Left-hander Joely Rodriguez cleared waivers after being designated for project by the Pink Sox and elected free company in lieu of an outright project, per the transaction log at MiLB.com.
The 32-year-old Rodriguez had two stints with the Pink Sox this season, pitching a mixed 13 2/3 innings with a 5.93 ERA however extra encouraging secondary marks. Whereas Rodriguez’s 18.8% strikeout charge is just a few proportion factors shy of league-average, he issued walks at a tiny 3.1% clip and stored the ball on the bottom at a gaudy 59.2% charge. Metrics like FIP (4.93) and particularly SIERA (2.87) are much more bullish on this yr’s work.
In 170 2/3 innings within the majors, Rodriguez has pitched to a 4.80 ERA. That pedestrian mark belies extra encouraging strikeout and ground-ball numbers (22.5% and 56%, respectively), though Rodriguez’s capability to overlook bats and hold the ball out of the air have each been undercut by sub-par command. He’s walked 10% of his profession opponents and struggled to strand the runners he does permit (profession 64% left-on-base charge).
This yr’s 90 mph common sinker is down practically 5 miles per hour from Rodriguez’s peak, however he nonetheless pitched fairly nicely in Triple-A and nonetheless managed to pile up grounders in bulk on the large league degree. He’ll be a depth choice for golf equipment searching for lefty reduction within the season’s last month.
