The Marlins informed reporters, including Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase, that they have agreed to terms on a minor league deal with right-hander Richard Rodríguez. The reliever will receive a non-roster invitation to camp.
Rodríguez, who turns 33 later this week, has had quite a rollercoaster experience in the past few years. With the Pirates in 2018, he seemed to break out by posting a 2.47 ERA over 69 1/3 innings, striking out 31.5% of batters faced. The next year, his strikeouts dipped to 22.1% and his ERA jumped to 3.72. He got back on track in the shortened 2020 season with an incredible 36.6% strikeout rate, helping him drop his ERA down to 2.70.
In 2021, his strikeouts dried up again, dropping down to 22.8% in his time with the Pirates. He still managed to keep runs off the board, with his ERA at 2.82 when he was dealt to Atlanta. His strikeouts got even further away from him after the jersey switch, as he only punched out 8.5% of batters with Atlanta. He managed to post a 3.12 ERA in that time, but that was largely thanks to a .200 batting average on balls in play and 97.1% strand rate, with both of those numbers being unsustainably fortunate.
Rodríguez could have been retained for a couple more seasons via arbitration, but Atlanta looked past his low ERAs and decided to non-tender him prior to the 2022 campaign. While a free agent, he was given an 80-game suspension after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Boldenone. Once that suspension was served, he joined the Yankees on a minor league deal. He eventually posted a 3.96 ERA in 25 minor league innings, striking out 25.5% of batters faced.
For the Marlins, this is a no-risk move since they’re bringing Rodríguez into the fold without committing a roster spot to him. The last two seasons have been up-and-down for the righty but he’s not far removed from being a dominant bullpen arm in the big leagues. If he cracks the roster at some point, he still has a full slate of options and just over four years of service time, meaning the Marlins could keep him around if he returns to form. Rodríguez will try to crack a bullpen that features intriguing hurlers such as Dylan Floro, Tanner Scott, Matt Barnes, A.J. Puk and others.
He should have gotten a major league deal. Then, again, so should Danny Duffy.
No no no, absolutely not. Guy has been a totally different pitcher since enforcement of other substances while pitching (i.e. spider tack), to the point ATL left him off the postseason roster.
Hopefully he’s learned how to pitch without it since.
Rich-Rod lost about 300 RPM off his fastball from June 16th to June 22nd. Not only was he left off ATL’s playoff rosters, but non-tendered at the end of the season, and then suspended for PEDs. He should be happy to sign a minor league deal and not with an Indy league team or overseas.
Duffy hasn’t pitched in a year and a half and Rodriguez is coming off of a season in which he served an 80 game suspension for PED’s. Neither deserved guaranteed contracts
Considering Britton’s 9 MM AAV ask (which he didn’t get), I’d say it’s just the reliever market crashing at the end. Even Chafin and Moore didn’t get 9 million.
I agree… I see what people are saying about sticky stuff etc. But even without K’s he produced. Sure there was “good luck” but at some point… when you repeatedly post ERAs in the 3.00s with and without K’s you can only call it luck for so long (4 years)
At the very least, if not a ML deal, I still would have thought he’d have enough interest that he’d have been signed WAY earlier in the off season, and would have had some competition for his services (or potential ones but still) the upside is a good to great set-up option, downside is a waste of a couple hundred K. a total bust seems unlikely so you could even argue the downside is an innings eating middle reliever.
There’s a difference between being better than your metrics and being lucky. His run with the Braves was absolutely luck fuelled. No way does he kept a low-3 ERA whole averaging 2.1 HR/9. His 2019 ERA is not what it seems to be. Its a very ugly 3.72 because he was never consistent through the year. The only times Rodriguez was really good was 2018 and the first half of 2021.
Low risk possible high reward deal. No brainer.
I feel that Puk, Floro, Scott and Barnes has the makings of a solid back end of the bullpen but still feels like Miami needs a legit closer to lengthen out the depth there.
Fish could finally be onto something with this bullpen they’re building
Biggest sticky stuff merchant in history
With Atlanta, in 26 innings pitched he had 9 strike outs. That’s not good.
What’s even worse was allowing six home runs.
I saw a comment (not on here, pretty sure it was on Twitter, so it makes sense why it was so wrong) that said the Pirates were the real losers of the Richard Rodriguez trade because they didn’t get enough back. But like, if I’m able to find on Baseball Savant that Rodriguez lost about 300 RPM off his fastball, a pitch he used over three-quarters of the time, and the pitch was less effective once MLB started to crack down on foreign substances on the mound, what do you think a major league team with an infinite amount of player research and scouting resources has on him?
Another franchise altering move for the great Kim Ng. Give her the 10 year extension right now.
Soler and Mini Miggy was really bad
Always a laugh for me seeing pictures of guys on here who hardly played for the Braves. Cole Hamels and his 1 game played has them all beat though.
This guys a steal on a minor league deal