Can Rodon become a quality mlb starter?

[Dominikk85]

He certainly has the arm strength but there are several issues:

 

-walks too many guys

-too many HR

- ok K rate but really not that great for that era and his command, basically average

-lack of a quality third pitch leading him to not getting out righties.

 

That is a lot of issues to correct. On the plus side he is young, throws mid 90s and has a slider that flashes plus albeit the location is not consistent enough yet.

 

I think he definitely has a future in mlb but I'm not sure it will be as a starter. Still the sox should give him all the time to develop as a starter but a fallback would always be a dominant lefty reliever if he tightens up his slider command.

[Wanne]

I don't think now is the time to really start wringing hands over him. Let's let him get back to 100% healthy...and go thru a full off season program and spring training. I'm willing to at least cut him a little slack for the time being.

[BaconOnAStick]

Andrew Miller

[witesoxfan]

Andrew Miller

 

That was the thought I had while following the game this afternoon.

[SoxAce]

Yes. Next question.

[Chisoxfn]

This is essentially spring training for him. What is with all the Rodon hate. In two seasons with the Sox he has flashed streaks (and on multiple occassions) where he pitches at an elite level. 1st year was getting through the jitters, 2nd year was adding to the workload and obviously 3rd year should have been building the consistency, but still, he's striking out 9.1 guys per 9 innings and hasn't ever gotten hit that much. Walks are about the only thing we could argue much about. He's made 4 freaking starts after missing most of the year with injuries. Things take time. If he is getting crushed all year...then we can start to worry (more so because I presume he's got health issues...cause he's far too talented when healthy to not be at least a good pitcher).

 

And where do the Andrew Miller comps come from? Miller was a crappy starter/crappy major league pitcher for his first 5 to 6 years (it wasn't until his 2nd year in Boston that he did anything worthwhile). And during those first 5 to 6 crappy years he wasn't striking out guys anywhere close to what Rodon does...it wasn't until his second year in Boston where his strikeout rate jumped to 11 per 9 inning (after being in that 6-8 range).

 

Note: The only similarity between Miller and Rodon is they were high picks / very highly touted prospects, who throw left handed. Rodon's actual major league success (not withstanding 4/5 starts this year) as a starter are lightyears beyond anything Miller did early in his major league career.

[username]

He was a quality major league starter the last two years. Everyone needs to relax. Dude is 24 and he's working his way back.

Edited July 25, 2017 by Username

[Boopa1219]

Is the sky blue?

Is water wet?

[Lip Man 1]

It's a good question in my opinion. Obviously he's got the stuff but he's inconsistent and can't stay healthy (which may be why he's inconsistent). To me he seems like another rushed Sox prospect who still needs a lot of work learning his trade.

 

The good news is that for the next two years he can learn on the job...the downside long term is his agent. He's going to hit the free agent market and we'll see if the Sox will be willing to match what his agent is going to try to get for him.

Edited July 25, 2017 by Lip Man 1

[Boopa1219]

He was a quality major league starter the last two years. Everyone needs to relax. Dude is 24 and he's working his way back.

 

The fact that this is even a thread is ridiculous.

 

The guy missed most of the season, give him time to get himself sorted out.

[Soxfest]

I will wait till he is healthy all year before passing judgement.

[Quin]

Yeah

[kwill]

Most people have commented along my thoughts as well which is he was rushed the big leagues and still is rounding into form last year. At the end of last year, he was flashing a plus changeup. You add that along with his slider and fastball and he could be a top 5 starter in the league.

 

Sale has given us this unreal expectations of how quickly a guy can become dominant.

[ptatc]

Is the sky blue?

Is water wet?

Not below 0 degrees celsius.

[southsider2k5]

Dude has some of the best stuff in baseball, of course he can be a quality starter.

[chitownsportsfan]

Dude has some of the best stuff in baseball, of course he can be a quality starter.

 

Obviously his stuff is nasty but until he learns first pitch strike he's going to have days like today where his ERA and xFIP diverge by 10 runs.

[Señor Ding-Dong]

I'm not worried about Rodon at all. He's young and has nasty stuff. As others have said, he's just getting back and this is basically spring training for him. At worst he'll be a #3 IMO.

[winninguglyin83]

problem with Rodon is he is burning through his third and final inexpensive season this year.

 

He'll be making $4 or $5 million next year -- and he's floundering this season.

 

I think we're suffering from rushing him to the big leagues too soon before he was forced to learn how to pitch out of jams, command the zone and refine his skills in the minors.

 

His arm and hard slider are terrific.

 

But he's not getting results.

 

Pitch count sky high every game.

[caulfield12]

Last year, he was throwing 95-98 routinely in the second half of games.

 

He's always going to struggle unless he can improve his fastball control (see Giolito) and learn to get ahead of hitters. His fastball is one of the straightest...obviously the slider's one of the best in the league, but it's going to come down to limiting walks and being able to pitch ahead more and no suffer from elevated pitch counts.

 

Like Sale, he would often start the early innings of a game (last season, at least) in cruise control (91-93 mph FB) and get beat up quite a bit until the later innings.

 

Then he'd invariably run into pitch count issues later on.

 

The question is how long they eventually wait to trade him...obviously they will wait until he's had a dominant run as a starter, whether it's 2018, 19 or whatever. Just have to be patient, like all elements of the rebuild.

 

 

 

We're all frustrated with Rodon (not his fault, particularly...with injury), Anderson, Fulmer and Collins. Those were supposed to be four key building blocks who suddenly look much iffier.

[Thomas_Ventura_Roberts]

This is essentially spring training for him. What is with all the Rodon hate. In two seasons with the Sox he has flashed streaks (and on multiple occassions) where he pitches at an elite level. 1st year was getting through the jitters, 2nd year was adding to the workload and obviously 3rd year should have been building the consistency, but still, he's striking out 9.1 guys per 9 innings and hasn't ever gotten hit that much. Walks are about the only thing we could argue much about. He's made 4 freaking starts after missing most of the year with injuries. Things take time. If he is getting crushed all year...then we can start to worry (more so because I presume he's got health issues...cause he's far too talented when healthy to not be at least a good pitcher).

 

And where do the Andrew Miller comps come from? Miller was a crappy starter/crappy major league pitcher for his first 5 to 6 years (it wasn't until his 2nd year in Boston that he did anything worthwhile). And during those first 5 to 6 crappy years he wasn't striking out guys anywhere close to what Rodon does...it wasn't until his second year in Boston where his strikeout rate jumped to 11 per 9 inning (after being in that 6-8 range).

 

Note: The only similarity between Miller and Rodon is they were high picks / very highly touted prospects, who throw left handed. Rodon's actual major league success (not withstanding 4/5 starts this year) as a starter are lightyears beyond anything Miller did early in his major league career.

 

What you said is so true. In addition, if someone told me that a young pitcher, with limited minor league experience, coming off of an injury, and facing a really good offensive club would register 11 strikeouts in 4 innings, I would say that guy has some potential even if he gave up 4 runs. To paraphrase Steve Stone, some prospects with potential will take the next step in their development and some will not. There is no reason to presume he is any different than other talented young starting pitching prospect. Sure, if he doesn't take strides, then one would consider putting him in the bullpen; but for now, it is wait and see time.

Edited July 26, 2017 by ventura_abreu

[Two-Gun Pete]

Yeah, I think he'll become a quality starter, but it'll be with another team.

 

This is the downside of rushing prospects to the Bigs, & letting them "develop @ the MLB level:" You burn through their years of control while they figure it out.

 

I'll guess he signs with the cubs once he becomes an FA; they've got the wherewithal, they'll probably have open rotation spots, & they don't mind giving Boras piles of cash. Or perhaps another team like them.

Edited July 26, 2017 by Two-Gun Pete

[LittleHurt05]

Two seasons of 2+ fWAR, doesn't that already make him a quality MLB starter?

[Real]

Flashes of Marmol and Liriano, you mean.

[whitesoxwinner]

The fact that this is even a thread is ridiculous.

 

The guy missed most of the season, give him time to get himself sorted out.

 

Not a ridiculous thread by any means. I think he can be and most likely will be a great pitcher. But as of right now the dude can't even control his fastball. He needs to find his command in order to fulfill his potential, which is a lot easier said than done.

[Dominikk85]

Not a ridiculous thread by any means. I think he can be and most likely will be a great pitcher. But as of right now the dude can't even control his fastball. He needs to find his command in order to fulfill his potential, which is a lot easier said than done.

 

Yes. He is still young and had injury problems but the command needs to get better to start.

 

Btw if he becomes andrew miller that wouldn't be the worst thing in the world if you see what kind of return miller got in that trade but starting would of course be preferable.