The Arizona Diamondbacks have signed left-handed starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez, 30.
MLB.com, the official site of Major League Baseball, reported on Aug. 8 (KST), “Arizona has agreed to terms with left-handed pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez on a four-year, $80 million contract. Including the fifth-year vesting option, the deal is worth $99 million. The club has not yet announced the contract.”
Rodriguez, who is 82-53 with a 4.03 ERA in 202 career major league games (1100⅓ innings), played for Boston from 2015 to 2021. Upon reaching free agency in 2022, he signed a five-year, $77 million contract with Detroit. In two years in Detroit, Rodriguez went 18-14 with a 3.58 ERA in 43 games (243⅔ innings).
Rodriguez struggled with injuries in his first year, but rebounded this year with a 13-9 record and 3.30 ERA in 26 games (152⅔ innings). After the season, he opted out and was back on the market, this time with the World Series runner-up Arizona.
This year’s World Series runners-up are led by the one-two punch of Zach Gallon and Merrill Kelly.
Kelly is a well-known pitcher to Korean fans, having played in the KBO with SK (now SSG) from 2015 to 2018, going 48-32 with a 3.86 ERA in 119 games (729⅔ innings). He had a career-high season this year, going 12-8 with a 3.29 ERA in 30 games (177⅔ innings), including a career-high seven innings of three-hit ball in the World Series, striking out nine and allowing one run.
The addition of Rodriguez gives Arizona a solid starting rotation. “With Rodriguez, Arizona will no longer have to rely on young pitchers like Brandon Potts, Tommy Henry, Ryne Nelson, Slade Cecconi (the team’s 13th-best prospect per MLB.com) and Bryce Jarvis (the 29th-best prospect),” MLB.com wrote, noting that Rodriguez’s addition will solidify Arizona’s starting rotation.
Rodriguez averages 92.2 miles per hour (148.4 km/h) with a four-seam fastball and a variety of pitches, including a cutter, changeup, sinker, and slider. He has good command of his pitches, and his command of his stuff is not bad. If there’s a concern, it’s his injury risk. 온라인카지노 In his eight seasons in the majors, Rodriguez has only pitched in regulation once in 2019 (203⅓ innings).
According to MLB.com, “The most important thing for Rodriguez to succeed is to stay healthy. He’s had injuries to his elbows, fingers, knees, ankles, ribs, and back. In 2019, his only full-time healthy season, he finished sixth in American League Cy Young Award voting.” Injuries will make or break Rodriguez.