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Carlos Rodón spent most of March pitching on back fields before finally returning for his Grapefruit League send-off last Friday.
When he did, the Yankees Opening Day starter unveiled a little pet project that may or may not be part of his game this season: a sinker.
Rodón only threw four in his spring finale against the Tigers, according to Statcast, but it could be another pitch that helps get batters off of his bread-and-butter pitches.
“Just another wrinkle to his arsenal — not being as predictable with just the four-seam and slider,” pitching coach Matt Blake said this week. “Obviously added the changeup and the curveball last year. Looking at adding a one-seam to his mix and see where it goes.”
Clarke Schmidt also tweaked his sinker this offseason to become a one-seam fastball, but the unveiling of his in real games won’t come until April as he begins the season on the injured list to build up his pitch count.
Rodón, meanwhile, will get the first crack at the Brewers on Thursday at Yankee Stadium following a spring in which his changeup looked like more of a consistent weapon than it was last season.
“More confident in it, throwing it in more situations,” Blake said. “Just not letting people lean on the fastball as much, trying to avoid slug with him.”
Last season, opponents hit .262 with a .514 slugging percentage off Rodón’s four-seam fastball — less than ideal for a pitch he still threw 49.3 percent of the time.
But that usage was down from where it was during a rocky first year in pinstripes (60.3 percent) as he began to expand his arsenal.
“I felt like I settled in last year,” Rodón said. “Made every start. Performance-wise, I wish I could have been a little better, especially in the postseason. But I feel comfortable where I’m at and I’m just going to go out there and make my starts.”
A few of the newest Yankees were looking forward to their first Opening Day in The Bronx.
“I think Thursday is going to be electric,” Cody Bellinger said. “For myself, every Opening Day, I always get those jitters and goose bumps and nerves. It’s probably going to be a whole other level in The Bronx. So, excited to be part of it.”
Max Fried, who will start Game 2 on Saturday, was planning on soaking in the environment on Thursday.
“It’ll be fun to be able to sit there and enjoy it like everyone else,” Fried said.
The Yankees will hold a moment of silence pregame Thursday for Miller Gardner, the 14-year-old son of Brett Gardner who passed away last week on a family vacation.
Andy Pettitte will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
By the end of camp, the Yankees who were taking advantage of the relaxed facial hair policy included Rodón, Devin Williams, Jasson Domínguez, Yoendrys Gómez, Mark Leiter Jr., Oswaldo Cabrera, Pablo Reyes and Will Warren.
Barring a late external move, Gomez and Brent Headrick appear to have won the last two spots in the bullpen after the Yankees optioned Yerry De Los Santos to Triple-A on Wednesday.
The team also made a slew of injured list moves, putting DJ LeMahieu (calf strain) and Giancarlo Stanton (right and left elbow epicondylitis) on the 10-day IL and Clayton Beeter (shoulder impingement syndrome), JT Brubaker (fractured ribs), Scott Effross (hamstring strain), Ian Hamilton (viral illness), Jonathan Loaisiga (elbow surgery recovery) and Clarke Schmidt (rotator cuff tendinitis) on the 15-day IL.
