Detroit Tigers ace Eduardo Rodriguez left his start against the Tampa Bay Rays with an injury. It doesn’t look promising.
E-Rod is off to an up-and-down start with the Tigers, as he went 1-2 with a 3.72 ERA in his first seven starts.
Rodriguez signed a five-year, $77 million contract this past offseason with Detroit. Al Avila hoped Rodriguez could serve as a stable veteran ace for a rotation full of young pitchers.
Still, the Tigers pitching staff has suffered a ton of injuries this year, namely to Casey Mize and Matt Manning. You can add Rodriguez to that list.
E-Rod was chased in the first inning after giving up three runs. The training staff came out to look at him, and A.J. Hinch had seen enough.
Now trainer Doug Teter is coming out. Hinch, too. Eduardo Rodriguez is leaving. 23 pitches. Rony Garcia gets a bases loaded, one out mess to clean. Won't speculate on what was wrong with E-Rod, but his velo was down and he wasn't even trying to throw heaters
— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) May 18, 2022
Clearly something is wrong with #Tigers starter Eduardo Rodriguez, as head athletic trainer Doug Teter heads to the mound with manager A.J. Hinch in the first inning. Hopefully it is nothing serious. #DetroitRoots pic.twitter.com/cKD9txeI0p
— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) May 18, 2022
Can Tigers withstand an injury to Eduardo Rodriguez?
Detroit had won four straight games before Tuesday night’s loss to Tampa. A victory on Wednesday afternoon would go a long way in building their confidence after a tough start to the season marred by injuries and poor offensive play.
In short, an injury to their ace would be a major hit to the Tigers’ chances of turning things around in this early season. The lineup has yet to show much life, and without a stable rotation to match their excellent bullpen, Detroit would be out of many baseball games before the first pitch.
Rodriguez hasn’t been excellent, but he’s a stable force the Tigers must count on at this point in the season. Without an ace, Detroit’s rotation is left with Tarik Skubal and little else.
We’ll have more updates on Eduardo Rodriguez’s injury status when they come available.