Back in 2021, before I came to Pirates Prospects, I spent a lot of time watching the Bradenton Marauders baseball team.
There were plenty of noteworthy players on that roster, one of which is pitching for the Dominican Republic in the WBC right now, but another one stood above the rest.
He was new to the system, but there was plenty of intrigue surrounding him. Sometimes you look at someone while they are playing baseball, and just know he’s going to be something special.
That was Endy Rodriguez. I won’t say I saw the kind of rise that Rodriguez has had over the past year, but there was little doubt watching him play in Bradenton back then that he would be an impact player of some sort.