Rodriguez named Sox Opening Day starter
Dalbec continues to put on a show this spring
Just a day after manager Alex Cora announced the Red Sox would be rolling with a five-man rotation to start the season, lefty Eduardo Rodriguez solidified his spot atop the list with a stellar outing on St. Patrick’s Day.
Following Boston’s 9-1 win over Minnesota, Cora announced that the 27-year-old, who missed the entire 2020 season after being diagnosed with COVID-19 and then myocarditis, will get the ball on Opening Day.
“It is going to be Eduardo,” Cora said. “He’s one of the best out there. He had a great season in ’19 and last year was unable to pitch for obvious reasons, but what he’s shown now that he’s healthy, he’s ready to go. That’s our Opening Day starter.”
Rodriguez was effective and efficient over five innings of work, needing just 51 pitches to take care of the 17 batters he faced, striking out six and allowing just two hits and an earned run.
“I would say the performance was pretty good for me today,” Rodriguez said. “I’ve been working on (attacking hitters). Every time I have a bullpen, that’s what I work on. That was the plan for me today and I executed it and I feel good about it.”
Rodriguez has put together an impressive spring after not touching the rubber in a calendar year. Through 11 2/3 innings he’s allowed just three runs on eight hits, striking out 14 and has yet to surrender a walk.
“As soon as I got to Spring Training and I threw my first bullpen, I was surprised right away because I was feeling good, feeling right where I want to be,” he said. “I’m just working right now. I’m just trying to be close to the strike zone. Trying to make the right pitch and execute it.”
Before Cora broke the news after the game, Rodriguez said getting the ball on Opening Day is an experience all pitchers crave.
“If I get the opportunity, I would be so happy to do it, because that’s something that everybody wants to do one time in their career.”
The 2019 season in which Cora referred to saw E-Rod post a 19-6 record with a 3.81 ERA, collecting 213 strikeouts over 203.1 innings. He finished sixth in Cy Young Award voting that year as well. The relationship Rodriguez and Cora has is almost father-and-son-like, and you can see it in their interactions. Cora said gone are the days of the erratic pitcher who once finished near the top of the league in walks. He noted a “fresh arm” after not pitching last year, and that he’s attacking hitters, which was on full demonstration with the low pitch count on Wednesday.
“Right now, he has everything on point, and we’re happy that he’s able to compete and I’m proud that he’ll be the guy on Opening Day,” Cora said.
After missing last season, Cora said he had little reservations about Rodriguez’s ability to bounce back.
“He was going to be my Opening Day starter last year,” he said. “Coming into camp — I had an idea. I just wanted to make sure he was healthy enough. That was really good today. He’s so sharp right now. I knew coming into this that if he was OK going through the progression, it was going to be him. ”
And the hits just keep coming
The Boston bats sure went to work on Wednesday, as the Sox pushed across nine runs on 11 hits. The Sox have slugged 26 homers in 17 Spring Training games thus far – second in all of Major League Baseball next to Kansas City’s 31. They rank fifth overall in batting average (.270) and third in runs scored (94).
One of this season’s most exciting young players hit his second grand slam of the spring and fifth homer overall in the second inning, as Bobby Dalbec demolished a Matt Shoemaker pitch over the Jet Blue Park Green Monster in left. The 25-year-old corner infielder/designated hitter is tied for the league lead in home runs this spring with the likes of Joey Gallo, Joc Pederson and Corey Seager. His 12 RBI are also tops in baseball this spring.
“He’s a baseball player,” Cora said of Dalbec. “I think offensively he understands. I tell him when there’s nobody on, go for it, whatever that means. But he controls the strike zone. There’s going to be some swing and misses, we know that, but his swing decisions are not bad.”
In the third, Rafael Devers laced a rising line drive homer to dead center for a three-run shot to put Boston up 7-1. J.D. Martinez would add a sacrifice fly in the fourth and Josh Ockimey would finish up the scoring with an RBI single in the fifth.
“I do believe it’s a deep lineup, and we’re going to score some runs,” Cora said.
— Connect with this reporter on Twitter: @haddad_cj
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- CJ HADDAD Red Sox slugger Bobby Dalbec continued to stay hot at the plate Wednesday hitting his second grand slam of the spring and fifth home run overall.
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- CJ HADDAD Boston’s Eduardo Rodriguez fires a pitch Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins. Rodriguez, who has been named the Red Sox starter for Opening Day, earned the win allowing just two hits and one run while striking out six over five innings.