Adrian Rodriguez is done switch-hitting, at least for now. The Texas Longhorns junior shortstop is staying on the left side of the plate, and he\u2019s learning he doesn\u2019t need nearly as many swings to get ready.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez hit exclusively left-handed down the stretch of Texas\u2019 2026 run to Omaha while managing a left-hand injury that has followed him through his first two college seasons. The Longhorns plan to keep it that way heading into 2027.<\/p>\n
Texas head coach Jim Schlossnagle said Monday the doctors and specialists Rodriguez saw recommended rest, and that batting right-handed bothered his left hand more than batting left-handed did. \u201cWith that rest, the best thing for him, at least at this point in his career, is to just hit on one side of the plate,\u201d Schlossnagle said.<\/p>\n
Switch hitting also meant twice the workload. \u201cWhen you\u2019re a switch hitter, it\u2019s double the work, and whether you\u2019re doing 10 swings in a day, you\u2019ve got to do 10 from each side, or whether you\u2019re doing 1,000, then it\u2019s both sides,\u201d Schlossnagle said.<\/p>\n
The decision came through what Schlossnagle called \u201ca series of conversations\u201d over \u201ca very long amount of time.\u201d They involved Rodriguez, members of his family and Troy Tulowitzki, the former major-league shortstop who is now a star assistant for the Longhorns. Tulowitzki\u2019s credibility, built in this case around his ability to \u201crecite off examples of major leaguers that he\u2019s played with\u201d who have done more with fewer swings helped convince Rodriguez to stick with a reduced-volume approach from the left side. The goal was getting everyone on the same page \u201cbecause we want him to feel supported by everyone around him,\u201d Schlossnagle said.<\/p>\n
Part of that process meant changing how Rodriguez prepares. Schlossnagle described telling his star shortstop that \u201cif some guys need 200 swings before a game to be ready, you need two and you\u2019re ready to go,\u201d even if that\u2019s not an exact swing count.. \u201cA lot of players find comfort and confidence in their work ethic,\u201d Schlossnagle said. \u201cI think he still has that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The hand has interrupted Rodriguez\u2019s development more than once. His trouble dates to March 2025, when a pitch against Missouri fractured his left hamate. He finished his freshman season batting left-handed and had surgery that fall to insert a staple. The hardware came out around the end of March 2026 after inflammation that Schlossnagle attributed to an apparent reaction to nickel and cobalt<\/a>. Rodriguez missed eight games after the procedure and returned against Alabama on April 17.<\/p>\n Even before the full switch, the left side was doing more damage. In an April 30 scouting report, Prep Baseball\u2019s David Seifert<\/a> listed a .461 slugging percentage for Rodriguez batting left-handed and .244 batting right-handed. The report didn\u2019t include at-bat totals for each side, so those numbers are a midseason snapshot rather than a final split. By June 8, Burnt Orange Nation reported<\/a>, Rodriguez was hitting exclusively left-handed because it caused less pain.<\/p>\n During Texas\u2019 NCAA tournament run, Rodriguez went 19-for-31 (.613) with 16 RBI in eight games. His best afternoon came June 15, when he went 5-for-5 in a 14\u20132 elimination-game win over Alabama and hit for the third cycle in Men\u2019s College World Series history<\/a>. His sixth-inning home run completed the cycle, and his seven RBI tied a single-game event record.<\/p>\n