After signing Eduardo Rodriguez to a four-year, $80 million contract, the Arizona Diamondbacks have been unable to see him pitch due to a lingering shoulder injury. But as Rodriguez continues to rehab his shoulder issue, the Diamondbacks are getting closer to seeing his debut in Arizona.
Manager Torey Lovullo confirmed that Rodriguez will undergo a second MRI on July 6, via Jesse Friedman of PHNX Sports. If his MRI results come back clean, the left-hander could then soon move on to mound work.
Rodriguez suffered his injury back in March. After suffering a setback, he was ultimately moved to the 60-day injured list and shut down from throwing. But Rodriguez still managed to battle back and has increased his throwing distance to 105-feet. The results from his MRI will be a telling sign in where Rodriguez goes next in his rehab.
Even if those results come back perfect, it'll still be a while before Rodriguez pitches in an MLB game. Being out for so long, he'll need to fully charge up before making a full return. Still, getting Rodriguez back before the end of the season would be a major boon for the Diamondbacks.
Arizona's pitching staff ranks 28th in the major leagues with a 4.66 ERA. But even at 39-42, the Diamondbacks are just 2.5 games out of a Wild Card spot. If and when Rodriguez makes his return – assuming he is fully healthy – the Diamondbacks have to prefer their chances of actually earning a spot in the playoffs.
What Eduardo Rodriguez offers Diamondbacks
Arizona was willing to give Rodriguez an $80 million deal based off of his recent MLB track record. He was coming off of a season with the Detroit Tigers in which he recorded a 13-9 record with a 3.30 ERA and a 143/48 K/BB ratio. For his entire eight-year career, Rodriguez has posted an 82-53 record with a 4.03 ERA and a 1,107/376 K/BB ratio.
When the Diamondbacks signed him, Arizona was coming off of a shocking run to the World Series. But even when they advanced to the championship, the team's 4.48 ERA still ranked 20th in the league. Adding Rodriguez was supposed to give the D'Backs a major boost in the pitching department as they chased another NL Pennant.
While Rodriguez has been unable to help Arizona get closer to that goal, it isn't entirely his fault. The Diamondbacks have dealt with numerous injuries to their rotation with Zac Gallen, Merrill Kelly and Blake Walston all on the injured list. Many of their healthy pitchers have failed to live up to their standards as well. Brandon Pfaadt leads all Arizona starting pitchers with an underwhelming 4.45 ERA. Late signing Jordan Montgomery holds a brutal 6.03 ERA.
It'll still be a while before Eduardo Rodriguez can truly save the Diamondbacks' rotation. But if all goes well with his second MRI, the Diamondbacks would be one step closer to finally seeing their $80 million investment pay off.
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