The decision to award Rodriguez a second-inning triple instead of a double with an advancement on an outfield error was historic. Rodriguez would’ve been 5-for-5 regardless of how the hit was scored on an afternoon at Charles Schwab Field when he tied single-game College World Series records with seven RBI and 12 total bases.
Still, Schlossnagle felt Rodriguez rightfully earned a cycle. When the official scorebook was changed late in the Longhorns’ rout of the Crimson Tide, the sophomore became the third player in the 79-year history of the College World Series to hit for the cycle.
“I mean, had it not been changed by the end of the game, yeah, I certainly would have said something,” Schlossnagle said. “I thought that was a clean triple. I'm glad they made that change during the game.”
For Rodriguez, who injured his left hamate bone last season, underwent surgery in the fall and missed time this season when post-surgery complications required a procedure to remove a surgical screw (Rodriguez, as it turned out, was allergic to the cobalt screw used in the initial surgery), his record-setting performance in helping Texas (46-14) advance to an elimination game against either Georgia or Oklahoma on Tuesday (6 p.m., ESPN) highlighted his late-season surge.
To turn things around, Rodriguez had to get back on the field.
If Rodriguez had been healthy the whole season, Schlossnagle said, the shortstop would be hitting well over .300 with upwards of 15 home runs. While Rodriguez, who didn’t hit his first home run until an 11-4 road win over Vanderbilt on April 26 and was hitting .258 after going 1-for-5 in a 14-9 road loss to Tennessee on May 9, didn’t have the kind of season one of the top prospects in the 2027 MLB Draft was expected to have, he’s making up for lost time in Omaha.
“It's definitely been up and down throughout the season,” Rodriguez said. “I really owe it to all the guys that have been having my back throughout the whole year and especially all the coaches that have had my back when I haven't been right mentally.
“It's been a grind, but I'm happy that we're doing it right now in the College World Series.”
Rodriguez and assistant coach Troy Tulowitzki went to work after Rodriguez’s eight-game absence, including some swing changes before the series in Knoxville against the Volunteers. Additionally, the switch-hitting Rodriguez devoted himself to hitting left-handed upon his return to help deal with the lingering discomfort in his hand.
To quickly adapt to an optimal hitting approach, Rodriguez had to “get more simple.”
“Just keeping my head in the same position,” Rodriguez said. “Being able to see the ball better has been a big factor.”
Since going 3-for-4 with a three-run home run in a win over Tennessee on April 10, Rodriguez has reached base safely in 12 consecutive games (a 13-game on-base streak after the win over Alabama) and gone 26-for-45 at the plate, raising his batting average to .328. Rodriguez is having a postseason for the ages, going 18-for-27 (.667) in the NCAA Tournament with seven doubles, a triple, two home runs, 16 RBI and 33 total bases.
It’s a white-hot stretch that has Texas in the hunt for a national championship and has Schlossnagle feeling good about the 2027 roster, of which Rodriguez will be the headliner among the Longhorns’ position players.
“He's a potential first-rounder,” Schlossnagle said. "Hopefully, this summer, we can get him fully healthy, but he's a great player.”
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