Rodríguez’s hefty Mariners contract provides leverage when adding his causes to brand deals, but also gave the Gatorade team a peek inside his inner circle at the Seattle brand breakfast
“Julio is exactly the type of athlete we look to partner with on and off the field…we couldn’t be more excited to welcome him into our family just as he’s welcomed us into his,” said Jeff Kearney, global head of sports marketing at Gatorade.
A consistent collaborator
The Mariners launched themselves back into playoff contention this year by going 20-6 in the month of August. Rodríguez had his greatest month of the year, hitting .429 with 45 hits, 30 RBI, seven home runs and 11 stolen bases.
It’s the kind of potential that Charley Stobbs, baseball sports marketing manager at Adidas, saw in Rodríguez for two years in the minors while contemplating how he’d fit Adidas’ brand. Where the apparel industry would once load up on as many players as possible to keep ahead of competitors, Stobbs said Adidas focused on two main components: Speed and expression.
Rodríguez’s speed and power was evident on the field. Stobbs saw expression in a conversation with Rodríguez’s father during the All-Star Game in Seattle, the breakfast with other sponsors (where his Adidas crew took a team photo) and Rodriguez’s August-ending gesture in which his team at Octagon sent Jeremy Scott Adidas tracksuits and bucket hats to every Mariners player (and coach Scott Servais) and arranged a video message to the clubhouse from Reverend Run of Run DMC.
