Twitter reacts to Julio Rodriguez's 2022 percentile rankings: "J-Rod has a whole belt for all his tools" "Dude is absolutely incredible"

Julio Rodriguez looked more like a seasoned veteran than a rookie last season. In 2022, Rodriguez slashed .284/.345/.509 with 28 home runs, 75 RBIs, and 25 stolen bases. He just missed out on being a member of the 30-30 club (30 home runs and 30 stolen bases).

He had a strong enough season to be voted American League Rookie of the Year. Rodrguez received 29 out of 30 first-place votes, with Adley Rutschman receiving the other first-place vote.

He is ranked in the 90th percentile in five different categories: hard-hit rate, barrel rate, sprint speed, outs above average, and arm strength. He's the only player in the league to rank in the 90th percentile or higher in each category.

Rodriguez is a legitimate five-tool player. He has the ability to hit for average and power, is an excellent fielder, has a strong arm, and is extremely fast. That's everything you want in a baseball player.

Fans believe that Julio Rodriguez will eventually win the MVP award. It will happen sooner rather than later if he continues to play like he did last season.

Being so young and talented, fans believe that Julio Rodriguez is the perfect player to build a franchise around. That's the plan for the Seattle Mariners. They extended his contract before the 2022 season came to an end. He'll earn $210 million guaranteed over the next 14 years.

Can Julio Rodriguez and the Seattle Mariners capitalize on the momentum they created last season?

From 2001 to 2021, Seattle's baseball season ended in September. But last year was different. The Mariners put an end to the longest playoff drought in North American professional sports when they reached the AL Wild Card series. They swept the Toronto Blue Jays in two games to advance to the ALDS.

Unfortunately, they ran into a red-hot Houston Astros team that would eventually go on to win the World Series. They gave the Astros a run for their money before they were sent packing.

The team will look similar heading into the 2023 season. Their most notable off-season move was trading Abraham Toro and Jesse Winker to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for veteran infielder Kolten Wong.

Can Julio Rodriguez lead them to another postseason appearance? He'll be one of the star players to keep an eye on this season.

About the author

Jared "Bloomy" Bloom is a journalist covering Major League Baseball at Sportskeeda and a former college baseball pitcher from Illinois, who just graduated with a Master's degree in Sport Psychology.

A writer with over 3 years of experience, Jared is consistently more concerned with quality than quantity, thoroughly checking multiple sources of information, and prides himself in being knowledgeable not just about MLB, but the game of baseball in general. He loves breaking down plays and game-changing moments, as well as looking closer into players' statistics.

Jared is a die-hard Chicago White Sox fan, and one of his earliest memories is seeing his great-grandfather, a huge Sox fan, in his rocking chair watching a game. Jared started playing from the age of 5 with his grandfather coaching him early on.

Jared loved Tim Lincecum for his quirky delivery and looked up to him as a role model when playing. His current favorite is Phillies star Bryce Harper, an exciting player who doesn't let injuries hold him back. Jared's favorite sports moment is Mark Buehrle's opening day between-the-legs glove flip to first base in 2010.

When he is not watching or writing about baseball, Jared can be found racing BMX at his local Rockford BMX track or coaching his local youth travel baseball team.

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