Ill-timed walk costly for Carlos Rodon vs. Red Sox

Carlos Rodon

We know how the national media slobbers all over Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz. No doubt, the ESPN guys were excited by the game-changing, two-run homer Ortiz hit off Carlos Rodon in the fifth inning of Wednesday's 5-2 Boston win over the White Sox.

The home run turned a 2-1 Chicago advantage into a 3-2 Boston lead. The Red Sox finished the game off from there.

But from a White Sox perspective, I'm not so concerned about the home run Ortiz hit. Rodon served up a fat fastball, and he knows it. But the real sin Rodon committed in that inning was allowing Ortiz to get to the plate in the first place.

Rodon retired the first two hitters easily in that fifth inning, but then he issued a four-pitch, two-out walk to Xander Bogaerts. That's inexcusable with Ortiz on deck. In a one-run game, you go right at Bogaerts. If he hits his way on -- and he might because he's a good hitter -- so be it. But you can't afford to just give him first base and allow Ortiz to hit with a man on. Rodon was asking for it, and Ortiz made him pay.

If Rodon retires Bogaerts, the inning is over. The 2-1 White Sox lead stays intact. Ortiz leads off the next inning, and even if he hits one to the moon, the best he can do is tie the game. That's what you want when you're playing Boston -- you want to keep yourself out of situations where Ortiz can beat you. Rodon failed to do that, and he got beat.

Just overall, Rodon needs to work on limiting his walks. He's averaging 3.8 walks per nine innings through his first six starts this year. He's issued a team-high 14 walks in 33 innings, and his 1.394 WHIP is too high for a pitcher with his talent. The Sox are 2-4 in Rodon's starts. He'll start winning games when he stops giving away so many free bases to the opponent.