The only 5 Mariners prospects who are untouchable in trade talks

The Mariners farm system is now unanimously regarded as one of the best in all of baseball, but it is also regarded as top-heavy. Obviously, Mariners fans are not complaining but this has also created a dynamic where there are only five prospects that should be untradable if Seattle were to make a trade.

Some are obvious, but there might be some surprising exclusions. Also, chances are the players that I will mention later that some might see as untradeable will not end up being traded by Seattle, but if Jerry Dipoto and the Mariners think they are just a star player or two away and have the opportunity to trade for them, the players that Jerry will throw into the talks will be the ones that I mention are the first to not make this list.

So, who are the only 5 Mariners prospects that are untouchable?

Jarred Kelenic

Sorry Yankees fans on Twitter (And the lovely Mariners “fans” who always say that every Mariners prospect will be a bust), Jarred Kelenic will be a Seattle Mariner for at least the next 6 years and there is no doubt about that.

However, there has not been a shortage of drama this offseason pertaining to Kelenic. We here at Sodo Mojo have written what feels like 10 different blogs about Jarred Kelenic and his future in Seattle, his contract situation, and when he will make his debut.

Yet throughout all of it it’s still clear that Jarred will be a Mariner for a very long time and is not going anywhere.

Logan Gilbert

Logan Gilbert will make his 2021 Spring Training debut today (March 7th) against the Angels and if you have never seen him pitch, it is a must-watch. Across three different levels in the minors, the former first-round draft pick has made 26 starts and his highest ERA at any level was 2.88 in 2019 in AA.

Gilbert is ranked as the 33rd best prospect in baseball and the fourth in the Mariners system that includes six players in the top 100. His pitch arsenal features a 65-grade fastball, a 55-grade slider, a 50-grade curve, and a 55-grade change. Hopefully, he will be able to make his major league debut at some time early in the season, but of course, as we were informed by the disgraced former team president Kevin Mather, Gilbert will indeed be debuting early this year.

It is likely that the plan that Mather leaked remains unchanged, and Jerry Dipoto also recently said that he thinks that Gilbert is the most MLB-ready player among Seattle’s top prospects. So, expect to see Gilbert make his debut early in the season, and maybe if his first start today and his starts this spring go well, he could even make the Opening Day roster.

Emerson Hancock

Emerson Hancock is untouchable because we have not even seen him pitch in the pros yet. While the minor league season has been delayed, we will get to see Hancock pitch at some point this year in the lower levels of the minor leagues. He also was just brought in to major league Spring Training, but won’t pitch in a game.

Hancock is the 31st ranked prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline and was the 6th pick of the 2020 draft. The 21-year-old out of the University of Georgia has a similar pitch arsenal to Logan Gilbert, with his 65-grade fastball as the star of the show. It should actually be fastballs, plural, as he has a 4 seamer that he throws in the upper 90’s and has a sinking 2 seam fastball.

Because of his college experience, Hancock could be up in the majors as soon as next year, with MLB Pipeline listing his ETA as 2022. His fastball will be one of the better ones in baseball, but for him to be a top of the rotation pitcher he will have to work on his breaking pitches. If they can improve, then Hancock becomes a pitcher you can build around. But for now he is untouchable because of his insanely high ceiling.

Cal Raleigh

As I think Cal Raleigh is the fifth and final prospect who is untradable, that means that I do indeed believe that Taylor Trammell, George Kirby, and Noelvi Marte are not untouchable. With Trammell, I could see him being traded since he just arrived in Seattle and Kelenic/Rodriguez are going nowhere. While he has been excellent this spring, his minor league hitting stats are not convincing.

Kirby and Marte I see as good enough to be commodities in a trade discussion for a star, but not good enough to be untouchable. If the Mariners were going to acquire a star player I would assume that Trammell, Kirby, or Marte would be the centerpiece of the deal.

As for Raleigh, he is untouchable because he has starting catcher potential and is showing it this offseason. Raleigh was excellent in the Fall Instructional League and is looking decent so far in Spring Training but has just 7 at bats.

He is also the Mariners’ only catcher in their top 30 prospects and they do not have much solid depth at the position behind Raleigh, Tom Murphy (Who will hit free agency after 2023), and Luis Torrens (Who has no minor league options left).

So, keeping Raleigh around to be the starting catcher of the future, or backup to a star free agent signing, makes sense. I need to see his bat in the majors before I would let him leave in a trade.