre, yeah. So I needed to give the ball away. It was humorous. It was cool.
“I needed to be like, ‘Get out of right here,’ ” Rodon added, “however it’s Joe Torre.”
Between the previous Yankees supervisor making a cameo and Rodon having put collectively an encouraging outing, the gang at Steinbrenner Discipline delivered a loud ovation.
Torre spoke with Rodon for just a few seconds as his infielders surrounded him, together with Anthony Volpe smiling ear-to-ear.
“He was simply saying that was lots simpler to take the ball from him there than [Andy] Pettitte,” catcher Austin Wells stated. “I assumed that was fairly humorous. … That was actually particular.”
The Yankees hope there are extra feel-good moments to return from Rodon, who struck out 5 and walked one throughout his penultimate begin of the spring.
Coming off a brutal first season in pinstripes — together with turning his again on pitching coach Matt Blake in his season finale final 12 months — the $162 million left-hander had gotten off to a shaky begin this spring earlier than delivering back-to-back stable outings during which his fastball velocity ticked again up.
It averaged 94.6 mph on Monday and topped out at 96.4 mph.
The Phillies have been enjoying a split-squad sport, so they didn’t deliver something near a full lineup. Their solely regulars have been Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh and light-hitting outfielder Johan Rojas.
Nonetheless, having success in opposition to any form of lineup must be helpful to Rodon as he tries to rediscover his swagger.
“It’s coming alongside,” Rodon stated. “Simply preserve constructing confidence. At the moment was one other good step.”
Supervisor Aaron Boone favored what he noticed from Rodon however was much less centered on the outcomes.
“Look, he’s in a great place,” Boone stated. “I’m going to maintain saying this — good, unhealthy, detached — it’s nearly stacking actually good days. That’s what he’s been doing for months now. I need him to focus, prepare, go to the publish. Now it’s, ‘What do I do the subsequent days to prepare for my subsequent begin?’ If he retains doing that and the place he’s at, in the long run he’ll achieve success.”
For now, Monday was simply one other constructing block with a particular twist on the finish.
Boone had been engaged on getting Torre to make a pitching change for just a few days — first by getting him in uniform for the primary time since 2007 after which convincing him to take the stroll to the mound from their side-by-side seats by the Yankees dugout.
“At the moment, he was like, ‘All proper, let’s go,’ ” Boone stated. “He was even going to take the [catcher’s] wristband out, I stated, ‘No, don’t take the wristband.’ He stated, ‘Properly I may have a map to get on the market.’ Nevertheless it was superior. What a deal with to have him right here the previous few days. Our guys beloved it. I believe Joe actually beloved it. Actually for me, to have him, simply an ear to bend. It’s been nice.”
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