ESPN Insider Offers Interesting Assessment on Seattle Mariners Star Julio Rodriguez

Seattle's star outfielder had his typical slow start this season, although not as bad as his previous three years, and has dealt with the usual criticism about his early-season performance.

In a recent appearance on the "Marine Layer" podcast, ESPN researcher/insider Paul Hembekides offered a detailed assessment on Rodriguez's game that included some compliments and criticism.

"I see an extraordinary athlete and a baseball player that still is less mature than I would've expected him to be. And that is not a value judgement on his intellect. But I see a very successful WAR accumulator. The defense is plus-plus at a premium position and he can run like the win. He's breathtaking. And I think the fact that we've seen him go nuclear for as long as a stretch as we've seen him go nuclear, it demonstrates that we know this is in his bag. So he becomes everyone's tantalizing February MVP. Because this is going to be the year that he puts it together. But the problem is, his swing, the actual mechanical nature of his swing, isn't good enough. And unless Julio Rodriguez makes wholesale, mature swing adjustments and market corrections, he's only going to be as a player, and of course 'only' being in air quotes who's batting line is between and 15-20% (above) average year over year. That's going to be the player he is. That's gonna be worth between 5-7 WAR in his prime."

Hembekides' assessment on Rodriguez falls in live with many observations made by various league sources. A common thread of thought since Rodriguez has made his debut is that the Mariners go as far as Rodriguez does. If he manages to sustain that superstar form over a longer stretch than he historically has, the club will only benefit from it.