Seattle Mariners Superstar Nearing Major Milestone in Injury Recovery
The Seattle Mariners are in do-or-die mode with 35 games left in the season.
The Mariners were five games behind the Houston Astros for first place in the American League West going into Wednesday and 6.5 games back for the final Wild Card spot in the AL.
Injuries haven't helped Seattle in its postseason push.
Reliever Gregory Santos and shortstop JP Crawford are both on the injured list, Mitch Haniger missed time on the road trip due to a quad ailment and Victor Robles will miss the final game of the nine-game road trip with a hip injury after colliding with the wall in the outfield trying to make a catch.
So it's a good thing that franchise star Julio Rodriugez is nearing a full return.
Rodriguez was put on the injured list on July 23 and was out 19 days with a high-ankle sprain. Rodriguez was activated off the IL on Aug. 11. He wasn't at 100% and was used exclusively as a designated hitter. He's been one of the Mariners most consistent hitters since he returned (for better or worse). But it looks Rodriguez is nearing his full return to the outfield.
According to an article from the Seattle Times, M's reporter Ryan Divish spoke with Seattle manager Scott Servais before Tuesday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers and the indication is that Rodriguez might be back in the outfield sooner rater than later.
“It’s a good question,” Servais said. “We talked a lot about getting him back in center here in this series, even as much as yesterday. And I think being smart with where he’s at with the running speed — he is up to top speed, but you can control it more on offense than you can on defense. It’s the sudden starting and stopping. Also, this field plays extremely fast. It’s the fastest field in the league, in my opinion, right up there with San Diego and Anaheim. So we’ll tap the brakes on that a little bit. I think there’s a better chance you see him play center field when we get back to Seattle.”
The news couldn't come at a better time for Seattle. Crawford looks like he's closing in on a return and the Astros play 10 games starting Wednesday against playoff contenders the Baltimore Orioles, Philadelphia Phillies and Kansas City Royals.
Houston is about to start one of its toughest stretch of the season and Seattle will need as many bats as many healthy players as possible to make up some ground in the division.
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