With little options remaining for their front-loaded starting rotation, the Boston Red Sox will return an old friend to the mound for the team's first post-All-Star break tilt on Friday night against the New York Yankees

Eduardo Rodriguez back in the mix

Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez, who fared 1-3 with a horrific 8.59 ERA in six starts with the Red Sox before being demoted to Triple-A Pawtucket, is expected to be re-activated to the major league roster as Boston looks to continue their four-game winning streak at Yankee Stadium. The 23-year-old will take on another embattled starter, Michael Pineda, who has struggled to the tune of a 3-8 record and an overwhelming 5.38 ERA. 

After returning to the Red Sox rotation in late May following an injury suffered early on in spring training, Rodriguez arrived with amid a surplus amount of excitement from the team's front office with the expectation that he could become the No. 2 starter in a stack of aces. As that stack wilted, Rodriguez's ERA ballooned. Following a victory in his season debut in which he yielded just two runs in six innings against the Baltimore Orioles on May 31, the Venezuelan scuffled mightily in June, going 0-3 with a harrowing 10.03 ERA in five starts while letting up 26 earned runs in just 23.1 innings. 

Eduardo Rodriguez in currently 1-3 with a 8.59 ERA
Eduardo Rodriguez in currently 1-3 with a 8.59 ERA. | AP

As he struggled with command and velocity, Rodriguez's issues hit a breaking point on June 27 in which he was obliterated by the AL East cellar-dwelling Tampa Bay Rays for nine runs on 11 hits in just 2.2 innings, allowing 1/4 as many home runs as he recorded outs. The mind-blowing defeat earned Rodriguez a spot on the Pawtucket roster, leaving the Red Sox with just three legitimate starting options (David Price, Steven Wright, and Rick Porcello) with spot starter Sean O'Sullivan landing on the 15-day disabled list with knee tendonitis after his start on Friday. 

Thus, Rodriguez will be ushered back into the Red Sox rotation for the time being as manager John Farrell looks to give him another opportunity to prove himself as someone worthy of a nod every five days. Essentially, he has earned the callback, posting seven shutout innings in a July 3 outing at Triple-A before letting up just a pair of runs in a rain-shortened, three-inning performance in his latest performance with Pawtucket. 

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Liam OBrien
Just a Boston man who loves sports. Oh, and writing is kind of a priority.