Eduardo Rodriguez invokes no-trade clause to kill Dodgers deal
The Detroit Tigers and Los Angeles Dodgers had a trade deal in place for left-handed starter Eduardo Rodriguez, but he said “No” and the deal is dead.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been on the lookout for pitching rotation help this trade window. Seen as front-runners for Justin Verlander, they were gazumped by the Astros in signing him from the Mets.
Their next move was perhaps better for them, involving Eduardo Rodriguez from the Detroit Tigers. Rodriguez is posting a tasty 2.95 ERA and 1.03 WHIP this season and more importantly for the Dodgers, he is doing it from the left side.
A deal was reportedly all worked out and the Tigers presented it to Rodriguez, who has a ten-team no-trade clause in his contract. One of those teams was the Dodgers and Rodriguez decided to invoke the clause, effectively killing the deal.
The Los Angeles Dodgers and Detroit Tigers had a trade in place for left-handed starter Eduardo Rodriguez, but Rodriguez invoked his 10-team no-trade clause that included the Dodgers and the deal is now dead, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 1, 2023
There is no word on exactly why E-Rod decided to nix the Dodgers, but it does leave Los Angeles in a bind. Three of their top targets have now either gone to competitors or pulled out of the deal. But more importantly, the Dodgers still have a teetering rotation that is on the edge of collapse. Quick moves are now in order if they want to make the post season with any kind of momentum.
Having added Lance Lynn to the roster, Los Angeles are not in danger of not making the playoffs. But when the summer gives way to autumn, a deep rotation is better than a good one. This move threatens to make the Dodgers rotation very shallow indeed.