Carlos Rodon Not Rushing His Return

Former NC State Ace Carlos Rodon will definitely return to the mound in the first half of 2018, but Rodon and his pitching coach aren’t ready to nail down an aggressive early date. The White Sox want to make sure they don’t rush their young pitcher back too soon from arthroscopic shoulder surgery.

“This is more about getting him healthy for the long term rather than an extra two or three starts in April or May of 2018,” Hahn (Pitching Coach) said. “I’m guessing it’s going to be closer to June 1, but until he’s actually throwing in games, it’s still speculative.”

“Patience,” Rodon said. “I’ve learned some already. I’m not trying to rush through things. I’m listening to my body and my shoulder. Some days, I might not be able to throw, and some days I will. That’s just the way this thing is going to go.”

“I didn’t know what soreness or pain were,” he said. “I just pitched through it. Now, I’m listening to my body better. I think at the end of this, it’s definitely going to make me better.”

“Everything is going pretty much as planned. As early as we are in the throwing program, everything seems to be going well. I think we’re close to four weeks in now, and a few more weeks to go. Keep chugging away and hope there are no setbacks.

“Lot of checkmarks I’ve still got to go through, and that’s not a bad thing.” (MLB)

Through three seasons, Rodon’s ERA is 3.95, and his record is 20-21. Even though his season was cut short last year, he held batters to a career low batting average of .246, and a career low WHIP of 1.37.