A Seattle Mariners Julio Rodriguez Jersey
Julio Rodriguez is probably the most exciting of the three prospects/young guys that we are discussing. Kyle Lewis has already broken through and is a bit older than the other two guys. Kelenic, who will be featured in the last slide, is about 18 months older than Rodriguez and one year closer to making the majors.
However, Julio Rodriguez could end up with the highest ceiling out of the three. He is about to turn 20 and could find himself up this season if Dipoto and the rest of the Seattle Mariners organization decide that they want to see him and Kelenic up at the same time to keep their paths aligned.
He’s only been to high A so far, so he has a bit to go before he gets to the bigs. The numbers though. Ohhhh buddy are they good. Between A ball and High A, Julio hit .326 over 328 at-bats, 12 homers, 26 doubles, and 70 RBI. There is some worry when you look at the strikeouts (76) and GIDP (10). Remember though… HE’S ONLY 19!
There is another part of this decision, and it comes from something that is only slightly related to baseball. It can be fun to have the jersey of a player that is flashy. A guy who makes proverbial noise, and can stand out not just from his play, but the manner in which he makes plays. Julio is not afraid of the spotlight and even has his own YouTube show with the Seattle Mariners.
This isn’t a bad thing, as long as the flash is done in the correct way. If Tim Anderson was quiet, would people notice him as much? No, they wouldn’t. Just don’t go down the Milton Bradley path and tear your ACL yelling at the first base umpire.
It’s close, but I still wouldn’t take Julio Rodriguez as my choice for a jersey. Instead, that honor goes to…