Julio Rodriguez is one of 40 minor-league players invited by the Seattle Mariners to participate in a six-week instructional league in Arizona. (Associated Press)

Julio Rodriguez is one of 40 minor-league players invited by the Seattle Mariners to participate in a six-week instructional league in Arizona. (Associated Press)

M’s prospect Julio Rodriguez makes up for lost time in Arizona

His mixture of size, athleticism and talent has led many to believe he will be the team’s next star.

  • By Ryan Divish The Seattle Times
  • Thursday, October 29, 2020 8:14am
  • SportsMariners

By Ryan Divish / The Seattle Times

Sitting in his room in Peoria, Arizona, on a recent Sunday night, Julio Rodriguez took a break from video games to watch the thrilling, back-and-forth action between the Atlants Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 7 of the National League Championship Series.

He could feel the playoff intensity and loved seeing the booming homers and bat flips, the highlight-reel defensive plays, the dugout craziness between teammates after each play.

“Those games are cool,” he said. “I want to play in them so bad.”

But the unforgettable looks of dejection and pain on the faces of the Braves players such as Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies and Freddie Freeman as they endured Dodgers’ victory celebration made him amend his previous statement.

“But I don’t want to lose, that’s the thing,” he said. “I was talking to the guys and I told them, whenever I get a chance to get to go there, I want to win and win. I was looking at the other team and it looked heartbreaking. Whenever I get the opportunity to be there, I’m gonna give my all to win.”

For now, his focus must remain on playing and winning at-bats and games during 24 instructional-league games in Arizona. He is one of 40 minor-league players invited by the Mariners to participate in the six-week league that features five other organizations.

“It’s been pretty good,” Rodriguez said of the instructional league play and workouts. “The games feel really good. The games are really competitive. I like them. It’s a good environment to play in.”

Rodriguez has been better than pretty good. In some box scores released by the Mariners, he had four hits in 11 at-bats with a double and a homer to right-center. He’s hit multiple balls with exit velocities exceeding 107 mph, including two at 110 mph.

“It’s been really exciting to be playing again, just being on the field again and running around,” he said. “It’s a great feeling.”

Hearing the Mariners’ No. 1 or No. 2 prospect talk about winning MLB postseason games as if it’s an inevitability and not a far-off dream will only add to Rodriguez’s immense popularity with the Mariners and their fans. With his mixture of size, athleticism, charisma and baseball talent, including limitless power potential, fans and many scouts believe he will be the team’s next superstar. And Rodriguez embraces it all with an infectious smile and precocious spirit.

But as to when he will reach those lofty expectations is difficult to predict. As so many young players, his 2020 minor-league season ended before it started due to the spread of COVID-19. Last season was supposed to be seminal in his development and inch him closer to the big leagues with a potential debut looking like mid-2022, if not before.

After earning his first invite to big-league spring training, he was an obvious invite to attend summer camp in July and continue to work out at the alternate training site in Tacoma to further his skills and development.

But on July 16, less than a week after clearing intake testing, Rodriguez dived awkwardly for low line drive in a drill, jamming his glove into the turf of T-Mobile Park. He suffered a hairline fracture in his left wrist that sidelined him from on-field workouts and intrasquad games at Cheney Stadium.

It wasn’t the first time he’s dealt with a fluky hand-wrist injury.

Early in the 2019 season, while playing for Low-A West Virginia, he was struck in the left hand by a 92-mph fastball and suffered a hairline fracture in the third metacarpal. It kept him out almost two months.

Admittedly, he couldn’t help but lament his bad injury luck striking again.

“I was frustrated,” he said. “But I just took it like it’s part of baseball. That’s something I cannot control. That’s something that just happened because I was playing hard. At first, I was kind of sad, but the guys there told me — if we see you being sad, that’s not your personality. You need to understand it’s part of baseball. I just took it like that.”

He also didn’t just sit around and pout. Despite having a cast on his left wrist, he remained highly active. He took hundreds of one-handed swings with his right arm, conditioned his legs and kept his throwing arm active.

“It was really important,” he said. “Once I got that feeling out of my wrist, I was able to do everything. The guys held me accountable. I didn’t lose any time.”

The injuries in each season also offered a perspective not typical of a 19-year-old.

“I’ve learned everything is mental to be honest,” Rodriguez said. “If you want to improve, it doesn’t matter if you have a broken arm. If you want to improve, you can still do it. There’s no excuses.”

The instructional league gives Rodriguez a chance to continue that improvement and get back some of those lost at-bats. It also serves as a training camp for Rodriguez before he reports to Leones del Escogido of the Dominican Winter League the first week of November.

With the time missed at the alternate training site and no minor-league season, the Mariners decided to allow Rodriguez to play in his native Dominican Republic to make up lost ground. Leones selected Rodriguez with the No. 4 overall choice of the league’s draft in September 2019. Under normal circumstances, the Mariners wouldn’t have let Rodriguez play in more than a handful of games, if any at all.

“Man, it means a lot to me,” he said. “I’m really grateful for the Mariners that allowed me to play. That was the first professional baseball I knew. While I was growing up, I liked watching all of those teams, I would get so excited. And now that I’m part of a team, and now that I’m actually gonna play in the DR with everybody watching me over there, it’s just like a dream come true.”

Rodriguez won’t get to have the full Dominican Winter League experience with fans not expected to be allowed in games at first. However, he hopes fans, particularly family and friends, eventually will be allowed into games later in the season

“It’s just crazy,” he said of the normal atmosphere. “It’s such a different environment. People get like a lot of hype for those games. Baseball is everything over there. It just seems like everybody supports those teams because it means everything.”

With or without fans, the level of intensity will be greater than anything he’s experienced in professional baseball. Unlike the player development aspect and goals of the minor leagues, the daily game results are the top priority in the Dominican League.

“Over there, you are playing to win,” Rodriguez said. “You are actually playing for a championship. … It will be more intense because it’s a shorter season. The pitchers are actually really good there too. You have to win there. It’s the same mentality as playing in the big leagues.”

And because there is a championship, Rodriguez expects to be playing in it.

“I plan on playing the whole season there,” he said. “There is like 30 games in the regular season, but I’m hoping for us to go to the playoffs and win everything. That’s my mindset going in there. I feel like I’m going to get in 50 games or more.

“I feel really fortunate for this opportunity. Not a lot of people are getting this opportunity right now. Being able to play, it’s great for me, for real.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Sports

Silvertips forward Shea Busch participates in the Florida Panthers development camp at Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on July 1, 2025. Florida selected Busch in the fourth round of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft on June 28. (Photo courtesy Shea Busch)
Shea Busch experiences whirlwind NHL Draft week

The Florida Panthers selected the Silvertips forward in the fourth round on June 28.

Rome Odunze scans the field in a scrimmage at his youth football camp at Archbishop Murphy High School on July 10, 2025. The former University of Washington star is entering his second NFL season with the Chicago Bears. (Joe Pohoryles / The Herald)
Odunze ‘gives back’ in Everett youth football camp

The former University of Washington star hosts a single-day camp at Archbishop Murphy on Thursday.

The New York Yankees' Aaron Judge, top right, celebrates with teammates after hitting a walk-off sacrifice fly ball during the 10th inning against the Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium on Thursday, July 10, 2025, in New York. (Justin Casterline / Getty Images / Tribune News Services)
Yankees walk off Mariners on Judge’s sac fly for series sweep

Seattle blows 5-0 lead after Bryan Woo takes no-hitter into eighth inning.

Raleigh says Munoz tipped pitches during Yankees’ comeback

The Yankees had a bead on Seattle Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz. That’s… Continue reading

Midfielder Christian Soto dribbles up field during Snohomish United's 5-1 win against the Tacoma Stars at Stockers Fields on July 9, 2025 (Joe Pohoryles / The Herald)
Snohomish United keeps playoff hopes alive in home finale

With 5-1 win against Tacoma, the USL2 club’s focus on local talent keys success in inaugural season.

Silvertips forward Carter Bear fields questions after the Detroit Red Wings selected him 13th overall in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles on June 27, 2025. (Photo courtesy Natalie Shaver / CHL)
Two weeks after Draft, Silvertips’ Bear still can’t believe it

The Red Wings’ first-rounder reflects on draft night and his experience at Detroit’s development camp.

AquaSox down Devils for consecutive wins

The AquaSox were on a 2-10 stretch coming into the series.

Cam Schlittler’s strong debut freezes Mariners

The Mariners fell to the Yankees, 9-6, on Wednesday night.

Storm flies too close to the Sun, loses in an upset

Connecticut snapped a 10-game losing streak to beat Seattle 93-83 on Wednesday morning.

Giancarlo Stanton of the New York Yankees flips his bat after hitting a three-run home run in the sixth inning against the Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, in New York. (Evan Bernstein / Getty Images / Tribune News Services)
Raleigh, Judge heat up homer race at Yankee Stadium

In the battle of baseball’s biggest sluggers, Aaron Judge… Continue reading

Seattle Seahawks linebackers Derick Hall (58) and Boye Mafe (53) celebrate a defensive play during the 2024 season. (Rio Giancarlo / Getty Images / The Athletic)
Season to reveal long-term plans for Seahawks linebackers

The Seattle Seahawks selected edge rusher Boye Mafe with… Continue reading

Silvertips defenseman wins U20 Ball Hockey World Title with Canada

Rylan Pearce helps Canada win gold at the ISBHF U20 World Championships in Slovakia.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.