Thanks to fans, Rodón can play Santa
New Yankee is helping families in need save Christmas with a donation
Rodón wanted to know about the boy; who lived in that house, which was in a cornfield and had no neighbors. Last winter, Rodón found out that a fire had gutted the building, leaving only garbage and ash. That coincided with Rodong’s free agency, during which time fans sent small donations to the pitcher’s Venmo account in hopes of luring the left-hander to sign with the Yankees.
“My cousin [Ethan] had a great idea,” says Rodón, “to take that money, match the donation, and help the family have a nice Christmas. We got there and the house burned down There’s a lady up front. It’s very interesting timing.”
Rodón said the family has moved into the RV park. One of its requests was a holiday gift for its )-year-old son Damien, the same boy Rodón and his cousins saw him get off the school bus years ago.
The total amount of Venmo funds is about $162 ; Rodón’s wife Ashley initially returned some donations to fans, but she couldn’t keep up with the flood of requests. They learned that the boy loved video games, especially Minecraft. Walking into the nearby Best Buy, Rodón, his son Bo, and their cousin picked out a top-of-the-line computer and delivered it to the RV themselves.
this19 – year old came here as one of the top free agents on the market, ending a season where he went 04-8 and 2.25 ERA at 30 for Giants start and lead the majors in FIP (2.
