Julio Rodriguez scratched from lineup vs. Athletics on Tuesday

The Seattle Mariners have scratched outfielder Julio Rodriguez from the lineup on Tuesday ahead of their game against the Oakland Athletics. Initially, it was thought that he would be able to play in the game, but his back injury was too much to overcome. Jared Kelenic moves to center, with Taylor Trammell manning left and AJ Pollock manning the DH position.

It’s been a down year for JRod, who was coming off an AL Rookie of the Year season. He is hitting a measly .239 with only six doubles, one triple, five home runs and 13 RBI. Rodriguez has already struck out 34 times in just 113 at-bats. There was an expectation that he would be able to benefit from the larger bases and increase his steal numbers, but while he has stolen six bases, he has been caught four times.

If Rodriguez misses any time, maybe it will help get him out of the slump that he has been in. The good news for Seattle is that Kelenic has been solid this year and has turned the slow start to his career around. He is leading the team in batting average, hitting .308 on the year, so he will be able to hold down the position until Rodriguez is healthy.