The Boston Red Sox have ruled out the return of their top starting pitcher for the 2020 season.
Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom said that left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez will not play this year after developing a heart issue following his bout with the coronavirus. The 27-year-old left-hander tested positive for the coronavirus before the start of summer camp, but had seemingly recovered and returned to workouts on July 18.
Bloom made the announcement about the team’s decision to shut Rodriguez down during a Zoom call with media members ahead of Saturday’s game against the New York Yankees.
“While we remain very optimistic that he’s going to make a full recovery — we’re confident of that (because) the severity of this is mild (and) his heart is functioning normally — (but) due to the fact that it is persistent and the amount of care we need to take with this, and the time left in the season, he’s not going to be able to come back and pitch this year,” Bloom said.
An MRI revealed a condition called myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle that is usually due to a viral infection. The inflammation can lead to arrhythmias, cardiomyopathy or heart failure.
Rodriguez’s doctors told him that 10-20% of people who have had COVID-19 also have been diagnosed with myocarditis.
