Atlanta Braves Rumors: Are the Braves courting Eduardo Rodriguez?
At the top of the mid-tier list or bottom of the top-tier list, depending on your persuasion, of free agent starting pitchers is Eduardo Rodriguez, who became a free agent after opting out of his contract with the Tigers, leaving $49 million behind in Detroit. Rodriguez's connection to the Braves has been admittedly vague thus far, but it's incredibly likely that they've at least approached him and tried to gauge interest. E-Rod, like Cease, would probably fall into the three spot in Atlanta's rotation behind Spencer Strider and Max Fried, though he could have some competition for that slot with Bryce Elder.
Rodriguez is less of a strikeout thrower than Strider, Fried, or Cease, but his career walk rate through nine is at a much more reassuring 3.08 than Cease's 4.02. He also had his best ERA year, at 3.30, and although he hasn't pitched over 180 innings since 2019, he still pitched over 150 for the Tigers this year.
With starting pitchers being taken off the board little by little everyday, the stock of those remaining is slowly climbing. Rodriguez is valued at a bit over $20 million a year, with most predictions expecting him to land a three or four year deal. The Braves would probably be hesitant to give anyone a $60-80 million deal, but if it's true that they're increasing payroll and have their sights set on a frontline pitcher who can give them a lot of innings if he stays healthy, they might want to consider stepping out of their comfort zone for E-Rod.