SF Giants delay Carlos Rodón's scheduled start while he deals with blister

The SF Giants are pushing back Carlos Rodón's scheduled start to Friday while he deals with a cracked fingernail and blister.

Marc Delucchi | Sep 19, 2022

SF Giants delay Carlos Rodón's scheduled start while he deals with blister /

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San Francisco Giants

The SF Giants will be delaying left-handed starting pitcher Carlos Rodón's next turn in the rotation to Friday, according to a tweet by MLB.com's Maria Guardado. Rodón was scheduled to start for the Giants on Tuesday.

Rodón was fantastic in his last appearance in the Giants' 4-1 victory over Atlanta last Wednesday. Rodón surrendered just one unearned run over five innings pitched and racked up eight strikeouts. However, Rodón was removed from the game after throwing just 71 pitches. Giants manager Gabe Kapler revealed after the game that the move was precautionary since Rodón was dealing with a cracked fingernail and blister.

Rodón has been pitching through the issue for some time, but it appears that it has caused him more discomfort this month. Granted, with the Giants clearly out of the playoff picture, it's also possible that San Francisco is just being extra cautious with their best starting pitcher.

SF Giants ace Carlos Rodon throws a pitch against the Atlanta Braves. (2022) — Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

The Giants signed Rodón to a two-year, $44 million contract last offseason, and the southpaw has been fantastic in his first season with the team. In fact, it now seems inevitable that he will use the opt-out in his contract this offseason to become a free agent, where he is set to cash in.

Rodón has already set two franchise strikeout records this season and is currently leading the National League in strikeouts. On the season, the 29-year-old has a 2.84 ERA in 167.2 innings pitched with 220 strikeouts across 29 starts.

The Giants could simply turn to another bullpen game, especially since Sean Hjelle only threw 50 pitches in his outing on Saturday against the Dodgers. The Giants also recently claimed right-handed pitcher Jharel Cotton, who has experience as a big-league starter. However, the SF Giants have yet to announce who will take Carlos Rodón's spot in the rotation on Tuesday against the Diamondbacks.

Published Sep 19, 2022

MARC DELUCCHI

Marc Delucchi (he/they/she) serves as the Managing Editor at Giants Baseball Insider, leading their SF Giants coverage. As a freelance journalist, he has previously covered the San Francisco Giants at Around the Foghorn and McCovey Chronicles. He also currently contributes to Niners Nation, Golden State of Mind, and Baseball Prospectus. He has previously been featured in several other publications, including SFGate, ProFootballRumors, Niners Wire, GrandStand Central, Call to the Pen, and Just Baseball. Over his journalistic career, Marc has conducted investigations into how one prep baseball player lost a college opportunity during the pandemic (Baseball Prospectus) and the rampant mistreatment of players at the University of Hawaii football program under former head coach Todd Graham (SFGate). He has also broken dozens of news stories around professional baseball, primarily around the SF Giants organization, including the draft signing of Kyle Harrison, injuries and promotions to top prospects like Heliot Ramos, and trade details in the Kris Bryant deal. Marc received a Bachelor's degree from Kenyon College with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. During his time in college, he conducted a summer research project attempting to predict the future minor-league performance of NCAA hitters, worked as a data analyst for the school's Women's basketball team, and worked as a play-by-play announcer/color commentator for the basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. He also worked as an amateur baseball scout with the Collegiate Baseball Scouting Network (later renamed Evolution Metrix), scouting high school and college players for three draft cycles. For tips and inquiries, feel free to reach out to Marc directly on Twitter or via email (delucchimarc@gmail.com).