ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Eduardo Rodriguez is the Red Sox' starting pitcher of choice for Game 1 of the Division Series, set for Thursday night at Tropicana Field.
"He has been throwing the ball well. We think it's a good matchup,'' said Alex Cora. "Obviously with them, you have to mix and match. They're going to look for an advantage and all that. We'll have Nick (Pivetta) in the bullpen tomorrow, and we'll do what we do. They put you in spots to try to maximize their lineup, but we will maximize our pitching staff. So we feel Eddie has been there, done that. So he threw the ball well here before just like others on our pitching staff so, we feel very comfortable with him.''
There had been some thought that the Sox would bring back Chris Sale for Game 1 on what would have been three days' rest. That seemingly would have been an option since Sale threw just 62 pitches in the final game of the season on Sunday, but the Sox decided they would rather hold him back and have him ready for Game 2 Friday. Given that Sale is only eight starts into his comeback from Tommy John surgery, it's best to treat his workload with some caution.
Meanwhile, the Sox have plenty of confidence in Rodriguez, who finished strong in his last outing of the season, helping the Sox beat the Washington Nationals in the first game of the final series of the regular season.
"I'm very proud of him,'' said Cora. "First thing is first, last year was a very difficult year for him not being able to play because of health issues. And the fact that he will be the starter tomorrow, I know it means a lot to him and his family. You know, his support system has been amazing throughout, and we are very proud of him. I mean, what he has done this season, regardless of the up and downs, he didn't throw the ball extremely well at one point, but he has been very consistent throughout, and he has been making adjustments every start and, you know, he has been getting better and better.''
This season has seen Rodriguez experience some highs and lows, but it's nothing compared to the 2020 season, the entirety of which Rodriguez missed after first contracting COVID, and then, as a side effect, dealing with myocarditis.
That makes opening a postseason series for the Sox special.
"It means a lot, you know, because everything that I went through last year,'' he said, ''and I have the opportunity to throw the first inning in the ALDS, it feels really good, you know what I mean? It's just special. I feel like it's really special for me to have the opportunity to start a game like that.
Rodriguez is a free agent after the season, and because of that, every start from here on out could be his last for the Sox.
"We'll get there when we have to get there,'' said Cora, "but this is a guy that represents everything that we ask for for a player. You know, just show up, work hard, and do your best out there, and he has done that since I got here. Do we still jab each other? Yeah, of course. That's part of the relationship.''
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The Red Sox are still unsure about the availability of DH J.D. Martinez, who suffered a sprained ankle in the season finale in Washington Sunday and wasn't on the wild card roster as the Red Sox moved past the Yankees Tuesday.
The Sox were waiting to see how Martinez felt after doing a little on-field work at Tropicana Field. They must submit their roster by Thursday morning.
"He is doing okay,'' said Cora. "He is moving around. We'll see what he can do today. The goal is for him to do a few things today physically and, you know, we'll make a decision obviously tomorrow morning.''
Martinez is far from the only decision the Sox have to make. The roster will likely be quite different from the wild card roster in which the Sox were dealing with just one nine-inning game.
It's unlikely that the team will have some of the additions to Tuesday's roster also eligible for the Division Series. That means that Jonathan Arauz, Jarren Duran and third catcher Connor Wong could be in jeopardy.
Meanwhile, it's expected that pitchers such as Hirokazu Sawamura could rejoin the roster. Sale, who wasn't on the roster for the wild card game, will obviously be on this one. Martin Perez is also a possibility to return to the roster, to give the Sox another left-handed option in the bullpen.
"As far as roster-wise we're not even close to finalizing it, you know?' said Cora. "We have to go over a lot of things. Obviously, it was a long night last night, and we just got here, but, you know, that's what they do.''