![Jun 27, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (52) talks with shortstop Xander Bogaerts (2) after he gave up a hit during the second inning ]against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/shape/cover/sport/ccb66bffd5849be79a9b429e28069816402537592dda885fb68f1b9cc00be554.jpg "Jun 27, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez (52) talks with shortstop Xander Bogaerts (2) after he gave up a hit during the second inning ]against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports")
Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez was heralded as one of the teams starting pitcher coming into the season once he returned from a knee injury. Since returning from that injury in late May, the left hander has struggled, including a blowing up in Tuesday’s night game against the last place Rays.
After a solid start to the season, the Red Sox are in full panic mode.
Not even a month from coming back from a knee injury, Eduardo Rodriguez has been demoted to Triple-A Pawtucket. A corresponding move has not yet been announced.
The demotion comes on the heels of his worst start of the season on Tuesday. Rodriguez only pitched 2.2 innings, allowing 11 hits, 9 earned runs, and two home runs.
After Monday’s start, Rodriguez now has an ERA of 8.59.
All of this to a struggling Rays team:
The Rays have lost 11 straight games and five out of nine hitters in their lineup are hitting under .200. They're winning 5-0 in the second.
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) June 27, 2016
Rodriguez’s past starts haven’t been too impressive either. Over five starts and 26.2 innings, the struggling left hander has allowed 19 earned runs, as well as only striking out 19. Opponents also have a .264 average against Rodriguez.
Coming into the season, Red Sox Nation had high expectations for Rodriguez. For good reason too, the lefty won 10 games over 121.2 innings with an ERA of 3.85 in his rookie season.
Rodriguez’s struggles have hurt the Red Sox hard, since the whole pitching staff has been a disaster of late.
From 1913 to last Thurs., no Red Sox starter had ever allowed more than 10 hits in less than 3 IP. Since Friday, it's happened twice.
— Sean McAdam (@Sean_McAdam) June 28, 2016
Sean McAdam is talking about “ace” David Price and his recent blow up against the Rangers where he allowed six earned runs over 2.1 innings (but somehow still won the game).
On top of that, Clay Buchholz struggled Sunday against the Rangers when he allowed four runs over 5.1 innings. Buchholz’s record worsened to 3-8, with an earned run average of 5.80. He has recently been rumored to be on the trade market.
Lucky for the Red Sox, the team has one of the best offenses in baseball, which has kept them around and won them games. It is mainly the reason the team is still in second place, 4.5 games behind the Baltimore Orioles and only one game in front of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Red Sox are 9-15 in the month of June, and without a move for starting pitching, the slide has no end in sight.
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As for Rodriguez, the Red Sox will need him in the rotation as soon as possible. With starting pitching depth so thin, Rodriguez will be back in the rotation real soon if he can prove that he has fixed his mechanical (and/or mental) flaws.
For more, you can catch me complaining about the Red Sox struggles on Twitter @ConnerGrant5. This is currently where I am at with this team:
Remember when the Red Sox were good? That was fun
— Conner Grant (@ConnerGrant5) June 28, 2016