Rodríguez hit 15 homers and 20 stolen bases in 81 games, the fewest of any player to reach those marks. When he reached the 20-20 plateau, Rodríguez became just the 12th rookie in history to do so and was the fastest player in AL history (107 games) to accomplish the feat, surpassing Mike Trout (112 games). If he can go 25-25, Rodríguez will join a rookie list that includes only Trout (2012) and Chris Young (2007). After working through a slow start to the season, Rodríguez broke out in May and June, batting .295 with 13 home runs and 33 RBIs in 57 games over the two-month span en route to being named the American Rookie of the Month twice League. Those honors made Rodríguez the first Mariners rookie to win multiple Rookie of the Month awards since Ichiro Suzuki won it four times in 2001. Rodríguez joined Ichiro on another list later that summer when he became just the sixth rookie in franchise history to be selected to the All-Star Game and the first rookie position player since Ichiro during that historic 2001 season. Rodríguez also joined Alex Rodríguez and Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. — two of baseball’s greatest players of all time — as the only 21-year-olds in Mariners history to be drafted. Rodríguez’s standout moment among many highlights of the season was his appearance in the 2022 T-Mobile Home Run Derby at Dodger Stadium, where he finished second to Juan Soto but collected 81 homers overall, including 32 in the first round, a new first round. rookie record. Rodríguez’s first-round homers came a combined 2.54 miles, by far the most of any competitor in the first round. Rodríguez’s first-round performance was the fourth-best of any Home Run Derby in history, trailing only Pete Alonso, Joc Pederson (39 in the second round in 2019) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (40 to beat Pederson in the same round). J-Rod later became the first 30-homer hitter in Derby history. “I didn’t see it coming until I got to Spring Training,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said of Rodríguez’s speed. “It was one of the first days we were running the bases as a team, early camp, and the way he’s flying around the base like, ‘Oh my God, this is different.’ And you start to see his movement on the outside and his ability to close with balls.” Shortly after the All-Star Game, Rodríguez missed two weeks with a right wrist injury suffered when he was hit by a pitch against the Astros, but has since returned to help the Mariners in their quest to end a 20-year postseason run. drought.
