2 Mariners 2025 draft picks are already making strong first impressions in minors

The headline move made by the Seattle Mariners in this year's draft was undoubtedly selecting Kade Anderson with the third overall pick. That he was still available at that slot was a surprise to many, with him arguably the best overall prospect in this year's draft class and definitely the top pitcher available.

However, there were plenty of other reasons to be impressed by the Mariners' draft class for 2025, with Bleacher Report grading it as the best of all 30 Major League organizations. And alluding to the M's ability to find and develop talent during the Jerry Dipoto era in Seattle, a couple of this year's draft picks are already making a strong impression in the minors.

2 Mariners 2025 draft picks already making strong first impressions

The first player is Luke Stevenson, who was drafted 35th overall by the Mariners and, according to MLB Pipeline, is already the No. 10 prospect in their farm system. The 21-year-old has the skills and potential to eventually become the team's everyday catcher somewhere in the post-Cal Raleigh era.

As Sodo Mojo's Tremayne Person wrote earlier this month, Stevenson has the polished defensive skills, arm strength and even maturity that you look for behind the plate. Combined with a power bat and solid plate discipline, it's no wonder he's received so much positive feedback.

Of course all the potential in the world can only matter so much when you need to tap into it on the field and prove what you can actually do. And Stevenson is doing just that so far in Single-A Modesto.

What Stevenson has achieved in his first 12 games is extremely encouraging with the standout arguably being his 13 walks, to allude to his aforementioned plate discipline. Overall he has a promising .765 OPS and there's plenty of reason to believe this is just the start of a successful journey to eventually playing in the majors.

The other prospect making a strong early impression in Single-A Modesto is Aiden Taurek. However, what makes his success arguably more impressive is that he wasn't selected until the 13th round of this year's draft.

Taurek hit the ground running with three hits in his debut for Single-A Modesto and he hasn't stopped since. He doesn't have overwhelming power, but in 17 games he's batting .304 to prove that he just has that innate ability to make contact with the ball and spray it all over the field.

Sodo Mojo's Tanner Vogt wrote about how Taurek was the catalyst for Saint Mary's offense this year, with a .328 batting average and .980 OPS. The outfielder was key to the shocking upset win over No. 8 ranked Oregon State in the NCAA Tournament.

The 21-year-old's main calling card is that he's just a reliable hitter, helped immensely by a smooth and quick swing. He likely won't be a star in the Mariners organization — not that we would have any issue with being proven wrong in this regard — but he's one of those under-the-radar types who fans should really keep an eye on moving forward.