The Rays optioned Rodriguez to Triple-A Durham on Tuesday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Rodriguez was competing for a spot in the bullpen but will head to Durham for now. He should still wind up spending a good amount of time with the big club this season.
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Rays' Manuel Rodriguez: Joins 40-man roster
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The Rays selected Rodriguez's contract from Triple-A Durham on Monday.
Rodriguez, whom the Rays acquired from the Cubs on Aug. 1, excelled down the stretch for Triple-A Durham, pitching to a 3.06 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 24:8 K:BB in 17.2 innings over the final two months of the season. Now a member of the Rays' 40-man roster, the 27-year-old right-hander will look to secure a spot in the big club's Opening Day bullpen. Rodriguez previously made 34 relief appearances with the Cubs between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, logging a 4.88 ERA and 1.56 WHIP across 31.1 frames.
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Rays' Manuel Rodriguez: Dealt to Tampa Bay
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The Cubs traded Rodriguez and Adrian Sampson to the Rays on Tuesday in exchange for Josh Roberson, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.
Rodriguez looked like a promising young arm in the Cubs' system at one point, but he turns 27 years old this coming Sunday and has registered an underwhelming 4.42 ERA and 1.50 WHIP across 38.2 innings of relief this season at Triple-A Iowa. He'll likely report to Triple-A Durham.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Outrighted to Triple-A
Rotowire
Rodriguez cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday,Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Rodriguez went unclaimed after being designated for assignment on Friday. The right-hander put together a 3.29 ERA over 13.2 innings with an 8:9 K:BB in his limited time with the Cubs in 2022. He'll provide organizational depth in 2023.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Cast off 40-man roster
Rotowire
The Cubs designated Rodriguez for assignment Tuesday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Rodriguez was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Julian Merryweather, whom the Cubs claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays. The 26-year-old right-hander posted a 3.29 ERA in 14 appearances with the Cubs while registering a 8:9 K:BB over 13.2 innings.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Tallies fourth save
Rotowire
Rodriguez retired the final two batters in Wednesday's 4-2 win over the Phillies to record the save.
Rodriguez now has four saves since getting activated from the injured list on Aug. 26. He's seemingly moved ahead of Rowan Wick in the closer pecking order, though Brandon Hughes is also in the mix from the left side. With seven games left in the season, Rodriguez could squeeze out a little more fantasy value if he sees a few more save chances.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Records third save
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Rodriguez picked up the save in Tuesday's 2-1 victory over the Phillies with a clean inning. He did not record a strikeout.
In his first appearance since blowing the save and earning the win against Pittsburgh on Sept. 23, Rodriguez was called upon to pick up the save with a runner on first base in the ninth inning. He delivered by getting J.T. Realmuto to ground into a fielder's choice and Alec Bohm to bounce into the double play to end the game and record his third save of the season. In 12 innings this season, Rodriguez has a 3.00 ERA and is 3-for-5 in save opportunities.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Notches second save
Rotowire
Rodriguez struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Friday to record his second save of the season in a 2-1 win over the Rockies.
The 26-year-old has been tagged for a run in four of eight appearances since joining the big-league roster in late August, but he does have a win and a hold over that stretch in addition to his saves. With the Cubs evaluating talent ahead of 2023, Rodriguez appears to be getting a long look in a high-leverage role over the final weeks of the season.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Snags save in first appearance
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Rodriguez gave up two hits, a walk and an unearned run in one inning to earn the save in a 4-3 extra-inning win over the Brewers on Friday.
Rodriguez entered in the tenth inning to protect a two-run lead. He allowed the automatic baserunner from second to score an unearned run and loaded the bases before getting out of the jam on a frantically-executed double-play. It was Rodriguez's first appearance of the season after battling an elbow injury all summer. He appears to be in the mix for high-leverage usage out of the Cubs' bullpen. Brandon Hughes had pitched in a save situation earlier in the game and blew the save for the second time in his last three chances. Rowan Wick is presumed to have been available but did not make an appearance in the contest.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Activated from injured list
Rotowire
Rodriguez (elbow) was activated off the 60-day injured list Friday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.
Rodriguez looked like he had an outside shot to close games for the Cubs back in March, but he wound up failing to make the Opening Day roster and suffered a strained elbow after making just two minor-league appearances. He's ready to go after allowing one run while striking out 12 batters across six rehab innings and could theoretically move into a high-leverage role in a wide-open Cubs bullpen if his first few appearances go well.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Shifts rehab to Triple-A
Rotowire
Rodriguez (elbow) gave up an earned run on two hits while striking out two in an inning of relief Wednesday in his rehab appearance for Triple-A Iowa.
Rodriguez has been sidelined nearly all season with a right elbow strain, which he developed in mid-April during his second appearance of the 2022 campaign with Iowa. In a procedural move, the Cubs called Rodriguez up June 1 and placed him on the 60-day injured list the same day, so he'll need to be added back to the 40-man roster once his 30-day rehab window ends. Rodriguez started the rehab assignment Aug. 9 and made two appearances in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League before he was transferred to Iowa, so he could remain on the IL until the second week of September.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Placed on 60-day IL
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Rodriguez (elbow) was recalled from Triple-A Iowa and placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.
Rodriguez has been on the 7-day minor-league injured list with a right elbow strain since April 14, and Wednesday's move will clear a spot on the Cubs' 40-man roster. The right-hander will be eligible to return in mid-June, but it seems likely that he'll head back to the minors once he's cleared for game action.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Placed on injured list
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Rodriguez was placed on the 7-day minor-league injured list for an unspecified reason Thursday, Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register reports.
Rodriguez allowed four runs in two innings during his first two relief appearances at Triple-A Iowa this year, but he's now dealing with an injury that will force him to miss at least a week. The nature of the issue isn't yet clear, and a timetable for his return isn't known.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Optioned to Triple-A
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Rodriguez was optioned to Triple-A Iowa on Sunday, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Rodriguez was believed to have an outside chance at a ninth-inning role heading into the regular season, but he'll ultimately begin the year in the minors. The right-hander posted a 6.11 ERA and 1.70 WHIP in 17.2 innings across 20 relief appearances for the Cubs last year, but his fastball averaged 97.2 mph, so he could be in the mix for a high-leverage role for the major-league club at some point in 2022.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Darkhorse candidate for saves?
Rotowire
Rodriguez may have an outside chance to close for the Cubs this season with manager David Ross planning on beginning the season with a mixture of pitchers in the ninth-inning role, per Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
There is no quote from Ross in the article directly putting Rodriguez in the late-game conversation. However, Bastian speculates Rodriguez could be in the mix for save chances along with Rowan Wick, David Robertson, Mychal Givens and Chris Martin. Rodriguez mostly struggled in his first cup of coffee in the big leagues last season, but he averages north of 97 mph on his sinking fastball, so he's at least a name to know.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Likely to make debut Thursday
Rotowire
Rodriguez (shoulder) is listed among the Cubs' relievers scheduled to pitch in Thursday's Cactus League game against the Angels, Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network reports.
Rodriguez was sidelined with right shoulder inflammation to close out the 2021 season, but his inclusion on the pitching schedule Thursday implies that he'll be good to go for the start of the 2022 campaign. Before getting hurt, Rodriguez didn't distinguish himself while working out of the Cubs bullpen, as he gave up 12 earned runs on 18 hits and 12 walks over 17.2 innings. Rodriguez still has a minor-league option remaining, so he could find himself at Triple-A Iowa once big-league camp wraps up.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Out with shoulder inflammation
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Rodriguez landed on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation Friday, Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago reports.
Rodriguez got lit up in his last four relief appearances, allowing 11 runs (eight earned) on 10 hits and five walks over just 2.2 total innings. Prior to that point, he'd recorded a 2.40 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in 15 innings of work, so there's reason to believe his sudden downturn may have been injury-related. He'll be eligible to return in the final week of the season, but the timing of the injury means there's a very real chance his season is already over.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Earns relief win Tuesday
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Rodriguez (3-2) fired two scoreless innings, allowing just a pair of walks to earn the win against the Twins on Tuesday.
Rodriguez inherited runners on first and second base with one out in the fifth inning. He got Luis Arraez to ground out into a double play to end the frame. The 24-year-old has allowed just one run in 10.2 innings over his last nine appearances. He carries a 2.63 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in 13.2 innings this season.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Earns second win
Rotowire
Rodriguez (2-2) tossed a scoreless ninth inning and picked up the win Monday against the Rockies. He struck out one.
Rodriguez pitched a 1-2-3 top of the ninth inning in a 4-4 game, then earned the win when the Cubs scored twice in the bottom part of the frame. The 25-year-old has emerged as a candidate for saves in Chicago with Craig Kimbrel getting traded. Codi Heuer is also in the mix. Rodriguez has pitched well with a 2.70 ERA and looks like a decent fantasy option if he keeps seeing late-inning work.
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Cubs' Manuel Rodriguez: Records first win
Rotowire
Rodriguez (1-2) tossed two scoreless innings of relief to earn the win Wednesday against the Reds. He walked one and struck out three.
Rodriquez earned his first MLB save earlier this month but he was the first pitcher out of the bullpen Wednesday, pitching the fifth and sixth innings in relief of Adrian Sampson. It looks like Rodriguez may be working in a flexible role for the Cubs, though that could be the case for most of the team's relievers -- the bullpen is a bit unsettled following the trade of Craig Kimbrel and Ryan Tepera at the deadline, as well as Dan Winkler getting designated for assignment. Rodriguez has been solid in limited work, recording a 3.38 ERA and 10 strikeouts across eight innings.
