Julio Rodríguez had a busy night in the outfield.
Julio is an elite center fielder, which makes him valuable. His essential skill, beyond being very fast, is his route-running. He seems to know exactly where the ball will land and gets to that spot faster than most. Baseball Savant’s metrics love him. He entered Tuesday’s game with 9 Outs Above Average — tied for fifth among center fielders. He exited, however, a touch lower with 8 OAA. Julio got three challenging plays in the fifth inning that tested his route-running and served as a useful illustration of catch probability.