Julio

Rodríguez

Rodríguez led off the fourth inning with a solo homer off Justin Wrobleski. He later added a single in the eighth before stealing second and scoring. The 25-year-old outfielder is up to 16 homers, 51 runs scored, 46 RBI, and 13 steals while slashing .257/.317/.425 across 419 plate appearances.

Rodríguez was left out of the starting lineup after exiting Monday’s game against Cincinnati with a leg injury. So, it was an excellent sign when he came off the bench as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning before taking over in center field. It was an even better sign when he took Julian Garcia deep for a solo homer to lead off the eighth inning. The 25-year-old outfielder is up to 15 homers, 48 runs scored, 43 RBI, and 12 steals while hitting .258/.321/.426 across 393 plate appearances.

It appears that Seattle is proceeding with an abundance of caution after Rodríguez came down hard on the first-base bag immediately after taking an 85.9 mph throw from Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz off his left leg during Monday’s series opener. Mariners skipper Dan Wilson downplayed concern after the contest and is sounds like Rodríguez is day-to-day heading into Wednesday’s series finale. It’ll be Victor Robles sliding over to patrol center field in his absence.

Rodríguez departed after being hit on the back of his leg by a throw while beating out a grounder. He was also feeling some soreness from the impact of hitting first base afterwards. Still, it sounds like there aren’t going to be any lasting problems here.

Rodríguez appeared to be struck on the left hamstring by an errant throw from Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz during the fifth inning. He left the dugout with a trainer following the play. There should be a definitive update from the club shortly.

Rodríguez returns to Seattle’s lineup for Saturday’s showdown against the Giants at T-Mobile Park after missing just over two weeks recovering from a concussion, but will begin his second half as the designated hitter, with Luke Raley handling center field. The 25-year-old franchise cornerstone was hitting .259/.323/.424 with 14 home runs, 40 RBI and 12 steals in 378 plate appearances across 87 games to open the season. His presence should provide an immediate lift for Seattle’s offense.

Rodríguez went through a full pregame workout prior to Friday’s series opener at T-Mobile Park before indicating to reporters that he’s “trending” in the right direction. The 25-year-old fantasy stalwart has been sidelined with a concussion for nearly two weeks. He’s seemingly cleared every hurdle necessary to return, leaving the door open for Seattle to activate him as early as Saturday’s contest. Simply put, Rodríguez is close to returning.

The 25-year-old outfielder was in good spirits and noted that he’s trending in the right direction, but he has yet to be cleared to return to live game action. It’s possible he’s able to join the Mariners at some point before the weekend is through.

Rodríguez was removed from Thursday’s game against the Angels after he was hit in the back of the head by an errant throw from Nolan Schanuel. The Mariners haven’t given any clear timeline for when he may be able to return, but he’ll have more than a week to pass through the concussion protocol with next week’s All-Star break baked in. Miles Mastrobuoni was promoted from Triple-A Tacoma to take his place on the Mariners’ roster.

Rodríguez was hit by a thrown ball in the game against the Angels. It looks like we won’t know anything further about his condition until the afternoon.