Seattle Mariners outfielder Julio Rodriguez won the 2022 AL Rookie of the Year award.
He did it with a rock-solid .853 OPS, 28 home runs, 25 stolen bases, and great defense in center field.
However, he hasn’t been able to avoid the dreaded “sophomore slump.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, the talented star is hitting a disappointing .204/.271/.387 with six home runs and six thefts.
After striking out in 25.9 percent of his plate appearances last year, that number is up to 29 percent in 2023.
As a result of his struggles, the Mariners, specifically manager Scott Servais, are demoting him in their batting order.
He used to be the team’s leadoff hitter, but will hit sixth on Wednesday.
Where Julio Rodríguez has batted in his 2023 starts:
1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 1st, 6th https://t.co/1bpbd7yqon
— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) May 10, 2023
Shortstop J.P. Crawford will hit first on Wednesday against the Texas Rangers.
J-Rod has just two hits in his last seven games and 32 plate appearances.
His strikeout rate over that span is 34.4 percent, so it’s not like he has been performing well as of late and being victim of bad batted-ball luck.
Simply put, he is truly in an ugly slump.
He is too talented to keep struggling so much for long, and he will probably find himself back in the leadoff spot where he belongs in the foreseeable future.
For now, though, he will have to accept the fact he might not be his team’s best option to lead-off.
It’s probably some sort of a wake-up call from Servais to Rodriguez.
As stated, he has too much hitting ability not to make the necessary adjustments, whether they are mechanical or psychological, and get back on track.
NEXT: Logan Gilbert Is Already Making Mariners History
