Rhodes played high school baseball at
La Vega High School in
Waco, Texas. As a senior in 1988, he finished the season with a 17–0 record. After moving to the Baltimore bullpen in 1996, he compiled an 8–1 record and posted an ERA of 3.50 in 26 games. In 1997, he earned 10 wins despite not starting any games.
Oakland Athletics Rhodes signed with the
Oakland Athletics after the 2003 season. A's manager
Ken Macha first used him as a
closer after years as a successful setup man in Seattle, but he failed in this capacity with a number of blown saves and was traded to the
Pittsburgh Pirates, along with
Mark Redman and cash for catcher
Jason Kendall and cash after the one season with the Athletics.
Cleveland Indians In the same offseason, the Pirates traded Rhodes to the
Cleveland Indians for
Matt Lawton, and, as he did in Seattle, Rhodes became the top setup man for the Tribe.
Philadelphia Phillies On January 27, 2006, after one year in Cleveland, the Indians traded him to the
Philadelphia Phillies for
outfielder Jason Michaels.
Second stint with Mariners On January 24, 2007, Rhodes was re-signed by the Mariners to a minor league contract with an invitation to
spring training by the Mariners. He injured his pitching arm, underwent
Tommy John surgery in May, and missed the entire 2007 season, becoming a free agent after the season. On January 15, 2008, the Mariners once again signed him to a minor league deal and invited him to
spring training. He didn't make the team to start the season, but on April 14 was added to the active roster.
Florida Marlins On July 31, , the Mariners traded him to the
Florida Marlins for pitching prospect Gaby Hernandez.
Cincinnati Reds in 2009. On December 12, 2008, Rhodes signed a two-year contract with the
Cincinnati Reds. On June 29, 2010, his major league record-tying streak of 33 scoreless appearances was broken by Phillies slugger
Raúl Ibañez. In 2010, Rhodes was selected to his first and only
All-Star Game in his 20th major league season. He was the fifth player to go to his first All-Star Game after age 40, joining
Satchel Paige,
Connie Marrero,
Jamie Moyer and
Tim Wakefield. and released on August 8.
St. Louis Cardinals On August 11, Rhodes signed with the
St. Louis Cardinals. Given the late signing, the Rangers had to pay most of his salary, with the Cardinals responsible for only a pro-rated league minimum for the remainder of the year. Because the Cardinals and Rangers faced each other in the
2011 World Series this created an unusual situation, with the Rangers paying most of the salary of a player trying to deny them a world championship. This also resulted in Rhodes being eligible to receive a
World Series ring no matter who won. The Cardinals won the World Series against the Texas Rangers in 7 games. Rhodes, who pitched in three games in this Series, joined
Lonnie Smith as the only players to play in a World Series for the winning team against the team he had played for earlier in the season (Smith played on the
1985 World Series-winning
Kansas City Royals after having been traded from the Cardinals, whom the Royals defeated in the Series, earlier in the season). Through 2011, Rhodes was second among active pitchers in games played (900), and seventh in hits per 9 innings pitched (7.828) and
strikeouts per 9 IP (8.730). While he had been the tenth-youngest player in the AL as a rookie in 1991, he was the second-oldest player in the NL in 2011. He held the MLB record for
holds with 231, surpassed by
Tony Watson in 2021. ==Coaching career==