Carlos Rodon Looks To Keep the Good Vibes Going As New York Yankees Close Out 2025 Regular Season

Carlos Rodon started this game for the New York Yankees as they looked to sweep the Chicago White Sox. Rodon looked to mow down the White Sox and give the Yankees their fifth game in a row, and with a loss by the Toronto Blue Jays, move into solo possession of first place in the American League East.

The Yankees won this game 5-3, sweeping the hapless White Sox. Rodon pitched well. He picked up his 18th win of the season, which is one behind his teammate Max Fried for the lead in Major League Baseball. Do you think Fried and Rodon give the Yankees a formidable top two pitchers in their playoff pitching rotation?

Lineups For Carlos Rodon Start

The Chicago White Sox had Chase Meidroth leading off and playing second base. Curtis Mead was the third baseman and batted second. Colson Montgomery batted third and was the shortstop. Edgar Quero was the designated hitter and batted fourth. Korey Lee pinch-ran for him in the eighth inning. He stayed in the game as the designated hitter.

Miguel Vargas was the first baseman and batted fifth. Kyle Teel was the catcher and batted sixth. Michael Taylor was the right fielder and batted seventh. He was pinch-hit for by Brooks Baldwin in the sixth inning. Baldwin stayed in to play right field. Corey Julks was the left fielder, and he batted eighth. Will Robinson pinch-hit for him and stayed in to play left field. Derek Hill was the center fielder and batted ninth.

For the Yankees, Trent Grisham played center field and led off. Aaron Judge was the right fielder and batted second. Cody Bellinger was the left fielder and batted third. Ben Rice was the first baseman and batted fourth. Paul Goldschmidt pinch-hit for him in the eighth inning.  Giancarlo Stanton was the designated hitter and batted fifth. Jasson Dominguez pinch-ran for him in the seventh inning. He stayed in the game as the designated hitter. Jazz Chisholm Jr. was the second baseman and batted sixth. Austin Wells was the catcher and batted seventh.  Anthony Volpe was the shortstop and batted eighth. Ryan McMahon was the catcher and batted ninth. 

News and Notes

The Yankees began this game in a tie with the Toronto Blue Jays. They had identical records. The Blue Jays won tonight, so the Yankees did not gain any ground. Judge was intentionally walked again in this game. That was his 35th intentional walk of the season. That set an American League record. It broke a tie with Ted Williams.

Game Reaction

Rodon needed just two strikeouts in this game, his last one of the season, to get to 200 strikeouts. He has had 200 strikeouts only once in his career previously. He did it when he was a pitcher for the San Francisco Giants. Rodon pitched six innings, and then he was replaced by Luke Weaver. He struck out five batters, so he finished with 203 strikeouts. Devin Williams came in to pitch the eighth inning. The great pitching performance of Fried and the Yankees’ crushing 8-1 win last night was still a conversation topic. The Yankees used that win to draw even with the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League East.

Scoring Summary

In the first inning, Rice grounded out and Grisham scored. It was 1-0 Yankees. In the second inning, Julks hit a sacrifice fly and Teel scored. That tied the game at 1. In the fourth inning, Taylor hit a two-run home run, and Vargas scored. It was 3-1, White Sox.

In the fifth inning, Stanton doubled with the bases loaded, and Judge, Bellinger, and Rice all scored. The Yankees led 4-3. In the seventh inning, Wells doubled and Dominguez scored. It was 5-3 Yankees.

Conclusion

Rodon pitched pretty well tonight. It was good that he was able to strike out five batters to top 200 strikeouts in a season for only the second time in his career. It was also good for the Yankees that the bullpen, specifically Weaver and Williams, was able to hold the lead. That bodes well for the playoffs. The Yankees begin their final series at home against the Orioles tomorrow night.