BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle has a fondness for Sean Rodriguez, who has played every position except pitcher and catcher during his 10-year big league career.
”He’s played all those positions well,” Hurdle said. ”You don’t find too many guys that you can put anywhere on the field and not worry about the ball finding him.”
Hurdle was ecstatic last August when the Pirates reacquired Rodriguez from Atlanta for minor league infielder/outfielder Connor Joe, a deal made a half-year after Rodriguez and family were injured in a horrific car accident.
Rodriguez spent the 2015 and `16 seasons with the Pirates and became a favorite both in the clubhouse and with the fans because of his versatility and fiery style. Rodriguez attacked a Gatorade cooler in the dugout following a benches-clearing incident during the 2015 NL wild-card loss to the Chicago Cubs.
Rodriguez appeared in 279 of a possible 324 games in those two seasons while batting .260 with 22 homers in 582 plate appearances. After he hit a career-high 18 homers in 2018, he left to sign an $11.5 million, two-year contract with the Braves, then tore his left rotator cuff in an automobile accident in his hometown of Miami two weeks before the start of spring training.
Rodriguez, wife Giselle and two of their four children were in their SUV when it was hit by a stolen police cruiser. The man driving the cruiser died and Giselle broke a femur, tibia, ankle, wrist and three ribs, while also tearing an Achilles tendon.
”My injury was nothing compared to what happened to her,” Rodriguez said.
Originally projected to miss the season, Rodriguez was activated from the disabled list July 17 and hit .167 with five homers and eight RBIs in 153 plate appearances for the Braves and Pirates. Rodriguez probably rushed back too soon.
”I think you take what he did last year and throw it out the window,” Hurdle said.
In addition to recovering from own surgery, Rodriguez had the mental burden of watching his wife go through an arduous rehab process just to be able to walk again. Giselle Rodriguez is now ”pretty close to back to normal,” according to her husband.
”If you spoke to her, you would realize how much tougher she is than a lot of people,” Rodriguez said. ”She takes it in stride and is a strong woman. She is a very special human being.”
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