Seattle Mariners Mock Draft 2.0

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SEATTLE, WA – JUNE 11: Seattle Mariners 2016 first round draft pick Kyle Lewis walks past scouts during batting practice before a game between the Texas Rangers and the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field on June 11, 2016 in Seattle, Washington. The Rangers won the game 2-1 in eleven innings. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

The MLB Draft is just 3 weeks away and what exactly the Mariners plan is starting to come into focus. With the new information, let’s take another stab at predicting the unpredictable, the MLB Draft.

When we wrote our first Mariners Mock Draft 3 weeks ago, we knew very little about where the Mariners might be leaning. Today, we know a bit more, and it appears their draft board is just about crystalized.

Recent reports have indicated that the Mariners are scouting high floor, fast-moving college types hard. This isn’t a surprise and is something we speculated about in our first mock draft. Considering the Mariners have taken Kyle Lewis and Evan White in the first round of Dipoto’s first two drafts, this idea follows suit.

In their latest mock draft, Fangraphs mocked Oregon State outfielder Trevor Larnach to Seattle at pick 14. Considering what we know, the pick would make sense. Larnach is a college producer, with a nice swing who is unafraid to take walks and work counts. As many expected, Larnach has tapped into his raw power this year, slugging 14 home runs in 165 AB’s.

The issue with Larnach is that he doesn’t provide much value anywhere but the plate. He has a good arm, but it isn’t great. He has below-average foot speed and has a ceiling of an average corner outfielder.

Larnach is a nice prospect, but won’t get many excited. Long-term, he profiles best as a future everyday left fielder. With all that in mind, we went a different direction.

player. 62. Stetson. LoganGilbert. 14. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. SP

The Mariners certainly need pitching depth throughout their organization. While you never draft for need in the Top 10 rounds, Gilbert is more than deserving of this selection. Entering 2018, there was some belief that Gilbert could be the second RH college arm taken in the draft.

Logan has fallen back some, thanks in part to a drop in velocity in 2018. However, Gilbert offers a 4 pitch mix, with all 4 pitches flashing plus at times. The fastball sits at 91 MPH and he has touched 97 as recently as last summer.

Gilbert throws both breaking balls, though his slider is the better of the two. The changeup is the separator for Gilbert, and the pitch has the chance to be double-plus in the future. Gilbert has dominated his competition, striking out 284 hitters in 231 career innings.

With good command and stuff, Gilbert could be up sometime in 2020 and has the upside of a true #2 type of starter. If Gilbert can regain the velocity from the Cape Cod League, he has one of the highest upsides of all the college arms.

Pick 55: Bring on the Arms

SEATTLE, WA – SEPTEMBER 30 (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images) /

In addition to the news that Seattle is aggressively scouting college players, the Mariners are also rumored to be looking for a prep arm in the second round. Dipoto has a history of following a college pick with a prep arm, and it surely makes sense to do it again in 2018. The prep arms of the 2018 class are deep with quality options.

Fangraphs believes the Mariners to be interested in Lenny Torres, a 17-year-old RHP from New York. Torres has a plus fastball and slider, but has some mechanical issues to clear up, and needs to develop the changeup to stick as a starter.

So where do we go from here?

Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. SP. Carson High School (N.C.). OwenWhite. 55. player. 62

This would be the first time in the Dipoto era that the Mariners spend both of their top picks on pitching. After having success with the Sam Carlson selection in 2017, Seattle dips back into the highly touted prep arm market by selecting Owen White.

White’s fastball sits at 90 MPH, but he’s hit 94 in the past. The velocity should pick up, as White has plenty of room to add strength. At 6’3″, 175 lbs, White will need to add strength to stand up to the rigors of professional baseball. The heater shows good arm side run and should be a plus pitch in pro ball.

A tremendous athlete, White was a highly recruited QB before he focused on baseball entering his senior year. It appears to have been the right decision. White already has a good slider, and both his curveball and changeup are average offerings with room to grow.

Because of all these factors, White could wind up off the board before pick 55. He has a strong commitment to South Carolina, so similar to Carlson, Seattle might have to go over the slot value to put White into the Mariners organization.

However, with White’s 4 pitch mix, athleticism, and upside, it is well worth the gamble.

Pick 90: Where Are The Bats?

SEATTLE, WA – APRIL 19: Fans cheer as Evan Gattis #11 of the Houston Astros walks off the field after being tagged out by Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners to cause a triple play by starting to walk off the field with two outs in the fourth inning at Safeco Field on April 19, 2018, in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images) /

Typically, teams don’t go pitching with their first 3 picks, but if a guy slides to this spot, Dipoto will jump on it quickly. But for our purposes, let’s assume that Seattle will spend at least 1 of their Top 100 picks on a hitter.

The issue we run into at this stage is that most of the prep bats worth a selection are long gone, and the college guys left have pretty glaring flaws.

The trick in this range is finding the player you believe in more than anybody else. Last year, the Mariners selected Wyatt Mills. The pick was so unexpected, the MLB Network crew had no notes prepared for him. It was a money saving pick but appears to be a home run selection.

Mills is dominating the low minors, and is on the fast track to the big leagues, and could be pitching for the Mariners in September.

This time around, the Mariners find their man by going to a place where one of their current stars burst onto the scene.

player. 62. Scouting Report. OF. Cal Poly. AlexMcKenna. 90. Pick Analysis

If you don’t know, Cal Poly is the school that brought you Mitch Haniger. Yes, that Mitch Haniger. The Mariners could dip back into the program, and select this college performer, who actually bears a pretty similar skill set to Haniger.

McKenna is a good hitter with a sound approach, who can use the whole field with plus gap power. Sound familiar? In addition, McKenna has average speed that plays up in the outfield thanks to his advanced breaks and crisp routes. Yeah, that sounds familiar.

Where McKenna falls behind Haniger is with his arm strength and power. The arm probably will limit him to left field, but he should be at solid-average to above-average there. Some scouts believe that more power will come, but if it doesn’t McKenna should have a nice career as a 4th outfielder.

His approach at the plate and overall decent skill set make him a safe pick in the 3rd round, and one that could be an absolute grand slam if the power comes.

Next: MLB Draft Prospect Profile: Nick Madrigal

There you have it, another Mariner’sMock in the books. The MLB is just 3 weeks away, and the Mariners have a unique opportunity to add legitimate talent to their organization. Will they take advantage? Only time will tell.

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