Eduardo Rodriguez has been away from the Tigers for nearly a month, as the club placed the starter on the restricted list on June 13. Detroit announced at the time that he was dealing with personal matters, which John Heyman of the New York Post later reported was a marital concern. There was no timetable for his return at the time and it appears to be up in the air when he will return to the club.
Speaking to reporters this afternoon, Detroit general manager Al Avila said the team hasn’t heard from Rodriguez recently (link via Cody Stavenhagen of the Athletic). “We reached out but apparently he didn’t reciprocate. We’re just waiting it out, Avila said. “It’s unusual, but we have no choice but to wait it out right now and see how it plays out as we go forward.”
Manager AJ Hinch offered a similar report last week. “As far as I know, there has been no movement and no communication,” Hinch said at the time. “We know he’s safe, we know he’s home with his kids, we know he’s back in Florida, but it’s been pretty quiet.”
As part of an aggressive offseason, the Tigers added Rodriguez to a five-year, $77 million free agent contract last November. The deal also allows the southpaw to opt out after the 2023 campaign. He made eight starts over the first few months of the season, working to a 4.38 ERA over 39 innings. Rodriguez landed on the injured list on May 22 with a pectoral strain; he was on a minor league rehab assignment to work his way back from the injury at the time he retired from the club.
Players on the restricted list don’t get paid, so Rodriguez forfeits a salary for any time he spends away from the team. Avila declined to comment when asked if the Tigers would explore the possibility of trying to void his contract entirely. “I’m not going to get into that at this stage. Obviously it’s a situation, it’s a personal situation right now on his part. I will not deal with it.’
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