The Seattle Mariners are currently mired in a four-game losing streak, which includes a three-game sweep at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles at home. While their record (32-30) is good enough for second place in the AL West, for a team with championship aspirations, they’d like nothing more than to get out of their little funk. Led by the stud outfielder Julio Rodríguez, aka J-Rod, and catcher Cal Raleigh, the M’s would like nothing more than to reach their first-ever World Series.
Jose Rodriguez Dealing With Trauma Of Home Invasion
In order to do so they’ll need a locked in and fully engaged J-Rod, and lately the two-time All-Star in his first three MLB seasons has been dealing with a lot off the diamond. In fact, Rodríguez’s off-the-field matter is pretty serious when you consider is involves his and his family’s safety.
In the aftermath of Friday’s loss to the Los Angeles Angels, Rodríguez opted to talk about the aforementioned home invasion that took place while he and the team were on a six-game road trip.
“Obviously, they just brought it out now, but it happened a while back ago, and that’s a lot of the things that kind of happened behind the scenes that a lot of people don’t know. But it was very difficult at times to be out there,” Rodríguez said.
Seattle Area Has Series Of Home Invasions Targeting Athletes
Unfortunately, Rodríguez happened to be the fourth athlete targeted, along with teammate Luis Castillo (Mariners), Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell and former Seahawks legend Richard Sherman, who were the others in the Seattle area to have their homes targeted by burglars since February. In fact, the burglars doubled back and got Castillo twice.
As Rodríguez explained, what made it even more scary for him was his girlfriend was home at the time of the burglary. Thankfully, she was able to barricade herself in the bathroom to stay safe. That image still haunts Rodríguez, and he talked about that on Friday night.
“It was hard. Like, I’m not going to lie about that. It was hard because I’m just trying to enjoy baseball and enjoy my dream and play. And you have people trying to hurt you,” Rodríguez said. “You know there’s bad people out there. But once it happens to you and you actually kind of face that reality like right there firsthand, like, it’s not a good feeling. I don’t wish that to anybody else.”
Rodríguez Grateful For Help To Resolve The Matter
News broke Friday of Rodríguez being part of the string of burglaries, as the King County Prosecutor’s Office announced that a person named Earl Riley, 21, had been charged with four counts of burglary and one count of first-degree robbery after prosecutors say he’d been found with. different items that had been stolen from the four athletes’ homes in his possession and he’d also given some of the things he’d stolen to family members as gifts.
That should help Rodríguez rest a little easier and allow him to get back to being one of the best young players in MLB.
Rodríguez Has Great Numbers In First Three-Plus Seasons
In his now three-plus season in MLB, Rodríguez has a .273 batting average with 542 hits, 90 home runs, 279 RBI and 301 runs scored. He also won AL Rookie of the Year in 2022 and has two Silver Slugger Awards to his credit.
