COVID Heart Problem Sidelines Red Sox Pitcher

Eduardo Rodríguez is out for the entire season
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 3, 2020 12:33 AM CDT
COVID Heart Problem Sidelines Red Sox Pitcher
In this Sept. 29, 2019, file photo, Boston Red Sox's Eduardo Rodriguez pitches during the first inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in Boston.   (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

Boston Red Sox left-hander Eduardo Rodríguez will miss the entire season because of heart inflammation caused by COVID-19, the AP reports. He has been on the injured list since mid-July and has not pitched this season. “In the course of monitoring Eduardo after his return, we discovered that he was showing evidence of myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart, and fortunately, the severity of that complication looked mild,” Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom said before Saturday night's game against the Yankees. “We were optimistic that it would resolve in short order and that we would be progressing back to pitching. As we’ve continued to monitor it, it has not resolved. It is still there," he said.

Rodríguez was a career-best 19-6 last year with a 3.81. The Red Sox said July 7 the 27-year-old had tested positive for COVID-19. He returned July 18, but the team said five says later that an MRI revealed an issue that turned out to be the heart condition. “We are confident that he is going to make a full recovery and that his long-term prognosis is excellent,” Bloom said. “But the fact of the matter is that there just isn’t enough time left this season to safely ramp him back up to pitching.” "Here’s one of the best pitchers in the game last year and he's not able to perform on the field," Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke said. “You’re more at risk when you’re older, but it hits the young pretty hard, too, at times. And Eddie just, unfortunately, is one of those guys that it hit hard, and to get to lose an entire season, it’s pretty rough on anybody.” (More on the situation here.)

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