Swing adjustments paying off for Mariners’ Julio Rodriguez with big series in Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS – A few days ago, Mariners hitting coach Jarret DeHart pulled manager Scott Servais aside and told him about a few positive pregame hitting sessions he’d had with Julio Rodriguez.

In a season in which the Mariners’ young star has struggled to find consistent production – swinging and missing at too many pitches out of the zone, fouling off too many hittable fastballs and pulling too many weak ground balls to the left side when he does make contact – there has been much frustration from all parties involved.

On Wednesday, Rodriguez had a pair of doubles and crushed a solo homer into the upper deck in left field in the Mariners’ 8-7 win in Minnesota. A day earlier, he hit a pair of homers, including a game-tying, two-run shot in the eighth inning, to lead Seattle to the win.

“Julio has been searching for things all year to get on time,” manager Scott Servais said. “He and Jaret are continuously looking at old video and trying to come up with different keys that can unlock it. And I think he found something here in the last few days. And to Jaret’s credit, he told me it was coming. He said, ‘We tried (something) a little bit different, and it’s working.’ ”

Asked about being confident enough in Rodriguez changes to mention it to Servais, DeHart laughed and said, “I don’t do that very often.”

The changes aren’t massive or a secret. It’s essentially trying to get Rodriguez to quiet up his leg movement and not be so dramatic when he loads his swing. He was sinking too much into them on pitches and messing up the timing of his swing and altering the contact point of where his bat would meet the ball.

“It’s not something he would know that he’s doing, and it’s not something he would do that much in the cage,” DeHart said. “It was more in the games.”

The change was to Rodriguez’s mindset as much as anything – focus on his hands almost to the point of overdoing it, anything to keep his legs from putting the rest of body in a bad position. It’s led to a shorter swing that’s more on time.

“Julio is taking a lot of big swings this year and kind of getting his whole body into it,” Servais said. “He really doesn’t have to do that. We just need him to hit it. So shortening up his swing a little bit has certainly helped.”

Rodriguez noticed it in the opposite-field, two-run homer he hit Tuesday. It was on a 95-mph fastball up and away.

With his past approach, he would’ve pulled that ball for a ground ball to shortstop.

“Either that, or I would’ve been late and fouled it off,” he said. “I feel like everything goes right when I’m just on time. You recognize the pitches you are looking for and let everything else take care of itself. Sometimes, it’s just getting back to basics.”

It’s clear that the Mariners’ offense is operating on a different level when Rodriguez is hitting.

“Julio is starting to put that stretch together that we’ve all been waiting for this year,” Servais said. “And when he does that, it’s special. He changes the game.”

Could something small and simple with his legs and mindset be the key to getting him on a hot stretch?

“It’s crazy, but at the same, it’s just a reminder of this beautiful game that we play,” he said.

Mariners acquire reliever

It’s not a trade that tips the Mariners’ hand as a buyer, seller or both with Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline approaching quickly.

On Wednesday, the team announced it had acquired right-handed pitcher Trent Thornton from the Blue Jays in exchange for minor league infielder Mason McCoy.

To make room on the 40-man roster for Thornton, left-handed pitcher Marco Gonzales (left forearm strain) was transferred from the 15-day injured to the 60-day IL.

Thornton, 29, was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays on July 21. The Mariners will option him to Triple-A Tacoma. In four relief appearances with Toronto this season, he had a 1.69 ERA with one run allowed in 5⅓ innings pitched. He’s spent most of the season with Triple-A Buffalo. In 22 appearances, he posted a 5-1 record with a 4.18 ERA, 18 walks and 26 strikeouts.

Thornton has made 108 MLB appearances, including 35 starts, over parts of five seasons. He has a career 7-14 record with a 4.77 ERA.

McCoy, 29, posted a .234/.330/.407 slash line in 87 games with Tacoma. He had 18 doubles, three triples, 11 homers, 55 RBIs, 20 stolen bases and 45 walks. Primarily a shortstop, he’s a stellar defensive player.

With Jose Caballero, Dylan Moore and Sam Haggerty ahead of him on the organizational depth chart, McCoy likely wouldn’t have received a chance at making the big-league team.