The $80MM man has a large list of restricted and injured list placements.
Injury prone?
If you roam the comments on MLBTR (MLB Trade Rumors) and hit any article where Eduardo Rodriguez is mentioned, it is not that hard to find the same type of comment over and over again.
I admit, if you are looking for some impartial and positive feedback from a community, then MLBTR and their scorching comment section probably isn’t the best place to visit, especially on an Eduardo Rodriguez article visited by Detroit Tigers fans, but it is remarkable that a certain tendency can be seen in some Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers fans remarks, and that is the possible injury (and absence) probability of Eduardo Rodriguez.
I took a look at a few articles and comments on here and at inside the Diamondbacks, but I couldn’t find anything that might indicate that the pitcher is injury prone. Is there nothing to worry about or are we blind and has any other team but the Diamondbacks dodged a bullet with not signing Eduardo Rodriguez to a multi-year and multi-million contract?
Absences.
May 31, 2012. Delmarva Shorebirds placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the temporarily inactive list. – 6 days out
We have no idea who, what where or how, but Eduardo Rodriguez missed one start in the 2012 season. He is then 19 years old.
April 21, 2014 Bowie Baysox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 7-day disabled list retroactive to April 18, 2014. Left Knee Sprain – 34 days out
Eduardo Rodriguez missed over a month, more or less 4 to 5 starts, because of a knee injury while at AA. Eduardo Rodríguez is 21 years old.
April 2, 2016 Boston Red Sox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 15-day disabled list. Right knee injury – 91 days out (including start of Spring Training)
Eduardo Rodríguez has already made his debut in the majors in 2015, but early April he is placed on the injured list. As per a later report on the Patriot Ledger: “Rodriguez injured his right knee during a fielding drill on the first day of spring training. He didn’t throw a pitch in the major leagues until May 31, and it wasn’t until after the All-Star break that he trusted in the health of his front leg.” 23-year old Eduardo Rodríguez was apparently injured at the beginning of March and returned to pitching in Live action by the end of April in AAA, but with mediocre results. After returning in May to the big leagues his pitching was abysmal and he was sent back for a couple of outings and didn’t return to the MLB until mid July, where he returned to perform as might have been expected.
June 2, 2017 Boston Red Sox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 10-day disabled list. Right knee subluxation. – 45 days out
Although it wasn’t until June that Eduardo Rodriguez suffered another official knee injury, first reports of a possible injury already surfaced in December of 2016, per the Patriot Ledger: “Eduardo Rodriguez suffered a minor knee injury Tuesday while pitching for Navegantes del Magallanes in Venezuela’s winter league to tune up for the World Baseball Classic”. While that proved to be minor, it costs him his WBC-participation and it was something persistent, because when he was placed on the DL, the following news came out: “Rodriguez, 24, suffered the same injury in 2016 during Spring Training, making this recurrence potentially troubling if he ultimately requires surgery. He suffered this latest injury on Thursday, falling over in the bullpen while warming up, according to Drellich.” The recommendation was rest for 3-4 weeks and Rodriguez returned after the All Star break, 6 weeks after being placed on the DL, pitching to a 4.72 ERA (3.89 FIP) after his injury compared to a 2.77 ERA (3.45 FIP) before his injury, excluding the game that led to the DL-placement.
March 26, 2018 Boston Red Sox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 10-day disabled list. Recovery right knee patellofemoral ligament reconstruction surgery. – 187 days out (including date of surgery)
After trying to play and rehab through several right knee injuries, and before the post-season of 2017 starts, Eduardo Rodriguez undergoes knee surgery: “Rodriguez officially underwent a right knee patellofemoral ligament reconstruction aimed to solidify the structure in that knee. Rodriguez has dislocated it three times since the spring of 2016, and its instability has seemingly affected his performance on the mound even when healthy.” Several articles mention that Rodriguez has had to miss the post-season for the second consecutive year. The pitcher himself is more focused on himself and being healthy, which is logical of course, but the mental part is stressed out: “The left-hander acknowledged back in May, just before another dislocation, that peace of mind had been critical to his early-season success. That’s the best part: just pitching healthy,” he said. “You just go out and have a game; you’re not thinking if you’re going to break your knee or something like that.”
July 15, 2018 Boston Red Sox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 10-day disabled list. Right ankle sprain. – 48 days out
After undergoing knee injury, Rodriguez returns to action on April 8, after 6 months of recovery, and after a rocky start of the season somewhat settles in until the next injury placement, during his final start before the All Star break, when he has an on-field collission, per overthemonster: “On a ground ball to first base, Blake Swihart made a nice stop in the hole but had to rush his throw to the bag after a slight bobble. His throw to Rodriguez was off the mark, and the Red Sox pitcher ran into the bag and collided with Lourdes Gurriel, who had slid into first base. Rodriguez’ foot caught Gurriel in the head, and his right ankle buckled upon landing. It didn’t look good, and apparently the optics matched the result.” Rodriguez has to wear a boot for two weeks and doesn’t return to the majors until September. He starts a few games, but with mixed results, and the Red Sox decide to move him to the bullpen, so he can be of more value during the postseason. He makes two relief appearances, in the ALDS and ALCS, but in the end is being called upon again in the World Series for one start (6.1 IP with 4 ER).
July 14, 2020 Boston Red Sox placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 60-day injured list.
April 1, 2021 Boston Red Sox placed P Eduardo Rodriguez on the 10 day disabled list. – 268 days out
After pitching healthy through the 2019 season and to career-best results, COVID strikes the world and Eduardo Rodriguez himself: “Rodriguez had spoken a couple of weeks ago about how hard COVID-19 hit him during June, saying, “I felt like I was 100 years old”. If that wasn’t enough, Eduardo Rodriguez would hit the IL early in the shortened 2020-season after contracting myocarditis, a heart inflammation that can arise after contracting COVID, right before the season opener: “The Red Sox learned of Rodriguez’s heart issue the day before they opened their season against the Orioles. At the time, he was shut down from pitching for one week and the Red Sox were optimistic he would be able to join the rotation in ’20.” After 3-4 months of resting, Eduardo Rodriguez is activated again on April 8 in the 2021 season.
May 22, 2022 Detroit Tigers placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 19, 2022. Left ribcage sprain. – 21 days out
The 2021 season isn’t pretty for Eduardo Rodriguez, but “at least he is healthy” as he probably would say himself, and he leaves the Boston Red Sox for free agency on not a specifically high note. He signs a 5 year $77MM deal with the Detroit Tigers with an opt out after season 2. Rodriguez’s start of the season isn’t good. He has a 5.33 ERA through the first five starts of the season but then fires two terrific games against Baltimore and Houston. In his 7th start the Rays tee off of him in the first inning and he leaves the game early. Though initial examinations can’t find anything, he is eventually diagnosed with a ribcage sprain.
June 13, 2022 Detroit Tigers placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the restricted list. – 67 days out
After that ribcage diagnosis he is activated again on June 9, but Eduardo Rodriguez goes missing during the month of June. He tells the team on June 13 that he has to attend a personal matter but then stops communicating with the Tigers. As later would be explained in a press conference, Rodriguez was dealing with family problems, in Miami: “He went into personal mode and he chose not to interact a lot while he was sorting through what he was doing,” Hinch said. “On one front, I can respect that entirely. He’s going through something with his family and his kids mean the world to him.” The Venezuelan returns to action in August and pitches to a fine 3.81 ERA in his final 9 starts of the season.
May 30, 2023 Detroit Tigers placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 29, 2023. Left index finger pulley rupture. – 36 days out
Rodriguez starts a new fresh season on a high note and 8 games into the season he sports an exciting 1.57 ERA. His ERA climbs after that, towards the FIP, but still excellent until on one of his final pitches in a 6-inning outing against the White Sox, he ruptures “A4 pulley in his finger. The pulley attaches the tendon to the bone, making it vital for a pitcher to grip the ball. A ruptured pulley is more common for rock climbers and bowlers than baseball players.” He returns a bit sooner from the injury than the estimated 6 weeks and tosses in 4 games ahead of the trade deadline, before declining a move to the Los Angeles Dodgers around that same trade deadline. After the injury, by the way, he pitches to a 4.24 ERA with a 4.08 FIP.
March 28, 2024 Arizona Diamondbacks placed LHP Eduardo Rodriguez on the 15-day injured list retroactive to March 25, 2024. Left shoulder strain. – 66 days out (calculated until May 24 and since March 19)
Knee, ankle, ribs and finger injuries and heart and personal issues. After that it was time for the shoulder. The season hasn’t even started and mid-Spring Training, on March 19, the Diamondbacks shut Eduardo Rodriguez down. He is placed on the IL after that but apparently has already started a throwing program. On his way back to the majors, he suffers some kind of a setback in a bullpen session, when the pitcher experiences “tightness” and alarms pitching staff. The pitcher was already without a timeline and that absent timeline now becomes even more cloudy. “Per Baseball Prospectus’ injury database, pitchers who suffer lat strains miss 74 days on average. Of course, every individual injury and recovery process is different. To wit, a fair amount of pitchers returned within a month. Unfortunately, that won’t be the case here.”, said an article on CBS Sports. The Diamondbacks placed Eduardo Rodriguez on the 60-day IL on April 17, making him eligible to return on May 24.
With such a large list of injuries (a total of 11 IL-breaks), Eduardo Rodriguez has only pitched just two full healthy seasons: a good 2019 season and a disappointing 2021. In each of the other seasons he had at least one or several injuries that would end up costing him at least one month and, almost every time, with worse results after the injury than before. Eduardo Rodriguez faces a somewhat longer absence this season as well, leaving his healthy seasons limited to just 2, and probably won’t pitch in the majors before the end of the month of May. Given his history and him entering his 30s, it is more likely than not that Eduardo faces more frequent absences in the next 4-5 years of his contract in Arizona.
Let’s hope for the best though, and hopefully, after each IL stint we can quote our honourable friend Jack Sommers:
“Again, it’s important to note that was not an arm injury.” – Jack Sommers in his article on the Diamondbacks signing Eduardo Rodriguez