1 potential reunion the SF Giants are glad that they passed on

When the 2022 season came to an end, the SF Giants had to consider whether to retain Carlos Rodón on a long-term deal. However, that is one reunion the Giants are glad they passed on as he has struggled in two seasons with the New York Yankees.

1 potential reunion the SF Giants are glad that they passed on

The Giants inked the southpaw pitcher to a two-year, $44 million pact right before the 2022 season. This included an opt-out is he reached 110 innings in his first season with San Francisco.

From Rodón's first start with the Giants where he allowed one earned run with 12 strikeouts in five innings against the Miami Marlins, fans knew that his stay with the club would be brief assuming he reached that innings threshold. In the previous offseason, veteran hurler Kevin Gausman had departed in free agency to join the Toronto Blue Jays on a five-year, $110 million deal.

The Giants did not put in a competitive offer to Gausman despite him being the ace of the rotation during his two years with the club. There was a good chance that the front office would approach Rodón the same way in free agency.

Rodón battled injuries and inconsistency during the early part of his career. There was not much of a track record to bet on yet he was coming off of a career year with San Francisco after posting a 2.88 ERA in 31 starts in 2022. Rodón was going to command a massive deal in free agency.

That turned out to be true as Rodón joined the Yankees on a six-year, $162 million deal. Both the dollars and years were well outside of the Giants' comfort zone. They have been generally reluctant to go beyond three years with any pitcher recently, so six years was always going to be well out of their comfort zone.

Despite this, it looks like the Giants' conservative approach was the right call. The 31-year-old battled shoulder fatigue in his first year with New York, limiting him to a 6.85 ERA in 14 appearances.

Rodón has done a much better job staying on the mound this year, but the results have been more middling than good. In 26 starts, he has registered a 4.16 ERA, 4.36 FIP, 1.23 WHIP, 1.5 HR/9, 9.8 K/9, and a 3.40 SO/W rate.

While his strikeout rate remains healthy, there has been a sharp decline in that category since his lone season with San Francisco (12.0 K/9). His four-seam fastball still sits in the mid-90's, so that is a promising sign that he can regain that form he once had.

However, Rodón is not throwing that pitch or his slider as much as he did in a Giants uniform. That change in usage has, for the most part, been reallocated to his changeup. When he was with the Giants, his fastball-slider combo were just dominant pitches, but they are much more hittable than they have been in the past. The need for a third pitch could be seen as a sign that he is no longer getting the same results with his primary offerings.

Plus, it bears mentioning that Rodón has recorded a 1.7 HR/9 rate since becoming a Yankee. Pitching in the hitter-friendly confines of Yankee Stadium will not help any pitcher's home run frequency, but that is a number to monitor as he ages. Throwing at Oracle Park would likely help him in this category.

That is a moot point now. The 10-year veteran is under contract with the Yankees for the next four seasons after this one. With the benefit of hindsight, the Giants made the right call in passing on him and that call may seem even more prudent a couple of years down the road from now.