Julio Rodríguez is the new superstar for the Seattle Mariners who is proving himself to be a sign of success of Seattle’s long rebuild journey. With this player at the helm and other young studs to come, the Mariners could finally quench a 21-year playoff drought.
Welcome to the J-Rod Show
Born in the Dominican Republic, at only 21 years old, standing 6-foot-4, 230 pounds, Rodríguez has swagger and is putting on a show in Seattle. Drafted as an international free agent by the Mariners back in 2017, Rodriguez entered the 2022 MLB season as the number three ranked prospect out of MLB’s pipeline top 100 prospects.
After a stellar Spring Training racking up a .412 AVG, .487 on-base percentage (OBP), .794 SLG, 1.281 OPS, with 14 hits, three home runs (HR) and eight runs in 14 games. His performance in Arizona resulted in moving up into the big leagues and he was named in the opening day starting lineup.
Rodríguez had a slow start to his big league career batting a .205 average and 30 strikeouts (out of 71 at-bats) in April. One could argue that the strikeouts could be largely due to him crowding the plate leading to many outside balls being called strikes. Rodríguez, like any great ball player, adjusted to the game. By the end of May, he was a different ball player.
The Stellar Rookie Resume
Just in the month of May, Rodríguez shined with the bat in his hands with 34 hits, .309 AVG with six home runs, 17 RBIs and five stolen bases in the month while slugging .527. He also raised his batting average from .205 at the end of April to .268 at the end of May. Rodriguez was awarded rookie of the month for May becoming the youngest Mariner to ever win the award.
That was just the beginning, as Rodríguez went on to win rookie of the month for June. That month he lead all AL rookies in nearly every offensive category, including wins above replacement, per FanGraphs (1.4), wRC+, an era- and park-neutral stat where 100 is league average (162), hits (30), runs (22), home runs (7), RBI (16), total bases (58) and times on base (44) while tying for the lead among AL rookies in stolen bases (five). Rodríguez went from hitting in the bottom half of the batting order to being one of the heart and soul of the team’s hitting.
Player of the Week
The star center fielder was also AL player of the week. Covering from June 27 to June 3, Rodríguez had himself quite a stat line: .360 (AVG), .393 (OBP), .880 (SLG), 1.273 OPS with three home runs, a triple, two doubles, six RBIs and seven runs scored.
Putting his Name in the History Books
Rodríguez made MLB history by becoming the fastest player (81 G) in MLB History to reach 15+ home runs and 20+ stolen bases. He surpassed Ellis Burks (82 games) and Barry Bonds (90 games). This is quite an achievement for any player, but especially at the age of 21 years old.
Next Stop, Hollywood
The rookie continues to build his resume with an AL All-Star selection. The 2022 MLB All-Star Game is in Los Angeles, California at Dodger Stadium. He is the third Mariner to be selected to an All-Star team aged 21 or younger along with Ken Griffey Jr.(20) and Alex Rodriguez (21). The rookie will also be participating in the Home Run Derby where he will battle out the league’s best power hitters.
Comparison to Which MLB Great?
Rodríguez’s rookie season is drawing comparisons to Griffey Jr. ‘s rookie season. In his first 81 games, Griffey put together a .282/.346/.463 slash line, for a .809 OPS. He also slugged 13 home runs and drove in 43 runs. For Rodríguez, meanwhile, is slashing .275/.335/.489 (.824 OPS) with 15 home runs and 43 RBIs in 81 games (80 starts). Not to mention that both players are stellar on the defensive end as well.
The similarity in stats is a promising sign for the Mariners who are looking to turn their long rebuild mentality into a winning team. More importantly, looking to secure a playoff spot as they hold the longest playoff drought in professional sports sitting at 21 years.
The Show Must Go On
Seattle Mariners Center Fielder Julio Rodriguez posing for Spring Training Photo day (Photo by Jamie Schwaberow/Getty Images
Rodríguez’s rookie resume is outstanding to watch. He is showing that he has superstar potential written all over him and on his way to winning AL Rookie of the Year.
This was especially true when he helped the Seattle Mariners push to five games above .500 and won ten games in a row as of July. 13. The J-Rod show is a display of exhilarating baseball that is a must-watch and is a sign of hope for the Mariners looking to finally make the playoffs. For this reason, the J-show must go on in Seattle.
Statistics Courtesy of FanGraphs, Baseball Reference, Baseball Savant, and MLB.com
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