The Boston Red Sox named left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to start Game 3 of the American League Championship Series against the visiting Houston Astros on Monday.
Rodriguez struggled in two regular-season starts against Houston. He went 0-1 with an 11.57 ERA in 9 1/3 innings and served up homers to Jose Altuve and Yuli Gurriel.
Overall, Rodriguez is 1-3 with an 8.53 ERA in six career starts against the Astros.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Sunday that he selected Rodriguez over right-hander Nick Pivetta.
“Nick will be in the bullpen (Monday) and then we’ll decide what we’re doing in Game 4,” Cora said. “We feel like Eddie’s throwing the ball well. Nick is throwing the ball well. We’ll see where it takes us tomorrow.”
Rodriguez, 28, went 13-8 with a 4.74 ERA in 32 regular-season appearances (31 starts). He made two starts against the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL Division Series and went 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA.
Among the Houston hitters who have enjoyed success against Rodriguez are Carlos Correa (6-for-10), Alex Bregman (5-for-12, two homers) and Altuve (5-for-13, one homer).
The Astros will start right-hander Jose Urquidy. It will be his first appearance of the postseason.
Urquidy, 26, went 8-3 with a 3.62 ERA in 20 regular-season starts. He defeated the Red Sox on May 31 in his lone career start against them, giving up one run and three hits and striking out a season-best nine in six innings.
–Field Level Media