Ex-Red Sox Pitcher Reportedly Will Be Hottest Commodity At Trade Deadline

Boston might want to re-inquire about their former starter

Scott Neville | May 12, 2023

Ex-Red Sox Pitcher Reportedly Will Be Hottest Commodity At Trade Deadline /

In this story:

The Boston Red Sox's starting pitching staff has received heaps of negative attention this season.

A longtime member of the Red Sox's rotation has been heavily covered by the media as well but for opposite reasons.

"(Detroit) Tiger left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, who’s pitching like a No. 1, may be the biggest pitcher dealt at the deadline," the New York Post's Jon Heyman wrote Thursday. "If the Tigers aren’t in the race, an E-Rod deal is very likely considering he has an opt-out after this season. (The opt-out may also slightly limit his value.)"

The 30-year-old is 4-2 with a remarkable 1.57 ERA, 47-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .174 batting average against and 0.79 WHIP in 51 2/3 innings this season.

Rodriguez will almost certainly opt out of the remaining three years of the five-year, $77 million contract he signed prior to the 2022 season. That essentially makes him the best rental pitcher on the market -- barring the Los Angeles Angels placing Shohei Ohtani on the trade block.

It would make a lot of sense for the Red Sox to inquire about Rodriguez as they currently have one of the worse starter ERA tallies in all of baseball. Despite having seven starting pitchers at the moment, it's likely that the rotation will be the biggest weakness entering the deadline.

Rodriguez's trade rumors will be one of the top storylines entering the hot stove. He'll likely be linked to just about every contender at one point or another.

If Boston fails to bring back Rodriguez at the trade deadline, they'll likely have another shot in free agency. It would be wise to make those phone calls if his breakout season stays on track.

More MLB: Yankees Sign Ex-Red Sox Pitcher To Bolster Depth Amid Injury-Plagued Season

Published May 12, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu