Carlos Rodón knows what the boos sound like inside Yankee Stadium. He knows what the critics say. He knows the hate that can fester on social media, and he knows the disappointment of letting a new team down.
He also knows that it’s possible to put that all behind you, even in the Bronx. He plans on sharing that message with Devin Williams.
“I definitely can relate to him,” Rodón told the Daily News after twirling 6.2 scoreless innings against the Padres on Monday, only for Williams to implode in the eighth, leading to a 4-3 loss. “Maybe I need to be better as a teammate and approach him. I can put that one on me.
“I think I should. It’s just one of the things when the time’s right.”
On Monday, Rodón simply offered comfort, as he was one of the first Yankees to approach Williams after the latter departed to jeers with the bases loaded and two away following two walks and a single. With the Bombers clinging to a 3-0 lead, Aaron Boone called on Luke Weaver, who promptly surrendered a two-run double to Manny Machado and a two-run, go-ahead single to Xander Bogaerts.
Williams was charged with three earned runs. He now has a 10.03 ERA, 0-2 record and one blown save over his first 14 games with the Yankees. A two-time National League Reliever of the Year in Milwaukee before being acquired this past offseason, Williams was recently removed as the Yankees’ closer.
An impending free agent, he’s been making the worst first impression in pinstripes since Rodón’s injury-riddled, disastrous 2023 season, which also featured plenty of boos and a 6.85 ERA after the lefty signed a six-year, $162 million contract.
“We all have our struggles,” said Rodón, who exited to an ovation on Monday after lowering his ERA to 2.96. “You saw when I got here. I’ve struggled before. I struggled when I was in Chicago, and it’s just up and down. It’s one of those adversity things that you gotta look it in the face and kick it in the face.”
Williams actually had a short-but-impressive three-game stretch in between Monday’s game and losing the closer’s job, allowing zero runs and just one baserunner over three appearances. But with rain falling all night against the Padres, he repeatedly mentioned the mound in his postgame scrum, saying a poor landing spot made it hard to control his fastball.
“I feel good. I feel confident on the mound. I feel like I was in a good spot. It’s one of those nights where you’re not only battling the hitter, I was battling the mound,” Williams said. “But we’re all given the same set of circumstances, and I couldn’t pull through tonight.”
While Williams could blame the mound on Monday, there’s been plenty of reason to believe that he’s not all that comfortable in New York, where the lights are brighter, the boos are louder and the media scrutiny is stronger than anything he ever experienced with the Brewers.
“It’s part of the business,” Rodón said in a group setting. “It’s part of being in New York and how it goes. If you don’t pitch well, you’re gonna get booed. But if you pitch well, they’re gonna praise you. They’re gonna love you.”
After Monday’s game, Boone was asked if he worries at all about Williams’ mental state when he’s pitching at Yankee Stadium, where fans have been on the right-hander’s case since Opening Day. The manager offered an indirect answer.
“Um, look, I think once he gets righted and really starts to string them together, as great as he’s been will show up,” Boone said. “And then you start building real confidence, because you’re dialed and you have the ability to dominate. So we just gotta continue to stack those, and it doesn’t necessarily happen overnight when you go through it a little bit. And we all go through it a little bit. We all go through tough times and stretches in this game, and he’ll get through it.”
Rodón, meanwhile, was asked if he senses that Williams is comfortable with the Yankees.
“I’m not sure,” he replied. “That’s something that he can answer, and it’s not for me to answer. It’s not my place.”
Williams, who was traded without input, is playing for a new team and city, and recently became a first-time father, was recently asked if he’s found it easy to settle in off the field given all the changes he’s experienced. He said he has, though he did mention his new home.
“Yeah,” Williams said after a poor April 25 outing cost him the closer’s role. “I mean, easy enough as New York City can be, but I gotta get things rolling in the right direction.”
For what it’s worth, Boone and other Yankees believe that Williams will recapture the form that made him so lethal in Milwaukee. More command would help, but so would some “swagger,” according to the fiery Rodón.
Perhaps some encouragement from a peer that has been in similar shoes would help as well.
That’s where Rodón is at, anyway. He’s been trying to give Williams his space, as he knows how mentally “exhausting” this situation can be. But it’s because he’s familiar that Rodón feels a chat with Williams could be beneficial.
“It’s hard to approach someone when they’re struggling, and it’s hard to be approached when you’re in that situation, because it’s all swallowing in around you,” Rodón said. “It’s hard to see the light at times. It’s not easy. It takes time.
“We’ll see down the road. Hopefully, I get to talk to him, but he’s so great. Like he really is a tremendous player. He’s been unbelievable his whole career.”
