The Tigers have made their first big move of free agency.
The club has agreed to a five-year, $77 million deal with starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez, according to Jeff Passan.
The 28-year-old lefty will enhance a young rotation in Detroit headlined by Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning. He spent the first six seasons of his career with the Red Sox.
Rodriguez is coming off a rocky year, posting a career-high 4.74 ERA in 32 outings. But his peripheral numbers were much better, including a career-high strikeout rate, career-low walk rate and a career-low FIP of 3.32.
For most of his career, Rodriguez has been a steady, durable arm. He actually finished sixth in AL Cy Young voting in 2019 when he went 19-6 with a 3.81 ERA in an MLB-best 34 starts.
