Eduardo Rodriguez expected to debut Tuesday for Diamondbacks

Arizona Diamondbacks left-handed starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez is expected to make his season debut on Tuesday in Cleveland against the Guardians, according to Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro.

Arizona recently trimmed its rotation to four for two full cycles, with the expectation that Rodriguez would eventually fill that gap. The D-backs do not have a starter penciled in for Monday’s series opener, but given the day off on Thursday, that provided Wednesday’s starter Zac Gallen another day of rest and he could then pitch on Monday before Rodriguez.

Rodriguez was signed to a four-year, $80 million deal in the offseason. He left a spring training start in mid-March with discomfort and was shut down in early April after he had started a throwing program in an attempt to return. Several followup MRIs would come over the following weeks ensuring Rodriguez’s shoulder was recovering properly. He will have missed almost four months of the season.

Arizona has had other injuries on the staff as well, leading to youngsters Brandon Pfaadt (126.1 IP) and Ryne Nelson (105.1 IP) pacing the team in innings this season.

Rodriguez is a nine-year veteran. In 26 starts for the Detroit Tigers last year, he sported a 3.30 ERA and 1.15 WHIP.

Merrill Kelly rehab start on the way

The other significant injury on the rotation (and roster) is right-hander Merrill Kelly and he will toss a simulation game on Tuesday with the High-A Hillsboro Hops.

Kelly, like Rodriguez, threw in a sim game at Salt River Fields on Wednesday. He was only four starts into his season in April before a shoulder issue that has had him on the injured list for nearly four months as well.

Kelly has been a stabilizing, really good piece in the rotation since his arrival in 2019. He is coming off back-to-back seasons with an ERA under 3.50 and WHIP under 1.20.

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