Henry Alberto Rodríguez (born February 25, 1987) is a former professional

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. He played in

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(MLB) for the

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Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Division. Th ...

and

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League East, East Division. The ...

Professional career

Oakland Athletics

Rodríguez began his professional career in 2006, with the

Arizona League Athletics The Arizona Complex League Athletics are a Minor League Baseball team based in Mesa, Arizona, which plays as a Rookie-level team in the Arizona Complex League and has served as a farm team for the Athletics organization since 1988. They play thei ...

. With them, he went 5–2 with a 7.42 ERA in 15 games (four starts), striking out 59 batters in 43 innings of work. In 2007, he went 6–8 with a 3.07 ERA in 20 games (18 starts), striking out 106 batters in 99 innings for the

Kane County Cougars The Kane County Cougars are a professional baseball team located in Geneva, Illinois, and are members of the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official Partner League of Major League Baseball (MLB). They play their home games a ...

. He split the 2008 season between the

Stockton Ports The Stockton Ports are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Athletics. They are located in Stockton, California, and are named for the city's seaport. The team plays its home games at Banner I ...

and the

Midland RockHounds The Midland RockHounds are a Minor League Baseball team based in Midland, Texas. The team, which plays in the Texas League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Athletics major league club. The RockHounds play in Momentum Bank Ballpark, which ope ...

, finishing with a 4–10 record and a 5.20 ERA in 34 games (22 starts), while striking out 147 batters in 116 innings of work. He made his major league debut in the 8th inning of the September 21 game against the Texas Rangers, where he gave up 2 runs (1 earned) on 1 hit and 1 walk while striking out 1.

Washington Nationals

On December 16, 2010, Rodríguez, along with outfielder Corey Brown, was traded to the Nationals in exchange for Josh Willingham. Rodríguez appeared in 59 games in the 2011 season and earned a 3–3 record with a 3.56 ERA and 70 strikeouts. Rodríguez was given an opportunity to

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games for the Nationals in 2012 with regular stopper

Drew Storen Drew Patrick Storen (born August 11, 1987) is an American former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, and Cincinnati Reds. The Nats sel ...

on the disabled list, but bouts of wildness led manager

Davey Johnson David Allen Johnson (born January 30, 1943) is an American former professional baseball player and manager. He played as a second baseman from through , most notably in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the Baltimore Orioles dynasty t ...

to move Rodríguez out of the role by the end of May. He continued as a reliever, and pitched in 35 games in 2012, finishing with a 1–3 record, a 5.83 ERA, and 9 saves. After pitching in 17 games with a 4.00 ERA in 2013, Rodriguez was

designated for assignment Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must, within seven days, return the pla ...

on June 4, 2013.

Chicago Cubs

On June 11, 2013, Rodriguez was traded to the

for right handed pitcher Ian Dickson. He was designated for assignment on July 14, clearing a spot on the active roster for

Cole Gillespie Cole Braden Gillespie (born June 20, 1984) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, and ...

. In 5 games, he walked 4 over 4 innings, striking out 1 with a 4.50 ERA.

Miami Marlins

Rodríguez signed a minor league deal with the

on January 16, 2014. He was designated for assignment on May 14, 2014. On June 12, the Marlins released Rodriguez.

Chicago White Sox

Rodríguez signed a minor league deal with the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The club plays its ...

on June 13, 2014. He was released a month later after walking 8 batters in less than 2 innings for the Triple A

Charlotte Knights The Charlotte Knights are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are located in Charlotte, North Carolina, and play their home games at Truist Field ...

Arizona Diamondbacks

Rodriguez signed a minor league deal with the

Arizona Diamondbacks The Arizona Diamondbacks are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. The franchise was established ...

on January 22, 2015. He was released on March 31.

Pitching style

Rodríguez is known for a hard four-seam fastball averaging 98 mph over the course of his career. It tends to sit between 96 and 100 mph, reaching as high as 103 mph. A 103.2 mph fastball which he threw on September 15, 2010, was the third-fastest pitch ever recorded by

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at the time. His secondary pitch is a curveball (83-85 mph), and a seldom thrown changeup. Rodríguez's prowess has been hampered by a high

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rate of 5.6 per 9 innings. He also led the National League in

wild pitch In baseball, a wild pitch (WP) is charged against a pitcher when his pitch is too high, too short, or too wide of home plate for the catcher to control with ordinary effort, thereby allowing a baserunner, or the batter (on an uncaught third st ...

es in 2011, and is leading the league again in 2012 despite having thrown only 21 innings. In the he has pitched since the beginning of the 2011 season, Rodríguez has thrown 23 wild pitches.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Henry 1987 births Living people Águilas del Zulia players Arizona League Athletics players Arizona League White Sox players Charlotte Knights players Chicago Cubs players Harrisburg Senators players Iowa Cubs players Kane County Cougars players Leones del Caracas players Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Venezuela 21st-century Venezuelan sportsmen Miami Marlins players Midland RockHounds players New Orleans Zephyrs players Oakland Athletics players Baseball players from Zulia Sacramento River Cats players Stockton Ports players Syracuse Chiefs players Tiburones de La Guaira players Venezuelan expatriate baseball players in the United States Washington Nationals players