MLB News: Boston Red Sox pitcher shut down with heart issues after recovering from COVID-19

As reported by MLB, last week, the Boston Red Sox shut down their best pitcher.Â Eduardo Rodriguez was shut down from his throwing program after discovering health complications stemming from his bout with COVID-19. Although he recovered from the coronavirus, he was left with myocarditis, which is an inflammation of the heart muscle.

Even though people young and old can recover from the virus, they may be left with life long health issues that may pop up at any time.Â Issues with the kidneys, liver, and heart are some of those issues, according to the Mayo Institute.

Rodriguez, 27, told reporters he was “still scared” about the condition after learning more about it in recent days, but that he doesn’t intend to opt-out of playing at some point this season. “I want to be pitching yesterday, the day before, or today,” he said. “I want to be out there every time I can, so I’m never thinking of getting out of the season. I feel bad every time I see a game happening, and I’m not even in the dugout.”

Myocarditis can affect the “heart’s ability to pump and causing rapid or abnormal heart rhythms,” according to the Mayo Clinic, and is usually caused by a viral infection. Although COVID-19 is considered a respiratory disease, it has been linked to myocarditis frequently enough to merit further scientific study. A sports cardiologist explained to CBS Sports the potential impact of COVID-19 on the heart before the season resumed.

Rodriguez’s story is a reminder that the calculus for playing sports during the global pandemic is not simple. Rather, there is a spectrum of mostly unknown side effects — such is the nature of a novel virus — that could have long-term ramifications, especially for professional athletes whose livelihood depends on them performing at their physical peak.