It's now or never for Mariners' Julio Rodríguez to live up to his superstar rep

Julio Rodríguez is a polarizing player for the Seattle Mariners, but it seems unfair that he is categorized as such given that he's such a likeable personality. And as per the fallout from the recent All-Star saga involving him, it really does seem at times that he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.

Rodríguez just can't win, as evidenced by the criticism he received after being named an All-Star, which was not his fault and carries at least some credence in that he was selected by his peers. In any event, the criticism was only matched by the condemnation surrounding his decision to sit out the game, relax and regroup for the second half of this season.

The source of the often undeserved animosity is that there are Mariners fans out there who are frustrated about Rodríguez in general. The sentiment is that the 2022 AL Rookie of the Year has yet to live up to his superstar reputation, with some even wondering if they've been hoodwinked by a promise which will never be fulfilled and maybe wasn't even deserved in the first place.

Mariners still waiting for Julio Rodríguez to be the second coming

Despite still only being 24 and having a resume which includes three All-Star selections and two Silver Slugger Awards, many remain unconvinced that Rodríguez is a generational talent a la Ken Griffey Jr.. And now in year four of his career, as the Mariners fight to return to the playoffs, it's time for him to prove he's a five-tool talent who can dominate the game on a regular basis.

While not a guarantee of any kind, the one thing in Rodríguez's favor is that he has historically always seen his productivity jump up between the first and second half of the season. Using his OPS as an example, in 2022 he was +123 points, in 2023 he was +222 points and last year he was +128 points.

If Rodríguez follows this pattern again in 2025, he will likely end up having a huge season. Whereas a failure to repeat his previous yearly improvement could result in the M's continuing to sputter and ultimately miss out on the playoffs for a third consecutive year.

At least the early signs are there for a repeat after Rodríguez's decision to pull out of the All-Star Game, which SoDo Mojo's Zachary Rymer was thrilled about. Coincidence or not, he subsequently caught fire during the dominating road sweep of the Major League-leading Detroit Tigers, as he produced six hits, three homers and six RBI.

Hope in the fact Julio Rodríguez has done it before

While we appreciate critics will point out that a small three-game sample size isn't enough to prove Rodríguez is back, it does allude to just how much he is capable of putting the Mariners on his back when he's in a zone. He's done it for extended stenches before, with the prime example coming in August during the 2023 season, when he produced a superior .429/.474/.724 slash line and 1.197 OPS and carried the team to a 21-6 record.

Supporters of Rodríguez will argue his value is proven in a 3.9 WAR which projects to what would be a career-high 6.6. However, a lot of this is down to his superior defensive play in center field, with Baseball Savant giving him an overall fielding ranking in the 96th percentile.

No, it's Rodríguez's bat which needs to be a lot better, with him currently projected to have the worst offensive season of his four years in the majors. Overall, it really does seem like it's now or never for the man who would be King, to step up and finally take his crown as one of the very best players in the game today.