White Sox: Carlos Rodon’s Development Key in 2017
By Matt Manetti
All this talk this offseason has been about Chris Sale. But don’t forget, the White Sox have another good left hander in Carlos Rodon. And his development could be a key to a successful 2017.
The Chicago White Sox have a lot of decisions to make this offseason. Of course, we all know that Chris Sale may seemingly be on his way out. As big of a blow as that would be, let’s not forget the White Sox have another guy, who could potentially step up; Carlos Rodon. Rodon looked virtually unhittable after he came back from injury. And hopefully we haven’t seen nothing yet.
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I’ll give this team credit, where credit is due. They have been rather good at developing pitching. From Sale to Jose Quintana and now Rodon. The third overall pick in the 2014 draft has impressed in his young career. And the Sox hope he can continue his development. There’s no doubt he can be the future ace of this club, he just needs to work on some things.
In fact, his emergence is a big reason why Sale is somewhat expendable. If he can develop into the pitcher we think he can, losing a guy like Sale isn’t such a big deal. Now, it’s on pitching coach Don Cooper to help him reach that potential. This organization has a trio of great pitchers. They also seemingly have another one on the way in Carson Fulmer. Suddenly, losing a pitcher doesn’t seem to be a huge loss.
2017 is definitely a key season for Rodon. It’s time for him to take that next step and be the future ace of this club. The lefty is 18-16 in his career with a 3.90 ERA. That’s not bad, but he can certainly do better. I definitely see him as a possible 20-game winner and future Cy Young candidate. He’s certainly showed flashes of brilliance, he just needs to put it together over a full season.
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The Sox don’t have much going for them right now, but they definitely have some good pitching. Rodon is one of those guys, who could take this team to the next level. Pair him Quintana and a fully developed Fulmer, and you have a young trio that could dominate the AL Central. All that’s left to do is build a productive offense and suddenly, we may be looking at the Sox as a contender in the near future.