The Seattle Mariners are 16-12 on the season and lead what projects to be a competitive AL West division. What's been impressive about their hot start is that Seattle has been winning thanks in large part to a productive offense. That's something nobody could have predicted entering the year. With the team playing well, star outfielder Julio Rodriguez sent a message to all Mariners rivals and doubters.
“We’re blowing up that narrative,” Mariners center fielder Julio Rodriguez said of his team’s batting reputation. “I feel like we, as a team, are taking a lot more pride in that.”
So far, the Mariners have blown up that narrative. They rank eighth in the majors in runs scored, third in home runs, and fifth in OPS. The question all fans have, though, is whether this is sustainable or not. That's up to Rodriguez and Co. to answer.
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Julio Rodriguez must do his part to back up fiery statement
Perhaps the most impressive part of Seattle's offensive output thus far is that they've been raking despite Rodriguez, their most talented and highest-paid player by far, struggling. Rodriguez is slashing .196/.308/.366 with four home runs and 13 RBI thus far. He has stolen five bases and has been his usual brilliant self defensively, but his bat has underwhelmed.
Fortunately for the Mariners, guys like Cal Raleigh, Jorge Polanco, and Dylan Moore have picked up his slack in a big way. Raleigh has established himself as one of the premier two-way catchers in the game, but can the Mariners really expect Polanco and Moore to perform like this all season? It would be tough to blame any Mariners rivals for not buying into those breakouts yet.
For the Mariners to live up to Rodriguez's belief, it's on Rodriguez and their all-world starting rotation to step up. Rodriguez has struggled as mentioned above, and their rotation is just 14th in the majors with a 3.88 ERA. There's reason to expect Rodriguez to heat up in the summer months as he has throughout his career and to expect Seattle's rotation to dominate when it gets healthier, but the fact that the team is playing well with those two disappointing factors is encouraging to an extent.
Assuming Rodriguez and the rotation live up to their ends of the bargain, the sky is the limit for this Mariners team if the other hitters continue to rake as they have been thus far. Rodriguez believes that'll happen, and if it does, Mariners rivals might find themselves in trouble.