3 Red Sox players who won’t be back next season

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Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez. (David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports) /

2. Eduardo Rodriguez

Eduardo Rodriguez stepped up in the ALCS with a solid six innings of action in a win over the Astros. He probably made himself some extra cash with that performance in terms of free agency.

However, he wasn’t good enough throughout the season to justify bringing him back for any more than the $8.3 million he signed for in 2021. That’s why Boston will let him go.

Rodriguez went 13-8 but had an ERA of 4.74 in the regular season. Coming off a serious bout of COVID-19 in 2020, his return was impressive on a personal level. Still, he’ll be looking for money well above that “show me” contract he took for this year.

The Red Sox should look to put the money they’d spend on Rodriguez towards a pitcher who can show up more reliably from start to finish in the regular season.

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