On Tuesday night in the Bronx, Carlos Rodón didn’t just pitch a gem, he gave his wife, Ashley, a near heart-stopping first inning. Ashley, who has become something of a cult favorite among Yankees fans for her candid social media takes, gave a heartfelt reaction when her husband labored through a grueling, 30-pitch opening frame against the Minnesota Twins. The Yankees were in the thick of a crucial series, and the early signs weren’t encouraging. But then Rodón did what the Yankees paid him $162 million to do: he flipped the script entirely.

When he finally left the mound in the seventh, the whole game felt different. Rodón had only given up one run, spreading out hits and striking out batters with a confidence that’s been growing with each start. At first, the crowd in the Bronx was on edge. Now they were cheering, clearly impressed by what they’d seen.

“Not gonna lie, might have been having a panic attack after the first,” Ashley admitted on X. “But what a boss to go 7 and give up 1 after a 30 pitch first. 😅🔥 Let’s go win!” Her post wasn’t just a proud spouse’s reaction; it was a real-time snapshot of the emotional rollercoaster that comes with watching a loved one pitch under playoff-like pressure.

That pressure was magnified by the Yankees’ situation. Their rotation was running on fumes. Their bullpen had been shouldering a load lately, so manager Aaron Boone was desperate for a starter to go the distance. Luckily, Rodón came through in time, taking some heat off the relievers and setting the stage for an effortless win. This was what they needed. Aaron Judge, Anthony Volpe, and Giancarlo Stanton added the fireworks with home runs, but Rodón’s ability to shut down the Twins after an exhausting first inning defined the night.

This was another step, for him, especially after a sluggish start to the year. There was a time when a tough beginning, like Tuesdays, would’ve derailed his game. Now he’s showing he can roll with the punches, make adjustments on the fly, and stay one step ahead of the hitters. The Yankees need him to keep pitching like this if they’re gonna make it through the crunch time that’s September.

Carlos Rodón Survives the Yankees’ First-Inning Storm

On Tuesday night, things looked grim for the Yankees at one point. Carlos Rodón had started off on the wrong foot, giving up a single, walking a guy, and hitting another batter, loading the bases with no one out. The crowd at Yankee Stadium was getting anxious; you could feel the tension, and the Twins were smelling an opportunity. Rodón didn’t fall apart.

He somehow managed to get his head in the game and regain his composure. He whiffed Luke Keaschall, then got an infield out that did score a run, but it could’ve been a lot worse. He finished strong by striking out Kody Clemens, keeping the damage to one run. It was a relief really. Things could’ve easily spiraled out of control that inning.

From that moment, the lefty flipped the game on its head. Rodón retired 17 consecutive hitters, pounding the zone and attacking with conviction. His pitch count plummeted after the exhausting 31-pitch first, never topping 13 in any inning the rest of the way.

By the time he handed the ball to the bullpen, the Yankees were firmly in control of a 9–1 win, and the Twins had managed just one hit all night. It wasn’t just dominance; it was damage control turned into a masterpiece.

Manager Aaron Boone couldn’t hide his admiration afterward. “It’s one of those, like, is he gonna get out of the first inning? That’s where your mind is for a minute,” Boone admitted. “But he gets the big strikeout, limits the damage, and it’s like, ‘Hey, we’ve got a chance here.’ Then he just settled in, and I thought it looked a lot different, even in the second.” Boone called the effort “really big” for a team in the middle of a playoff push, noting that seven innings after a 30-plus pitch first was exactly the kind of grit the Yankees needed down the stretch.