Believe it or not, baseball season is upon us.
Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training Wednesday, with the rest of their team joining them next week for full-squad workouts.
The Boston Red Sox, for one, certainly have a lot of questions surrounding them after finishing last in the American League East in the abbreviated 2020 Major League Baseball season.
Boston's pitching looks a lot clearer than it did just a few weeks ago, but still has some holes to fill -- especially with Chris Sale sidelined for at least the first half of the season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
There also are a few question marks surrounding Eduardo Rodriguez. The southpaw contracted myocarditis as a result of COVID-19. He did not pitch at all last season.
Rodriguez is expected to have a normal spring training, and has been making steady progress. And he made MLB.com's list of "30 exciting players" to keep on your radar this spring.
Here's why:
"His importance to the pitching staff is just a surface-level thing; on the whole, everyone just wants to make sure he is healthy and feeling strong after his battle with COVID-19."
A lot of eyes will be on the left-hander as he begins spring training to see how he bounces back after battling the virus, myocarditis and not pitching for a year.
Rodriguez had his best season in 2019 compiling a 19-6 record with a 3.81 ERA.
Hopefully the next few weeks will give fans a glimpse of what's to come from Rodriguez in 2021.
