NEW YORK – The Yankees offered a simple piece of advice to Elmer Rodríguez ahead of his fifth Major League start: Find the swagger that has carried him to this level, and believe that his stuff is good enough to be here.
Rodríguez did that over a career-best six-plus innings, turning in what he called “one of my best starts.” Cody Bellinger delivered a go-ahead double with the bases loaded as the Yankees rallied for a 9-3 victory over the Astros on Wednesday evening at Yankee Stadium.
“It was just trusting myself,” Rodríguez said. “It’s something that I’ve been building up since my first couple of starts, and so each time I’ve felt better. I’ve been working on some stuff down there [in the Minors], and I feel like it’s been working so far.”
Spencer Jones and Jazz Chisholm Jr. also delivered run-scoring knocks in a four-run seventh before Luis García Jr. homered for the fourth time in six games, propelling the Yankees (75-57) to their seventh win in nine games. They remained 3 1/2 games behind the first-place Rays (79-54) in the American League East.
“We’re trying to make it to the playoffs,” said Chisholm, who matched his season high with three hits. “I really want to win a World Series. I’m just trying to get ready and do my best to get us there and win the World Series. That’s it.”
While the long-slumbering Yankees offense has now produced 24 runs in its past three games, the most encouraging developments might have centered around Rodríguez, the club’s top pitching prospect (No. 3 overall) according to MLB Pipeline.
Promoted to fill a vacancy created by Ryan Weathers’ left forearm flexor strain, the 23-year-old made a convincing case to stick around.
“It seems like when he has struggled up here,” pitching coach Matt Blake said before Wednesday’s game, “he’s just kind of flirting with the strike zone more than living in it. For him to be successful at this level, it’s not giving the hitters too much credit.”
That wasn’t the story on Wednesday, as Rodríguez provided a glimpse of the electric arsenal that has intrigued coaches and talent evaluators for years.
Pumping the zone with a sinker that averaged 97.2 mph, 2.1 mph above his season average, Rodríguez permitted three hits and two walks while striking out six.
“He was nasty,” manager Aaron Boone said. “That’s what we get excited about right there. I think he got their attention right away. You’re seeing 97, 98, 99 [mph] sinkers filling up the zone, spinning a good breaking ball. Man, that was really encouraging to see that.”
In fact, all five of Rodríguez’s pitches saw a velocity boost compared to his most recent big league start on June 21 vs. Cincinnati. Rodríguez attributed that to his training.
“Just working hard,” Rodríguez said. “There’s some stuff I’ve been working on behind the scenes. I’ve been trying to get some weight and just working on continuing to finish the year strong. I’ve been feeling better.”
Rodríguez began the seventh inning but departed after issuing a leadoff walk to Jose Altuve. He walked off to a standing ovation from the announced crowd of 40,269, which he compared to the energy he felt while pitching for Puerto Rico in this year’s World Baseball Classic.
“That’s by far the best stuff he’s had since he’s been up here with us,” Boone said.
Ben Rice hit his team-leading 35th home run in the first inning off Peter Lambert, pulling Rice within one of Houston’s Yordan Alvarez for the AL lead. The Yankees hadn’t scored a first-inning run in 23 games, one shy of a franchise record.
George Lombard Jr. added a run-scoring groundout in the first inning, though he later committed an error on a hard Christian Walker grounder, Lombard’s fifth consecutive game with an error.
Houston scored a first-inning run on Rodríguez when center fielder Trent Grisham misplayed a Jose Altuve double. Daulton Varsho added a fourth-inning homer off Rodríguez, who saw an inherited run score against Paul Blackburn in the seventh.
Michael Fulmer made his Yankees debut with a scoreless eighth inning, an outing that prompted Boone to opine of the 33-year-old veteran: “I think he can help us. I really do.”
Wednesday’s outing suggests the same about Rodríguez, though with Max Fried set to return from the injured list this weekend, how and when that might transpire remains to be seen.
“I know I can go out there and compete,” Rodríguez said. “I know I have the stuff to do that.”