An ‘emotional’ Julio Rodriguez shows off refined swing

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Just before the first pitch of his second at-bat Tuesday afternoon, Julio Rodriguez was interrupted by home plate umpire Malachi Moore, who gave the Mariners’ star a lecture about being ready and engaged in the batter’s box.

Initially, Rodriguez seemed a bit confused.

Then, by his own admission, he got a little heated.

That led to a short back-and-forth between Rodriguez and the umpire.

“I just feel like he got a little too aggressive for that. … He kind of got in my face,” Rodriguez said.

Two pitches later, Rodriguez laced a 112-mph double into the right-center gap off Dodgers minor league right-hander Michael Hobbs, one-hopping the wall and driving in two runs.

That led to a Dodgers pitching change. And during the break, Rodriguez continued his conversation with Moore near the visitor’s dugout, with Mariners manager Dan Wilson stepping out of the dugout to join in as something of a moderator.

Rodriguez later said Moore told him he had incorrectly engaged and then disengaged from the pitcher while in the batter’s box. Rodriguez was trying to get some clarity on the issue.

“I just think it’s a little too early [in spring] for that. I was emotional about that, and that’s literally what I told him, but it is what it is,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez’s bat appears to be heating up too.

Since late last season, Rodriguez has been working closely with Edgar Martinez on a refined all-fields approach, and he likes the early returns so far this spring.

“At this moment right now, I feel good,” Rodriguez said. “I feel like I’ve been taking good at-bats.”

Wilson agreed.

“That was one of the highlights for me, seeing that ball on the line like that right-center. He really smoked it,” Wilson said.

Wilson likes that Rodriguez’s swings so far this spring have been measured and under control.

“It’s not just about [using] the middle of field — it is but it’s also finding the right intensity with the swing,” Wilson said. “And oftentimes, you know, we get big when we get into bigger situations in the game. So it’s finding that happy medium where, you know, we can stay, you know the old saying, ‘Stay within yourself,’ and find that, that right tempo, and use the whole field, and that’s what we saw.”