Rodriguez is scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut Friday against Tampa Bay, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
That means Rodriguez will toe the rubber in Boston's sixth spring game; however, he did throw a two-inning simulated game Saturday and appears on track as the team's No. 1 starter. "He looked good," manager Alex Cora told Ian Browne of MLB.com. "Actually, we were talking about the fact that he was able to repeat his delivery for two innings. It's a positive. Good stuff. A few pitches over the middle of the plate. As far as mechanics and how he felt, it was a good step towards the right direction." The Red Sox will go with a six-man rotation during the first week of spring games but have not committed to it for the regular season. Whatever happens -- five-man or six-man -- Rodriguez will be part of it and likely be the ace.