Julio Rodriguez is undoubtedly the biggest homegrown star the Mariners have had in the last decade. An instant fan-favorite, J-Rod burst onto the scene in 2022, winning American League Rookie of the Year, and guiding the Mariners to their first playoff birth since 2001.
Mariners’ Prodigy Ready to Shine in Upcoming Season
2024 was an up-and-down season for the 24-year-old. He experienced struggles that he hadn’t experienced before in his young career. One of J-Rod’s biggest problems is his lack of help. He feels that he has to be the man the team needs. For good reason, with the historically bad Mariners’ 2024 offense. This mindset, though, leads to nothing but striking out at the plate. His K rate was almost as bad as his 2022 ROTY season, with 25.2%. His walk rate was the lowest of his career at 6.2%.
There’s a reason that despite those struggles, MLB Network named him the number-one-ranked CF going into 2025. When you look at Julio’s savant page, all you see is elite. Elite xwOBA, elite, xBA, elite xSLG, elite average exit velocity, elite hard-hit %, elite bat speed, elite range, elite arm strength, and speed.
Julio truly is the complete player. J-Rod is yet to put up less than 4 WAR. He’s yet to hit under 20 home runs in a season. He’s yet to slug under .400 in a season, and he’s yet to OPS under .700. An All-Star in two of his three career seasons.
The thing that endears him so much to Seattle fans, though, is his love for the city and the fans. An active member of the community, participating in giveaways all over the state, let alone Seattle, Julio is the closest thing Seattle has had to Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. and the best outfielder to grace Seattle since future Hall of Famer Ichiro Suzuki.
Offseason work and an improved mindset could see Julio get back to his 2022 and 2023 heights and live up to the number-one ranking. Although, if 2024 is his low, Seattle fans can be happy with that. He was still comfortably the best player on the team.
Main Photo Credits: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images
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