Chicago White Sox: Should There Be Concern With Carlos Rodon?

Jul 5, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Carlos Rodon (55) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the New York Yankees at U.S. Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 5, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Carlos Rodon (55) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the New York Yankees at U.S. Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Caylor Arnold-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Chicago White Sox announced Monday that starting pitcher Carlos Rodon will now miss five to six weeks instead of the initial 10 days.

Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Carlos Rodon hit the disabled list after spring training with bursitis in his left bicep. Initially, the White Sox were hoping he would only miss a week or two at max. But Rodon is now expected to miss five or six weeks to start the season.

Rodon pretty much missed all of spring training. The White Sox wanted to bring him along slowly this offseason after he struggled last year. Rodon finished the year with a 9-10 record and a 4.04 ERA.

The real question here, should White Sox fans and management be concerned with this nagging injury? Obviously, being in rebuild mode, it would be ideal for the White Sox to be able to evaluate the young Rodon on the mound.

But, for the White Sox, Rodon’s health is more important right now than anything. Rodon has shown flashes of brilliance in his young career and has the potential to be an ace in this White Sox rotation for many years to come.

The Chicago White Sox are handling this situation very well and they have absolutely no need to rush Rodon’s recovery. Let him take his time and get healthy.

With that said, as Rodon rehabs and gets ready to make his season debut in a month or so, the White Sox will most likely look to Dylan Covey to fill the void. Covey is a former first-round draft pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2010. He was drafted one pick behind former Sox ace Chris Sale. Covey has never pitched above Double-A ball so throwing him into the rotation is a huge risk. But there is undoubtedly some upside in the former first-round selection.

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The White Sox seem very confident that Covey can handle the move up to the Majors after having a good spring training. Covey is in line to start five to six games until Rodon makes it back to the club.

The White Sox would obviously love to have Rodon out there on the mound. That being said, bringing him along slowly is the right move. Plus, with Covey getting a chance to start, they might find another useful starting pitcher.