Thanks to fans, Rodón gets to play Santa

TAMPA, Fla. -- The ramshackle wooden house stood amongst trees in a rural area near Danville, Ill., off a two-lane roadway that saw its heaviest traffic during deer hunting season. Carlos Rodón passed it frequently during his journeys across the Indiana state line, occasionally seeing a young boy get on or off a school bus.

Rodón wondered about that boy; who lived in that house, the one in a cornfield with no neighbors. This past winter, Rodón discovered that fire had consumed the structure, leaving only junk and ashes. It coincided with Rodón’s free agency, a period in which fans had sent microdonations to the hurler’s Venmo account, hoping to entice the left-hander to sign with the Yankees.

“My cousin [Ethan] came up with a great idea,” Rodón said, “to take that money, match the donations and help the family have a nice Christmas. We got there, the house was burned to the ground, and a lady was standing out front. The timing of it was pretty interesting.”

Rodón said that the family had already resettled into an RV park. Its one request was to provide a holiday gift for its 16-year-old son, Damien, the same boy Rodón and his cousin had seen get off the school bus years ago.

“We asked her, ‘What do you need? What do you want?’” Rodón said. “They said they had clothes and a place to live. The biggest thing for her was her son. She said, ‘We can’t get anything for Christmas. We want to make his Christmas special.’ And I said, ‘We’ve got this money from Venmo.’”

The Venmo fund had totaled about $600; Rodón’s wife, Ashley, initially had sent a few donations back to fans, but she could not keep up with the flood of requests. They learned the boy loved video games, especially Minecraft. Walking into a nearby Best Buy, Rodón, his son Bo and their cousin picked out a top-of-the-line computer, then delivered it personally to the RV.

“Fortunately, we made someone’s Christmas that has had a rough year, and we helped out a family and tried to make it a special Christmas for them,” Rodón said. “So thank you, Yankees fans. You guys made it happen.”

The episode provides a heartwarming beginning to what Rodón expects will be a successful chapter in New York, having signed a six-year, $162 million contract with the Yankees in December.

The 30-year-old arrived as one of the top free-agent arms on the market, coming off a season in which he went 14-8 with a 2.88 ERA in 31 starts for the Giants, pacing the Majors in FIP (2.25) and strikeouts per nine innings (12.0).

And while that family in Indiana’s Vermillion County might have a hard time believing it, Rodón can easily flip the switch from "generous good guy" to "nasty ace-caliber starter." He flashed a preview from the mound at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Thursday, working with catcher Kyle Higashioka to blow fastballs and sliders past a hitting group that included Jose Trevino, Ben Rortvedt and Josh Breaux.

“He’s a little brash, confident, and just competitive,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Certainly, you see it when we get into a live situation. He comes with that reputation, having a little fire to him. He certainly has that, while easy to talk to and fit in with. I feel like he’s off to a good start.”

An All-Star who merited Cy Young Award consideration in each of the past two seasons, Rodón said that he is beginning to settle into his pinstripes, though he probably won’t get the full experience until he’s on the mound at Yankee Stadium. He has high hopes for the Bombers’ rotation, which also features Gerrit Cole, Luis Severino and Nestor Cortes.

“I would say there’s a lot of good arms,” Rodón said. “Quite a few All-Stars, it seems like. It could be something special if we all do our jobs and show up every five days and take the ball, even though sometimes you won’t feel great. That’s just part of the game. If we show up and take the ball, everything else will take care of itself.”