The Nationals reassigned Rodriguez to minor-league camp Tuesday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
Rodriguez was among the 10 players sent to minor-league camp during Washington's first wave of spring cuts. After logging a 5.92 ERA over 24.1 innings with the big club in 2021, Rodriguez is expected to open the season as a member of the Triple-A Rochester rotation.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Inks MiLB deal
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Rodriguez signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals on Monday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
Rodriguez appeared in 14 games (one start) with Washington in 2021, struggling to a 5.92 ERA and 1.73 WHIP with a 20:17 K:BB across 24.1 innings prior to being designated for assignment and ultimately outrighted to Triple-A Rochester in August. He'll get another chance with the club in 2022 but will need to earn his way back onto the big-league roster.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Outrighted to Triple-A
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Rodriguez cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Rochester on Thursday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.
Rodriguez was designated for assignment Tuesday after he posted a 9.24 ERA and 1.97 WHIP in 12.2 innings across eight appearances since the All-Star break. The right-hander hasn't fared much better in the minors, as he has a 7.56 ERA and 1.79 WHIP in 16.2 innings across six appearances (five starts) at Triple-A Rochester this year, but he'll remain in the organization after he passed through waivers.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Designated for assignment
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Rodriguez was designated for assignment by Washington on Tuesday, Jessica Camerato of MLB.com reports.
Rodriguez has struggled in August, allowing home runs in three of his five appearances while posting a 9.45 ERA across 6.2 innings. It's possible he attracts interest on waivers from teams in need of relief help, but it would not be at all surprising if he goes unclaimed given his recent struggles.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Effectively wild as long reliever
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Rodriguez has made four appearances in July, posting a 1.59 ERA over 5.2 innings with a 10:6 K:BB.
The 27-year-old has had trouble finding the plate consistently throughout his career, so his ugly 19.6 percent walk rate in the majors this year is no surprise, but so far Rodriguez's 27.5 percent strikeout rate and .231 BABIP have limited the damage from the free passes. He should remain in a low-leverage long relief role in the second half.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Four innings of one hit ball
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Rodriguez started Game 2 of Saturday's 2-1 doubleheader loss to San Francisco, allowing no runs on one hit and three walks with two strikeouts in four innings. He received a no-decision.
Making his first start of 2021 and his first appearance since 2019, Rodriguez engaged in an abbreviated pitcher's duel with the Giants' bullpen. The successful outing may have earned Rodriguez another start with Stephen Strasburg still injured despite Rodriguez being the 27th man for Saturday's doubleheader.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Contract purchased by Nats
Rotowire
Rodriguez's contract was selected from Triple-A Rochester and he could start Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Giants.
He had been starting at Triple-A and is due to pitch, so even if he doesn't start Game 2, he figures to log multiple innings in some capacity during the twin bill. Rodriguez has a 7.56 ERA, 1.74 WHIP and 19:13 K:BB in 16.2 innings at Triple-A.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Could be emergency starter Sunday
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Rodriguez is an option to start Sunday's game for the Nationals, Bobby Blanco of MASN Sports reports.
The Nats seem to be leaning towards a bullpen game with Austin Voth, Paolo Espino or both getting significant work, but if both are somehow needed Saturday, Rodriguez is on turn at Triple-A Rochester. The right-hander has a 5.40 ERA and 17:11 K:BB through 15 innings for Rochester, but he's coming off a strong outing June 1 against Worcester in which he gave up one run on two hits and struck out eight over five innings.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Shakes off shoulder issue
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Rodriguez (shoulder) has posted a 5.14 ERA and 2.00 WHIP across seven innings in his three appearances (two starts) for Triple-A Rochester this season.
Rodriguez didn't make any appearances for the Nationals in spring training while managing a stiff right shoulder, but he was healthy for the start of the minor-league season in May. The 27-year-old will likely be a mainstay in the Rochester rotation for most of the 2021 campaign.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Sent to minor-league camp
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Rodriguez (shoulder) was reassigned to minor-league camp Sunday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
The 27-year-old signed with the Nationals as a non-roster invitee in December and was expected to compete for a bullpen spot, but he has yet to see game action in spring training due to shoulder stiffness. Manager Dave Martinez recently indicated Rodriguez hasn't received clearance for mound work, so it's unclear when he's expected to be fully recovered from the injury.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Tending to stiff shoulder
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Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Wednesday that Rodriguez is dealing with a stiff shoulder and has yet to receive clearance for mound work, Matt Weyrich of NBC Sports Washington reports.
On a more encouraging note, Rodriguez is able to play catch off flat ground, so he could soon be cleared for a bullpen session. After Rodriguez mostly worked as a starter since making his big-league debut in 2018, the Nationals are viewing him exclusively as a reliever this season, so he shouldn't require a lengthy build-up period while working through the shoulder issue. The non-roster invitee still seems more likely than not to open the season at Triple-A Rochester.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Shifting to relief role
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Rodriguez is now considered a reliever, Matt Weyrich of NBC Sports Washington reports.
Rodriguez has made 16 starts and 12 relief appearances thus far in his career. He's fared far better out of the 'pen, albeit in just 16.1 innings of work, as his 2.76 ERA in that role comes in at less than half of his 5.68 ERA as a starter. It's possible the transition helps him reach a new level, as he could shelve his largely ineffective changeup if he doesn't have to worry about facing hitters multiple times. Rodriguez is merely in camp as a non-roster invitee however, so he's seemingly a long shot to break camp with the team in any role.
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Nationals' Jefry Rodriguez: Returns to Washington
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Rodriguez (shoulder) agreed Sunday with the Nationals on a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to big-league spring training, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
Rodriguez signed with the Nationals in 2012 as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic, working his way up the system for six years before making his MLB debut in 2018. He was then dealt to Cleveland following the 2018 season in the trade that sent catcher Yan Gomes to Washington, but Rodriguez never found much opportunity during his two seasons with the club. He ended up spending most of the 2020 season on the shelf with a right shoulder sprain, prompting Cleveland to non-tender him earlier this month. Washington will bring back Rodriguez to see if he can bolster the organization's rotation depth at the Triple-A level, though he'll first need to prove that the shoulder concern is behind him during spring training.
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Jefry Rodriguez: Hitting free agency
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Rodriguez (shoulder) was non-tendered by the Indians on Wednesday.
The 27-year-old was dealing with lower back pain when he reported to summer camp in July and eventually landed on the 45-day injured list with a shoulder sprain. Rodriguez had a 4.63 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 33:21 K:BB over 46.2 innings during 2019 but has dealt with numerous injuries over the past couple years.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Out with shoulder strain
Rotowire
Rodriguez was placed on the 45-day injured list with a right shoulder sprain Wednesday.
The transaction rules the righty out for the remainder of the season, though he hadn't thrown any big-league innings this year, so his absence won't be a particularly significant one. Whether or not he'll be up to full speed for the start of next year's spring training remains to be seen.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Sent to alternate camp
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Rodriguez was sent to the Indians' alternate training site Saturday while battling lower back pain, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Rodriguez's back has prevented him from ramping up his workload over the last two weeks, and he'll head to the team's Lake County facility to continue his recovery ahead of the regular season. It's unclear how much time he'll miss as a result, but the move likely guarantees that he won't be part of Cleveland's bullpen to begin the season. The right-hander gave up 10 earned runs over 7.2 innings during spring training.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Likely headed to Triple-A
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Rodriguez was on the outside looking in on a roster spot when spring training was postponed, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
The battle for the final two spots in the rotation was down to Aaron Civale, Zach Plesac and Adam Plutko, according to Bell, and since Plutko is out of options and Rodriguez still has one option year left, Plutko would be the logical long reliever if he misses out on a rotation spot. Rodriguez gave up 10 earned runs in 7.2 innings this spring.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Gets ball for spring opener
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Rodriguez will start Saturday in the Indians' Grapefruit League opener against the Reds, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Cleveland has opted to begin their spring schedule by pitching some of their lesser-experienced rotation candidates early on, with Rodriguez set to be followed by Scott Moss on Sunday and Zach Plesac on Monday. Rodriguez posted a 2.92 ERA across his first four starts with the Indians in 2019 before going 0-3 in his final four games following a three-month absence with right shoulder soreness. The 26-year-old right-hander received high-praise from manager Terry Francona regarding his offseason efforts, "Jefry worked so hard and did so much this offseason -- he practically lived out there," Francona said. Rodriguez is scheduled to pitch two innings Saturday and will be followed by Logan Allen, Adam Cimber and Phil Maton among others.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Back from injured list
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Rodriguez (shoulder) was activated off the 10-day injured list Friday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.
Rodriguez has made six minor-league rehab appearances since mid-August and is good to rejoin the Indians after going down with a right shoulder strain at the start of June. The 26-year-old seems likely to work out of the bullpen since he topped out at 45 pitches during the rehab stint.
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Indians' Jefry Rodriguez: Throws two perfect innings
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Rodriguez (shoulder) threw two perfect innings with two strikeouts for Triple-A Columbus in a win over Gwinnett in Game 1 of the Governors' Cup Semifinals on Wednesday.
The right-hander continued his rehab assignment into the International League playoffs after fitting in only two appearances with Columbus before the end of the regular season. Overall, he has allowed one run on four hits and three walks over 7.1 rehab innings with the Clippers. The Indians can leave him down for a while if they want, but Rodriguez appears ready to go.
