SEATTLE -- It went mostly unnoticed, overshadowed by his teammate's assault on the record books, and lost amid the excitement of his team's prosperity, but Julio Rodriguez put together another 30/30 season this year. He and Bobby Witt Jr . are the only players to do it twice before turning 25, and Rodríguez is the only one, ever, to accumulate 110 home runs and 110 stolen bases through his first four seasons in the major leagues.
As the Seattle Mariners approach a winner-take-all Game 5 of their American League Division Series on Friday, a lot of the pressure will fall on Rodríguez. He has been nothing but a persistent source of speed and power -- not to mention elite center-field defense -- since baseball fans first fell in love with him as a 21-year-old in 2022. And yet, the conve