Francis Rodriguez

WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES

2012
DSL:  1-4-1, 5.40 ERA, 1.89 WHIP, 33.1 IP, 5.7 BB, 6.5 K/9

Rodriguez made three starts and otherwise pitched in relief in his debut.  He mostly struggled, especially with his control

2013
DSL:  2-4-2, 3.48 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 51.2 IP, 2.6 BB/9, 5.1 K/9

Rodriguez improved dramatically while splitting his time evenly between starting and relieving.

2014
DSL:  1-3-0, 2.91 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 52.2 IP, 2.2 BB/9, 6.8 K/9

The Pirates sent Rodriguez back for a third DSL season, using him as a starter all year.  He continued to improve, especially his K rate.

2015
INJURED

The Pirates brought Rodriguez to the States for 2015, but placed him on the minor league 60-day disabled list as the result of ACL surgery.

2016
R:  0-3-4, 1.37 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 19.2 IP, 4.1 BB/9, 6.4 K/9

Rodriguez made it to the GCL, pitching mostly in one-inning stints.  He had some control problems.  The ERA is a little misleading because two-thirds of the runs he allowed were unearned, although on the other hand he didn’t allow many baserunners.

Rodriguez will be 24 when the 2017 season starts.  In fact, he’s already eligible for the Rule 5 draft.  If he moves up, it could be either to Bristol or Morgantown.