The season may be over for the Boston Red Sox, but lefty ace Eduardo Rodriguez is still working towards an all-time career year on the mound.
Last night wasn’t the most enjoyable game to watch but the Red Sox pulled out the win which is all that matters. Boston got off to a hot start scoring four runs in the first but Eduardo Rodriguez would soon give those runs right back to the Rangers. It wasn’t a performance of the level we’ve become accustomed to from E-Rod this season but he showed his grit in what would be a long night.
This season was lost long ago but there have been some bright spots along the way. We’ve seen Rafael Devers grow into a high-level third baseman, Xander Bogaerts has joined the elite at the shortstop position, and Christian Vazquez has morphed into Babe Ruth.
Lastly, we’ve seen Rodriguez step up in a year where the starting rotation has been beyond a disappointment. All four men played big roles in the Sox walking away with a victory but it didn’t come easy.
E-Rod’s first inning was a glimpse into how his night would go as he was having some serious trouble locating his pitches. His changeup was missing the mark and led to some walks that would come back to hurt Boston early.
NESN commentator and former Red Sox catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia pointed it out that it seemed as if Rodriguez was trying to stay in specific areas of the strike zone which hindered his ability to move around the plate. He wasn’t wrong.
Though Rodriguez would finish with just three walks on the night, they came at times when the Rangers were able to capitalize on them. He would also fan six batters which is more like the pitcher we’re familiar with.
The big head-scratcher came on the fact that he gave up 11 hits, something he doesn’t do very often. In fact, he hasn’t allowed that many hits in a single game at any point this season, the closest was 10 hits to the Indian on August 12th.
Eduardo tends to get the most love from the Red Sox offense and last night wasn’t a change form that whatsoever. Four runs in the first inning should put the game comfortably in hand, but everyone has the occasional off-night. Luckily for E-Rod, the Boston bats didn’t cool down at all and kept tacking on the runs. The southpaw would only go five innings but it was enough to secure him his 19th win of the year.
Pitcher win totals tend to be a stat that gets scoffed at due to it being an inconsistent science. We’ve seen starters go deep and just to have a reliever that worked an inning or less get the win.
Hell, that happened to Eduardo just a few starts ago! It’s hard to deny a starter getting to 20 wins not being cool though. It’s a big accomplishment and if Eduardo does get win number 20 he’d be the first Red Sox lefty to do-so since Mel Parnell 66 years ago.
Eduardo didn’t shy away from the fact that he wasn’t his electric self last night and gave full credit to his teammates for their fight.
"“It’s not even my win,” Rodriguez said. “That win is for the team, the lineup, everything they do. They are up there grinding to score more runs. The ones I had before were mine, but this one wasn’t mine. I was part of the team but everything they did there to get a win for me was really special. Just sitting there, everybody pitching up there, hitting the ball, making plays and everything, that was special to watch.”"
More from Red Sox News
- Red Sox Nation deserves far more from Fenway Sports Group
- Bizarre trade deadline comes back to haunt Red Sox after Nathan Eovaldi departure
- Red Sox’ Moneyball-style offseason continues with Corey Kluber contract
- Rich Hill’s Red Sox departure puts him within striking distance of unique MLB record
- Red Sox offseason takes another nasty hit with Nathan Eovaldi departure
This really has been a breakout season for “Eddie Aces,” and he’s got one more outing to put the punctuation on his 2019. Not only did he get his 19th win last night, but he also crossed the 200K threshold and now sits at 205 on the year. Another mark he has eyed this season was the 200IP line and he’s 3.2IP away from that honor as well. He’ll get the ball in the final game of the season to make it happen.
"“At the end, what matters is that he has a shot for 200 innings and the 20 wins,” Cora said."
Alex Cora has spoken glowingly about Rodriguez from the moment he became the Red Sox skipper. We heard back in Spring Training about the work that E-Rod had put in during the winter and how this could be his season to reach his potential. He’s more than shown that he’s ready to take the mantle of “ace” and join Chris Sale and David Price on that mountaintop.
The Red Sox may not have the opportunity to defend their World Series crown this October but this season has still had some positives. One of the biggest has been the emergence of Eduardo Rodriguez as a top of the line starter for the foreseeable future. Last year was a glimpse at what he could do and this year he kicked the door right off the hinges. With one start left in his 2019 campaign, E-Rod has one final chance to stamp his name in this season.