CINCINNATI — Just another (historic) day in the life of Julio Rodriguez.
The Mariners star center fielder hit his 25th home run of the season on Monday at Great American Ball Park, making him the first player in MLB history to open his career with back-to-back seasons of 25 homers and 25 stolen bases.
He hit 28 homers with 25 steals in 132 games en route to winning American League Rookie of the Year last year.
Through 130 games this season, he has 25 homers and 36 steals.
His home run Monday was an opposite-field shot 411 feet out to right-center, cutting the Mariners' deficit to 5-1 in the fourth inning.
That came a day after Rodriguez was named the AL Player of the Month for August, the first Mariner to win player of the month since Nelson Cruz in April 2015.
It felt good, Rodriguez said, to be recognized as the player of the month, the first such award of his big-league career.
What made it even better, he said, was the context surrounding the award.
"I feel like if we all didn't have that vibe together and that whole camaraderie and that brotherhood that we have, then it wouldn't have been as fun to be playing that month," he said before the series opener against the Reds. "And that's why I was able to put up the numbers I did."
The Mariners went 21-6 in August, the most wins for any month in franchise history.
And Rodriguez might have had the hottest month of any hitter in franchise history, leading all AL players in batting average (.429), hits (45), doubles (10), RBI (30), stolen bases (11), on-base percentage (.474), slugging percentage (.724), OPS (1.198), total bases (76) and fWAR (2.4).
During one stretch, he had 17 hits over a four-game period, and 28 hits over 10 games, both the most in MLB history.
"I feel like, yeah, I was recognized, but it was a whole team effort," said Rodriguez. "It's not just me. It takes all of us to win. I feel like that's what's really cool about our team. It's not just one guy, and I feel like everybody's feeding off what we all got going on."
Andres Muñoz, the Mariners 24-year-old right-hander, echoed the same sentiments a day after he was named the AL pitcher of the month, also the first such win of his career.
"It feels really good and I'm very happy that they recognized how we've been doing," Muñoz said. "For me, the most important thing is the other guys that are in the bullpen with me, because without them this isn't (going to happen)."
Warm reception for Suarez, Castillo
Before the start of the bottom of the first inning Monday, a warm tribute to Eugenio Suarez and Luis Castillo appeared on the video board at Great American Ball Park, drawing a nice ovation from the crowd for the two former Reds All-Stars.
Suarez also received a round of applause from the crowd as he stepped to the plate for his first at-bat in the second inning.
Suarez spent seven seasons with the Reds, from 2015-21, and made the NL All-Star team in 2018.
"I've been thinking about this for the last few days," Suarez said before the game. "It's great to be back home. ... I built my career here in Cincinnati. Everything they give to me (here) — the support, the love ... it's great to be back."
