The Red Sox made the announcement earlier this evening that they will not be exercising their club option to retain left-hander Joely Rodriguez through the 2024 campaign. Instead of using the $4.25MM option, the organisation will buy Rodriguez out for $500K so that he may go back to the free market.
Although Rodriguez appeared like an intriguing addition for Boston when he signed a $2 million guarantee last offseason, the decision is not shocking. Prior to joining the Mets, Rodriguez had pitched for the Rangers, Yankees, and Mets over the previous three seasons, going 119 games with a 4.28 ERA, 3.14 FIP, and a respectable 25.5 percent strikeout rate. Despite the fact that the figures suggested the 31-year-old Rodriguez may be a good left-handed middle reliever, if not a higher leverage role, that did not materialise in 2023.
Rather of realising the potential he has shown in the past, Rodriguez’s season with the Red Sox this year was plagued by injuries. Following an oblique injury that put him on the disabled list at the beginning of the season, Rodriguez missed time due to a shoulder strain and a reoccurring hip ailment that ultimately caused his season to end. In total, Rodriguez threw just 11 innings for the Red Sox this season, giving up eight earned runs on 13 hits and six walks while recording 14 strikeouts.
If he can stay healthy, Rodriguez, a lefty, may be a valuable bullpen arm for a team in 2024 when he returns to the open market. That being said, it appears likely that Rodriguez will have to make do with a minor league contract ahead of his age-32 season due to his disappointing 2023 campaign and prior performance that trended more towards average than the above-average performances his underlying analytics might indicate.
With Josh Winckowski and Garrett Whitlock among others, and Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin expected to return for the last innings, Boston’s bullpen appears to be rather well positioned against the Red Sox. Nevertheless, given that Rodriguez and Richard Bleier will both be available for grabs this winter, it becomes sense to consider the possibility that the team may search for a different left-handed reliever to complement Brennan Bernardino in the bullpen. In this sense, there are a tonne of options on the free agent market, including seasoned set-up arms like Matt Moore and Will Smith.
