LAKELAND, Fla. – The Yankees’ Opening Day battery of Carlos Rodón and Austin Wells appears ready for prime time.
Rodón hurled 4 2/3 scoreless innings in his final spring tuneup, and Wells homered twice as the Yankees defeated the Tigers, 4-0, in Grapefruit League play on Friday at Publix Field. The duo’s next pairing will come in the March 27 opener against the Brewers at Yankee Stadium.
“It’s just kind of what we do – just turn the lights on and go play,” Rodón said.
Named the Yankees’ Opening Day starter following a season-ending right elbow injury to ace right-hander Gerrit Cole, Rodón limited Detroit to three hits in a 77-pitch effort (45 strikes), walking three and striking out five. Rodón said he considers the Opening Day nod an honor, but added: “I would rather have Gerrit Cole pitching the first game and him being healthy.”
“He’s our ace, he’s our rock,” Rodón said. “It’s tough. It’s part of pitching; it seems like all of us have gone through some sort of surgery. He’s a Hall of Fame pitcher, and it’s tough to have him not be a part of this season, but it’s our job as a pitching staff to pick him up.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he has confidence in Rodón’s ability to lead the staff.
“With Carlos, I remind him of this every now and then: I just want him to focus on going to the post every fifth or sixth day,” Boone said. “Just focus on that, taking the ball and doing all the work in between. If you do that, it’s going to add up to good stuff. I feel like he’s in a good spot right now and ready to go Opening Day.”
It has been an eventful camp for the Yankees, including numerous other injuries and managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner announcing the franchise’s reversal of a policy forbidding facial hair (other than mustaches) that dated to the mid-1970s.
“I will say, there are some days I wake up in the morning and I’m like, ‘Do I need to shave today?’” said Rodón, who started growing his beard almost immediately after the club’s Feb. 21 announcement.
Wells has enjoyed a strong spring on both sides of the ball, batting .366 (15-for-41) with five homers. Boone is leaning toward using the catcher as the club’s leadoff hitter against right-handed pitching.
“It’s been fun,” Wells said. “I know it’s just Spring Training, and you’ve got to do it in the real [season]. But it’s been a lot of fun for me, getting to go up there and set the tone a little bit.”
The backstop belted a leadoff blast facing Tigers right-hander Keider Montero, then hit a three-run shot to the opposite field in the seventh off left-hander Tyler Holton as part of a three-hit performance.
“He’s swinging it really well,” Rodón said. “He seems pretty dialed in. Save some of that for the season, please.”
Senior Reporter Bryan Hoch has covered the Yankees for MLB.com since 2007.