Mariners catch a break as Julio Rodriguez avoids serious injury

The losing streak continues to grow, but at least the Seattle Mariners didn’t add another key player to the Injured List.

Even though we’ve yet to hit the half-way point of the 2025 campaign, it’s fair if any Seattle Mariners fans have already decided to hit the panic button. The frustrating 8-6 defeat on Saturday night to the Los Angeles Angels means the team has now lost a season-high five consecutive games.

This is representative of the Mariners’ woes in general since the conclusion of nine consecutive series wins, which at the time gave them a 22-14 record and a 3.0 game lead at the top of the AL West. Since then they’ve gone 10-17 and is a team desperately in search of answers.

As if losing a fifth consecutive game on Saturday night wasn’t bad enough, at one point it seemed as if the Mariners could lose something even more important. Julio Rodríguez had to be helped off the field in the third inning, after being hit on his right ankle by a batted ball.

The 98.1 mph one-hopper came off the bat of teammate Randy Arozarena, while Rodríguez was attempting to steal third base. The center fielder was in obvious discomfort as he limped off the field, with understandable concerns that he could have suffered a serious injury.

Mariners can’t afford to lose any more key players

With the Mariners struggling for consistent offense as it is outside of Cal Raleigh and J.P. Crawford, the last thing they needed was to lose someone with the talent to dominate when he’s on his game. Fortunately for everyone concerned, X-rays on Rodríguez’s ankle came back negative at Angel Stadium.

As a result, the two-time All-Star has been listed as day-to-day, and thanks to some quick treatment, he could even return as soon as Sunday’s series finale in Anaheim. Speaking to the media after the game, he said:

“There’s a high chance that I should be in the lineup. So just seeing how it reacts through the night and like how I wake up tomorrow. But I feel very positive that tomorrow will be a better day.”

Rodríguez also discussed the incident and admitted he didn’t actually see the ball until it had hit his ankle. He said:

“In reality, I can’t really control that. All I can control was to get a good jump and go for the base. The ball found me and that was what the game had for me.”

The two-time Silver Slugger Award winner was initially in a lot of pain, as he lay down by the Angels dugout to begin with before leaving the field altogether. He said:

“I couldn’t really feel my foot a whole lot or move it a whole lot, and not even like walk properly. But after we kind of started treating it, everything started reacting better right away.”

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Julio Rodríguez off to a decent start overall in 2025

In keeping with the Mariners’ seemingly never-ending run of bad luck, Rodríguez’s injury came in a game where he had managed hits in his first two at-bats. In fact he’s off the strong start to May in general, with a .381 batting average which would project to be his best month of the season to date.

In fairness to the 24-year-old, the notorious slow-starter has been in fine form so far in 2025, albeit the Mariners still need to see a lot more from him. Through 62 games he has a respectable .254/.321/.421 slash line, .742 OPS and 117 OPS+ with the promise of better to come in the next few months, at least based on previous years.

First things first though, the Mariners need to have Rodríguez actually back in the lineup asap. Leody Taveras replaced him in center field after the injury and made a couple of costly mistakes, so Mariners fans will wait with baited breath to see who lines up at the position on Sunday afternoon in Anaheim.

Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rodgers Photography

How concerned are you about the Mariners in light of their current five-game losing streak? Do you have confidence that they will be a contender come September time as in previous seasons, or predict they will fall away before then? Let us know in the comments section below.