NEW YORK — Yankees left-hander Carlos Rodón underwent a procedure on his left elbow to remove loose bodies and shave down a bone spur, manager Aaron Boone said Thursday.
Rodón is not expected to be ready for Opening Day 2026, but his recovery timetable puts him in line to return to the Yankees rotation either sometime in April or early May next season.
For now, Rodón will not throw for eight weeks. That period of no activity, which will last until mid-December, will push back the start of Rodón’s 2026 season.
“When you build in all the ramp-up and the throwing program and getting him ready to be a starting pitcher, that probably delays him potentially a couple of weeks to start the season,” Boone said at Thursday’s news conference at Yankee Stadium.
Rodón had the surgery on Wednesday. It was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles, who also performed Yankees ace Gerrit Cole’s Tommy John surgery in March.
The 32-year-old Rodón is coming off his best season as a Yankee, having gone 18-9 — tied for second-most wins in the Majors — with a 3.09 ERA in 33 starts. He struck out 203 batters in 195 1/3 innings, and held opponents to a .188 batting average, which was the best mark in the AL. He was also named an All-Star for the third time in his 11-year MLB career.
Because Rodón will be starting the 2026 season on the injured list, the Yankees could look to pursue additional starting pitching in free agency or via trade this winter. But general manager Brian Cashman said Thursday that he’s not sure yet what the team’s course of action will be.
“Certainly the last two years have been really good for us with Carlos,” Cashman said. “But I don’t know what that means [as far as] where we put our remaining resources, and how we reinforce. Do we have enough from within, or do we have to go outside to augment? You can never have enough pitching, so I don’t know. But clearly the good thing is: He’s coming back, so we have to make sure there’s room on that roster when he does.”
The 2025 season was Rodón’s third since signing a six-year, $162 million deal with New York. The lefty was strong for the Yankees down the stretch, allowing two earned runs or fewer in four of his five September starts to help New York clinch an AL Wild Card spot.
Rodón made two starts in the postseason — one each in the AL Wild Card Series vs. the Red Sox and the ALDS against the Blue Jays — and pitched to a 9.72 ERA in 8 1/3 innings.
The Yankees were aware that Rodón’s elbow might eventually need a cleanup. But Rodón was able to keep pitching through the season, and doctors deemed it suitable to wait to address the issue at least until after the postseason.
“We knew at some point it might be something that would have to be dealt with,” Cashman said. “If this presser was three weeks ago, I wouldn’t have had a surgery on my mind for Carlos Rodón, taking him out at the beginning of next year. But it’s also not surprising, given the job that he does.”
In other Yankees pitcher injury news, the Bombers’ ace continues to make progress in his Tommy John surgery recovery.
Cole’s on track to start facing live hitters from the mound at some point during Spring Training, and while he won’t be ready by Opening Day, the Yankees are hopeful that Cole will be pitching for them in 2026 not long after.
Cole, who has been rehabbing from the surgery he had on his right elbow in March, is scheduled to throw lightly off a mound next week. He will meet with Dr. ElAttrache in California next month and again before Spring Training.