Rodríguez’s signing -- for just $100,000 with the Mets back in January 2021 -- didn’t register on many radars, but he’s hit himself onto them over the years. Acquired by the Reds at the 2022 Trade Deadline for Tyler Naquin during his United States debut, Rodríguez has made his way up the organizational ladder, reaching Triple-A at age 21 while hitting a combined 19 homers and finishing with a 118 wRC+. His offseason was highlighted by being added to the 40-man roster and once again putting up excellent numbers in the Dominican Winter League.
A slightly undersized left-handed hitter at 5-foot-10, Rodríguez makes a ton of contact with an extremely aggressive approach. He presents a profile that shouldn’t necessarily work with a 23 percent miss rate to go along with a 39 percent chase rate, but he consistently impacts the ball. He’s right between Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart in terms of top bat speed in the entire system, and he made more in-zone contact than Stewart in 2025. He’s starting to find his power, particularly to his pull side and a little more approach refinement could bring that to average in-game big league pop.
Rodríguez has played all three outfield spots, focusing on the corners with the Reds, but playing a good amount of center field in winter ball. While he once looked like a fourth-outfielder type, he could profile well as an everyday left fielder with elite hand-eye and bat-to-ball skills.
Rodriguez has hit pretty much everywhere he’s been since signing with the Mets for $100,000 in January 2021. He finished his debut in the Dominican Summer League with a .301 average and a .847 OPS then hit a combined .333/.372/.536 during his United States debut in 2022 that included the complex league, full-season ball and a Trade Deadline deal to the Reds for Tyler Naquin. After hitting .309 in and winning Dominican Winter League Rookie of the Year honors that offseason, he moved up to High-A Dayton in 2024 where his numbers were more muted, though he hit .274 with a 106 wRC+ at age 20.
Rodriguez has always been hitterish from the left side of the plate. He’s at his best when he’s more gap-to-gap and sending line drives to all fields. He has started to tap into more power and it’s shown up more to his pull side. He is an aggressive hitter who chases out of the zone frequently but keeps the swing-and-miss in check, with a strikeout rate under 15 percent in his career to date. The hope is he’ll become a better hitter as he climbs the ladder and pitchers are around the zone more, with the concern being that better pitchers will be able to exploit his free-swinging tendencies.
While Rodriguez played a good amount of center field in winter ball, he’s more suited to a corner spot long-term, which of course puts more pressure on his bat. He’s worked hard to become a more solid defender with a chance to profile as a valuable fourth outfielder in the big leagues.
After signing with the Mets in January 2021 for $100,000, Rodriguez began a string of seasons in which he's hit well, finishing his Dominican Summer League debut with a .301 average and .847 OPS. He was crushing Florida Complex League pitching and even reached full-season St. Lucie during his United States debut in 2022 when he was sent to the Reds as part of the Tyler Naquin deal near the Trade Deadline. Rodriguez got more Florida State League time post-trade, then hit his way to High-A Dayton in 2023 and won Dominican Winter League Rookie of the Year honors by hitting .309/.344/.487 as an everyday player for Escogido after that.
Wherever he’s been, Rodriguez’s feel for hitting and contact skills from the left side of the plate have stood out. Even after his strikeouts ticked up a bit in 2023, he’s still only whiffed in 15.7 percent of his plate appearances heading into 2024. He can line balls to all fields, doing so even more consistently in winter ball. His overall impact improved last year as his ability to find the barrel started to translate into more power, lifting the ball more and decreasing his ground-ball rate. The next step for his offensive development will be to limit his aggressiveness with better strike zone awareness and swing decisions.
Now an outfielder only after signing as a middle infielder, Rodriguez has played more center field than anywhere else. His plus speed is an asset there, but it remains to be seen if he can stay up the middle full time. If he's going to settle into one spot, it might be left field, but he also could be a very valuable fourth outfielder who will find his way into the lineup more often if his offensive gains continue.
Rodriguez began his career with the Mets, who signed the Dominican teenager for $100,000 when the 2020-21 international signing period opened in January 2021. He made a strong first impression with an .847 OPS in his Dominican Summer League debut that summer, then continued to pile up hits stateside in the Florida Complex League. He found a new home with the Reds, who acquired him as part of the Tyler Naquin deal near the Trade Deadline in 2022, and he hit his way up to Single-A Daytona before a leg injury ended his season a bit early.
An undersized left-handed hitter, to say Rodriguez makes a lot of contact would be a huge understatement. He’s struck out in just 11 percent of his plate appearances heading into the 2023 season and is capable of shooting line drives to all fields. It remains to be seen how much impact he’ll have -- he needs to add strength to take more advantage of his knack for finding the barrel -- and he tends to swing a lot. But he uses his plus speed well to turn ground balls into hits, take an extra base or steal a bag.
Signed as an infielder, Rodriguez has seen time at second and third base, but he spent most of 2022 in center field, where his athleticism has a chance to play well. The Reds will get their first long look at their acquisition in 2023, and he’ll play all season at age 19.
These run values are leveraged, meaning the base/out situation at the time of the event does impact the run value (thus introducing context outside the batter's own contribution).
! Note: Shifts are through the 2022 season, Shaded starting from the 2023 season, Shift: three or more infielders are on the same side of second base, Shade: positioned outside of their typical responsible slices of the field. Learn more about how positioning is defined here
