The Seattle Mariners had an opportunity to get Cal Raleigh to the plate in the ninth inning of their ALCS Game 7 loss on Monday night, but Julio Rodriguez put together a horrendous at-bat at the worst possible time.
The Toronto Blue Jays advanced to the World Series with a 4-3 win over the Mariners in Game 7 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario. Closer Jeff Hoffman struck out the side in the ninth inning, and he got some serious help from Rodriguez.
Rodriguez struck out for the final out of the game. The center fielder could have worked a walk with Raleigh on deck, but he instead swung at three pitches that were outside the strike zone. Rodriguez even worked a 2-0 count before he waved at a slider that was down and away.
Rodriguez then fouled off the fourth pitch, looked at ball three and struck out on another breaking ball that was well outside the zone.
Mariners season ended with a 6 pitch at bat in which Julio Rodriguez didn’t see a single strike, with Cal Raleigh on deck. Awful. pic.twitter.com/hae1GzLrem
— Jed 🇬🇧 (@TigersJUK) October 21, 2025
All seven pitches that Rodriguez faced missed the zone. He should have been patient in that situation to give Raleigh a chance to come to the plate as the tying run, but Rodriguez seemed determined to play hero instead.
Following the game, Rodriguez was heard letting out a massive scream of frustration in the clubhouse.
Julio Rodriguez was the player that screamed, per @AaronLevine_ https://t.co/RNhIwURvya
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 21, 2025
Rodriguez led off the third inning with a home run to give the Mariners a 2-1 lead, so he was a big part of the reason Seattle only trailed by a run in the ninth inning. Still, he is not going to enjoy looking back at that at-bat.
