Julio Rodriguez drops 2-word caption for gym selfie with Phillies shortstop Edmundo Sosa

After missing the 2024 MLB All-Star game, Seattle Mariners' young sensation Julio Rodriguez isn't resting this offseason. The standards are pretty high for J-Rod, who made the All-Star game in his rookie year, followed by another appearance in 2023, before missing out in 2024.

In the offseason, J-Rod is hitting the gym regularly, joining Phillies shortstop Edmundo Sosa, Guardians first baseman Carlos Santana and Nationals utility player Amed Rosario. They are training at "House of Athlete" in Tampa, Florida, under specialist coaches there.

On Monday, Rodriguez shared moments from his training session alongside the above-mentioned players. Rodríguez captioned one of the stories with a lighthearted two-word reference to Sosa:

"De Guandule… "

The word "guandule" refers to pigeon peas, a key ingredient in Dominican cuisine. Rodriguez is likely making a light-hearted comment about Sosa’s Dominican roots, using "guandule."

J-Rod also uploaded a group photo, with the caption:

"En el lab 🥒"

Julio Rodriguez's Instagram story

With spring training just around the corner, it’s clear that Julio Rodríguez and his peers are putting in the work to stay at the top of their game.

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Julio Rodriguez reflects on his 2024 season with a grain of salt

Julio Rodriguez finished the 2024 season, hitting .273/.325/.409 with 20 home runs and 24 stolen bases. Despite what is considered to be a relatively lackluster season, he still joined Bobby Witt Jr. to become the only two players in major league history to have 20 home runs and 20 steals in the first three seasons.

Rodriguez's lack of production can be attributed to an ankle sprain injury, which led to him missing several weeks between July and August.

Despite getting a good head start over the Houston Astros, the Mariners couldn't make the postseason. This led to Rodriguez being forced to watch October baseball on TV rather than be on the field.

“I watched a lot of the games,” Seattle’s center fielder told MLB.com last week. “Every time I could, I would watch with my dad and my friends. That's where you want to be at. Unfortunately, I was the one watching this year, but that's where we want to be at. I like where we're at as a team, and I feel like I'm not going to be watching next year.”

“I've had some time to reflect, and obviously there are some areas for improvement,” Rodríguez added. “But at the same time, we ended on a really good note as a team, and not just like personally, but like as a team collectively. And I just feel like I'm excited to see that playing out from Day 1. I feel like a lot of people are not excited to see that, but I am.”

Julio Rodriguez will be super motivated in 2025 with an aim to lead the Mariners in the postseason.