The Seattle Mariners are on the outside of the American League Wild Card race. Entering Thursday, they were 4.5 games back of the final spot, so they have an uphill climb if they want to get into the postseason. Moreover, they have been playing without superstar outfielder Julio Rodriguez, who was placed on the injured list at the end of July.
The Mariners star crashed into the outfield wall while attempting to make a catch against the Houston Astors on July 21, in turn suffering an ankle injury. The hope is he can return quickly, but there appears to be a concern amid his recovery, per a report from MLB.com.
‘Rodríguez participated in lateral exercises before the rest of the Mariners took the field for their daily pregame workout, then lightly jogged the bases during batting practice before taking part in his own round of BP. The club still hasn't scheduled when he might be activated from the 10-day injured list, where he's been since July 23. Mariners manager Scott Servais preferred not to comment on Wednesday's development until after speaking with Seattle's athletic training staff.'
As Servais mentioned, it's not the swinging but the baserunning that is an issue at this moment: “The swinging really isn't the issue, from what he said,” Servais said. “It's just more of the running and trying to get up to speed and taking the turns, things like that.”
Julio Rodriguez's timetable has no clear update
Rodriguez was placed on the injured list on July 23, so the Mariners were hoping he wouldn't be out for too long. But, it has been a couple of weeks, and Servais didn't mention an updated timeline for his return. However, Rodriguez could return primarily as a designated hitter, per Adam Jude and Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times.
‘While it seems obvious that Rodriguez still isn’t ready to return to center field, sources indicate the Mariners are hoping to activate Rodriguez from the injured list in the coming days and use him as the designated hitter to add some more punch to their lineup.'
Rodriguez is an important part of the Mariners lineup. During the season, he has been hitting .263 with 11 home runs and 37 RBI, so his absence has been felt big time for the team. Rodriguez had a massive year in 2023, hitting .275 with 32 home runs and 103 RBI, so the Mariners were hoping he could return to that form this time around.
Still, even though there is some concerns with Rodriguez's injury progression, it sure looks as if he will be ready to go sometime in the near future. With the season approaching the final stretch, getting their star back would be huge.
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