Boston Red Sox: Eduardo Rodriguez continues to improve with each start
Though he didn’t earn the win, Eduardo Rodriguez pitched another great game for the Boston Red Sox yesterday in Milwaukee.
The Boston Red Sox got a gem from Eduardo Rodriguez on the mound yesterday as he allowed just one run. He’s been improving with every passing start in 2017, and Chris Sale may have something to do with it.
Rodriguez went six innings, working with mostly his fastball and changeup, to hold the Brewers to just three hits. He also posted 5 K’s and no walks on the day.
On the day, ERod gave up two soft hits and one true double. Yes, the scorecard accounts for three hits but two were so softly hit you can hardly blame the pitcher for them. Rodriguez was again stellar, though the offense came up with runs too late in the game for him to earn the W.
With an ERA of just 2.80 now, Rodriguez is showing signs that he can actually surpass Rick Porcello or David Price as the #2 pitcher in Boston. That’s still quite a long way off, but it’s possible. He can fast track that if he learns well from Chris Sale.
Sale will not change the mechanics of Rodriguez, he’s clearly fine there, but he can help in other ways.
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As Rodriguez mentioned there, one thing he can take from Sale is his pace of play. It’s been noted that ERod has actually begun to work faster on the mound as well, and is pitching better when he does so.
Red Sox pitching coach Carl Willis has also noted that Chris Sale has already made an impact on Eduardo.
"“Not so much in conversation. But I think us watching each other. Eddie’s pace has picked up. Chris obviously works at a really quick pace. I think that’s partly because of watching Chris and his quick tempo. I also think it’s because Eddie feels good about all his pitches right now. So there’s not as much thought going into what he wants to throw in a given count.”"
Next: Craig Kimbrel is on fire in 2017
Rodriguez has the potential to be a star in Boston, and he may even reach that status in 2017. His next outing should come against the St. Louis Cardinals on the road next week.