The Yankees announced a series of roster moves today. Infielder Ryan McMahon and outfielder Trent Grisham have each been reinstated from the ten-day injured list. In corresponding moves, infielder/outfielder Oswaldo Cabrera has been optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and left-hander Carlos Rodón has been placed on the 15-day injured list with elbow inflammation, retroactive to June 30th. That temporarily gives the Yankees 14 position players and 12 pitchers, though they will probably call up a fresh at some point to go back to a standard 13-13 split.
Rodón last pitched for the Yankees on Sunday and there was no indication that anything was amiss. He tossed 96 pitches over five innings. His velocity was in line with expectations. It’s possible that an issue cropped up after that outing or during a between-starts bullpen session.
At this point, it’s unclear how serious this injury is or how much time Rodón is expected to miss. It’s possible it’s fairly minor and the Yankees are just being cautious, giving Rodón a breather with the All-Star break coming up.
But it’s worth noting Rodón’s track record, as his career has been peppered with injuries. From 2017 to 2020, he missed a lot of time and didn’t top 20 starts in any of those seasons, due to a variety of ailments. He was mostly healthy in 2021 and 2022, which led the Yankees to give him a six-year, $162MM deal going into 2023.
A forearm strain limited him to 14 starts in his first season in the Bronx, though he was healthy in 2024 and 2025. His elbow was an issue coming into this year. He underwent surgery in October of 2025 to remove loose bodies from that elbow. He began this season on the 15-day IL but was back on May 10th. Since then, he has been performing quite well, with a 3.30 earned run average in nine starts. But now, he’s back on the shelf with an elbow issue once again.
Rodón was scheduled to start tomorrow’s game, so the Yankees will have to figure out how to handle their rotation. They have Gerrit Cole, Ryan Weathers, Cam Schlittler and Will Warren in four spots. Guys like Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn are in the bullpen and having starting experience but they’re not stretched out. Neither has topped three innings in an outing this year and it’s been a few weeks since either of them went more than two. Max Fried and Clarke Schmidt are also on the IL but aren’t close to returning.
Carlos Lagrange won’t be an option, as he just landed on the minor league injured list with a shoulder injury, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Even if he were healthy, the Yanks moved him to a relief role a few weeks ago. Luis Gil was shut down in May with a shoulder issue and hasn’t made an official appearance since. Elmer Rodríguez has been in the big leagues a few times this year but he just started in Triple-A yesterday, so he won’t be available for a few days. Brendan Beck is on the 40-man and last started on Saturday, so perhaps he would be an option for a spot start.
The Yankees should still have a pretty strong rotation even without Rodón and, as mentioned, the All-Star break is coming up. That will give them a chance to rest and reset for the second half. Still, the club surely doesn’t want another issue to deal with as they look to avoid another summer swoon. Fans have grown frustrated in recent years as the club often jumps out to a hot start and them slumps in the warmer months.
This year’s trouble seemingly kicked off with the Aaron Judge injury a month ago. The club went 12-14 in June and has been particularly cold lately, as they are currently mired in a seven-game losing streak. They are still in playoff position but the unease in the fanbase is growing. Yet another injury won’t help, even if it proves to be a minor one.
Photo courtesy of Paul Rutherford, Imagn Images
