The Seattle Mariners concluded their series with the Athletics on Thursday night.
They lost 7-4, which dropped the M’s to 66-75. Time is starting to run out for Seattle’s playoff hopes, as they are 6.0 games back in the AL West, and remain several games back of the final AL Wild Card spot as well.
However, on Thursday evening, in the Mariners’ loss, star outfielder Julio Rodriguez made MLB history.
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Julio Rodriguez Makes MLB History in Athletics Game
Julio Rodriguez stole three bases on Thursday night, which means he has 20 on the season.
According to multiple reports, Rodriguez is the first player in MLB history to record five straight 20/20 seasons to open up their career.
NBCSports.com’s Matthew Pouliot wrote:
“The three steals pushed Rodríguez up to 20 for the year, giving him his fifth straight 20/20 season to open his career. At just 25 years old, he’s in great position to take over as the all-time leader in 20/20 seasons. Bobby and Barry Bonds currently share the record with 10 such seasons. The only active players ahead of Rodríguez are José Ramírez, who, at 11 homers, needs a huge finish to pull off his eighth such season this year, and teammate Randy Arozarena, who has gone 20/20 for a sixth straight season.”
Julio Rodriguez
End of list.
While there has been a lot of pressure on Rodriguez throughout the early going of his career, he is always pulling his own weight, and the constant 20/20 feat is even more impressive playing in Seattle, where it’s notoriously hard to find steady offense.
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Taking a Look at Julio Rodriguez’s MLB Career Thus Far
J-Rod is a 3X MLB All-Star, two-time Silver Slugger, and former Rookie of the Year.
Across five seasons and 720 games played, Rodriguez has 132 home runs, 401 RBI, and an OPS+ of 125.
His marks are a little low this season compared to prior seasons, but there’s no doubting that’s an extremely strong pace over your first five seasons, especially given that Julio also plays stellar defense in center field.
Rodriguez’s bWAR sits at 25.3, and he’s also added 432 runs scored, 131 doubles, and 136 stolen bases.
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Julio Rodriguez Made MLB History in Mariners-Athletics Game