Once the Philadelphia Phillies locked up Aaron Nola to a deal that keeps him with the team for seven years, some speculation about Dave Dombrowski not being finished in the starting pitcher market started to circulate.

The one-two punch of Nola and Zack Wheeler gives the Phillies an elite rotation at the top, but they seemingly had interest in adding another piece to the mix.

With one of the highest payrolls in all of baseball already, the list of pitchers they might feasibly pursue was limited.

However, Eduardo Rodriguez was a name that had been linked to Philadelphia throughout the early part of the offseason.

The left-hander is coming off a year with the Detroit Tigers where he posted his career-low ERA of 3.30 across 26 starts. He decided to opt-out of his five-year, $77 million deal with three years remaining on the contract to hit free agency once again.

Rodriguez was rumored to be looking at East Coast teams to be closer to his family, one of the reasons why he had been linked with the Phillies. That report was disputed when it came out that he was open to playing anywhere.

Now, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the lefty has signed a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks who eliminated Philadelphia in the 2023 National League Championship Series.

Jon Heyman of The New York Post reports it’s a four-year, $80 million contract that can be increased to $100 million with a vesting option.

This is a major boost to the Diamondback’s rotation who was missing a solid starter behind their ace Zac Gallen.

As for the Phillies, the internal interest might not have been as high as it was previously speculated by reporters. The contract that he signed certainly would suggest the financial commitment was outside the price point they’re looking for with another starting pitcher.

They’ll now have to look elsewhere if they are truly wanting to make additions to their rotation.