Carlos Rodón takes step forward as Yankees split Subway Series with Mets – The Denver Post

Yankees fans weren’t thrilled when Carlos Rodón blew a kiss in frustration at hecklers his last time out, but few had any issue with the southpaw shouting a few swears on Wednesday night.

Rodón, coming off the worst start of his young Yankees career, showed emotion once again at Yankee Stadium. This time, however, the situation garnered more approval for the pitcher’s competitive nature, as Rodón dropped a few cuss words after striking out the Mets’ Pete Alonso on three straight sliders to end the fifth inning with runners on first and second.

“I just kind of lose it sometimes in big moments,” Rodón said afterward. He said he didn’t remember what was said, but his manager enjoyed the display in a 3-1 Yankees win.

“If that keeps him sharp mentally and keeps that edge going, then I love it,” Aaron Boone said.

The Alonso at-bat was the highlight of the night for Rodón, who had to battle despite holding the Mets to one run over 5.2 innings. Rodón, pitching in front of Yankees fans for the first time since his criticized kiss, totaled four hits, three walks and four strikeouts over 93 pitches while recording his first win for the Bombers.

“It’s been a long road for him,” Boone said, referring to forearm and back issues that delayed Rodón’s Yankees debut. “I remember sitting up here when we signed him and how meaningful it was to him. And then to have a couple setbacks there in spring training that slowed him, definitely wore on him and ate at him. He hated not being out there with us. So to come back, and now in his fourth outing, really throw well against a good offense in this kind of atmosphere with a lot on the line, yeah, definitely happy for him.”

Rodón also hit Jeff McNeil square in the back with a 95-mph fastball in the fourth inning. McNeil expressed some emotions of his own, spiking his helmet after he hit the ground. The Yankees had already hit a few batters in the series, but no retaliation came from McNeil’s plunking.

“I’d rather be in the zone there and not hit a guy in the back,” Rodón said. “We’re professionals. I know this is our livelihood, and the last thing you want to do is hit someone like that.”

The only Mets run off Rodón came in the third frame when Brandon Nimmo hit a sac fly. Rodón fought to stay in when Boone came to get him with two outs and a runner on in the sixth, but his fourth start with the Yankees was also his longest.

“I was trying to stay in,” Rodón said. “I was trying to lobby for it, but I understood the call.”

Added Boone: “I was making the move. But I listened to him, so we’ll see moving forward. But a really strong outing and an outing we needed.”

While Rodón’s plea proved unsuccessful, that and his profane outburst certainly caught his teammates’ attention.

“He’s attacking guys. He’s not afraid. He’s a bulldog out there, and that’s the kind of energy we need. It’s fun to play behind him,” Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “It fires me up. It fires us up. We want to make plays for him. We know how bad he wants it. And it’s just that energy. That’s a Yankee mentality.”

The Yankees’ struggling offense, meanwhile, scratched and clawed to score off José Quintana. It had some help from the Mets’ defense, too.

The Yankees’ first run came in the second inning when Oswald Peraza hit a groundball that did not yield an out on a fielder’s choice. Isiah Kiner-Falefa proceeded to hit a shallow sac fly to right field. Harrison Bader was able to score on a well-positioned, head-first slide after McNeil slid to make the catch before throwing home.

The Yankees scored an additional run in the fourth when Bader scored on an RBI single from Volpe. Bader had previously singled and advanced to second on an error.

“We responded well,” Kiner-Falefa said, referring to the Yankees’ Tuesday loss. “They have a good team over there and we’re able to put some pressure on them, get some runners on base, and we were able to cash in tonight.”

Quintana was only charged with two of the three runs that scored on his watch. He allowed six hits and three walks while striking out five over six innings and 94 pitches in his second start for the Mets.

Michael King, Wandy Peralta, Tommy Kahnle and Clay Holmes finished the game for the Yankees without incident, while Drew Smith and Trevor Gott did the same out of the Mets’ bullpen.

“It’s easy to hand the ball over to those guys,” Rodón said of the Yankees’ relievers. “They’ll shut it down quick.”

With another Subway Series evenly split, the Yankees will enjoy a Thursday off day before starting a critical three-game series in Baltimore on Friday.

Gerrit Cole, Clarke Schmidt and Luis Severino are scheduled to start those games for the Yankees. Grayson Rodriguez, Tyler Wells and Dean Kramer will throw for the Orioles.

The Yankees will then host the Rays, another American League East rival, for a three-game series that overlaps with the Aug. 1 trade deadline.

“Everybody knows it’s gonna be a tough week right here,” Kiner-Falefa said, “and we got to take care of business.”

The Mets, meanwhile, begin hosting a four-game series against the Nationals on Thursday. Kodai Senga, Max Scherzer, Carlos Carrasco and Justin Verlander are lined up for the Mets. They will face Washington’s Josiah Gray, MacKenzie Gore, Patrick Corbin and Trevor Williams.

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