Meet Julio Rodriguez’s alter ego ‘DJ Pleno’: How the Seattle Mariners star is building a surprising second identity through house music, live sets and his growing passion for DJing | MLB News
Seattle Mariners center fielder Julio Rodriguez is one of the most recognisable young faces in Major League Baseball with his energetic personality and impact on the field. But by 2026, Rodriguez is starting to be known for another facet of himself as he delves into music and live DJ sets.She goes by ‘DJ Pleno’ behind the turntables and is 25 years old. It’s a different identity from his baseball career, allowing Rodriguez to tinker with something that doesn’t have anything to do with the No. 44 jersey or his duties as a Mariners star. What began as a simple turntable in his home has now become a hobby that he wants to continue to build on.
MLB star Julio Rodriguez introduces Seattle Mariners fans to DJ Pleno
Rodriguez’s DJ persona morphed from a private hobby to a public performance on August 7, 2026, at T-Mobile Park during the Seattle Mariners’ Alumni Home Run Derby. The event was part of the organization’s 50 Seasons Celebration Weekend and featured a number of former Mariners, including star attraction Ichiro Suzuki.But while the alumni were in the home run competition, Rodriguez had a different task. The Mariners star DJed live under the ‘DJ Pleno’ name, bringing house music to the ballpark after the game.The performance gave Rodriguez an opportunity to show a side of himself that most fans had not seen before. He was no longer in the batter’s box or patrolling center field he was in charge of music and trying to create an atmosphere for the crowd.To Rodriguez, the name ‘Pleno’ has meaning. The word has Spanish origins and is ultimately derived from Latin plēnus and ideas like being full, complete or fulfilled.That meaning helped Rodriguez find an identity that didn’t revolve around baseball. Instead of opting for a name that referenced his number on his jersey, the Mariners or his baseball nickname, he wanted ‘DJ Pleno’ to be its own thing.The concept also reflects what Rodriguez wants to embody in the persona. He has associated the project with feeling good, being fulfilled and doing things that bring personal satisfaction in his comments around ‘DJ Pleno’.The Alumni Home Run Derby performance was a big step forward because most of Rodriguez’s previous DJing had been done away from a large crowd.After the Mariners were knocked out of the playoffs in 2025, he began to tinker with equipment at his home in the Seattle area. His initial set-up was primitive, and Rodriguez admitted he had no idea what all the various controls on the equipment did.His friends who had DJ experience also made fun of his early equipment and method. Rodriguez did not give up the hobby but bought more equipment and kept on practising.
How Julio Rodriguez discovered his passion for DJing
Rodriguez’s interest in DJing came during a period when he was looking for something outside of baseball. He’s been in the limelight since his teenage years, and his career has kept baseball front and center in his everyday life, from top prospect to established MLB star.DJing gives Rodriguez a different learning experienceRodriguez’s interest in music goes back a long way, but it was the decision to learn DJing that made it an active hobby. He bought a basic turntable and started practising at home after the 2025 season.There was an instant learning curve. Rodriguez said he initially had difficulty understanding the controls, but repeated practice helped him become more comfortable with the equipment and the process of mixing tracks.His musical preferences lie in house music and he is associated with artists such as Martin Garrix and Black Coffee. He doesn’t have a strict daily routine for DJing. Instead, Rodriguez likes to train when the mood is right.There’s an interesting link to Rodriguez’s baseball career and his new hobby. He has spent most of his life working on his baseball skills, so a lot of the game comes on instinct through years of repetition.As a novice, Rodriguez has to relearn the fundamentals, make mistakes and slowly improve. And that process has allowed him to think about his own development as a baseball player and to appreciate how much work went into getting to the major leagues.Rodriguez has likened the thrill of having control of a DJ set to the sensation of creating a big moment on a baseball field.If you’re a player accustomed to the decibel levels at T-Mobile Park, then playing music in front of a crowd isn’t all that foreign. The energy may be similar, but the source of attention is different.
What comes next for Julio Rodriguez and DJ Pleno
Rodriguez has described ‘DJ Pleno’ as a work in progress. There doesn’t seem to be a concrete, long-term business plan for the project, but the Mariners star has said he’d like to continue to grow and eventually expand what he’s able to do with music.He wants to do more than just mix. Rodriguez has said he wants to do his own music in the future, which could see the project move from DJing to production.Next for Rodriguez is to get more confidence technically and gain more experience in front of audiences. The Alumni Home Run Derby was an important first major opportunity, but the center fielder has hinted there could be more performances to come.In August 2026, the singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran visited T-Mobile Park, and Rodriguez also discussed his DJing interest with him.Sheeran told Rodriguez to keep practicing and honing the skill, even if friends or others don’t immediately respond positively to the music. The advice was a simple fact of learning a creative discipline: to improve, you have to repeat and persevere.What Rodriguez has in store for DJ Pleno is still up in the air. He’s said he’d like to do some original music and play for bigger crowds, but has also teased another possible project during the offseason.The point of this story is that this DJ persona was purposefully created away from baseball. Rodriguez has long been known as a star for the Seattle Mariners, but ‘DJ Pleno’ gives him a space to be creative on his own.For now, ‘DJ Pleno’ is a budding identity, not a substitute for Julio Rodriguez’s baseball career, but an addition to it. The Seattle Mariners star is creating a name for himself on the pitch, and house music is providing him with another outlet for expression.
