Seattle Mariners Prospect Kaden Polcovich Named High-A West Player of the Week

Much of the attention directed towards the Seattle Mariners’ farm system this year has been centered around the likes of Jarred Kelenic, Julio Rodriguez and Noelvi Marte for good reason as those are three of the Mariners’ best prospects. But another Mariner prospect is bursting onto the scene lately, and that is Everett AquaSox infielder Kaden Polcovich who was named High-A West Player of the Week.

Drafted in the third round of the 2020 MLB Draft out of Oklahoma State, Polcovich erupted this past week, going 9 of 22 with FIVE home runs and eight RBI. His sensational week included a pair of multi-home run games and saw him boost his slash line from .236/.352/.382 to .270/.367/.532.

https://twitter.com/EverettAquaSox/status/1401983743552720899?s=20

Seattle Mariners infield prospect Kaden Polcovich has turned heads

Prior to the season, Kaden Polcovich was ranked the 24th best prospect in the Mariners system by MLB.com, but his impressive first professional season should give him a boost in the next update. There were questions about his ability to hit at the professional level considering he had just 64 at-bats at the Division I level, but early returns on Polcovich show that he can indeed swing the bat.

Despite his smaller stature at just 5-10, 185 pounds, Polcovich has flashed some pop and boasts a wrC+ of 152 and a wOBA of .405. He’s also versatile defensively, playing 14 games at second base, eight games in center field, and one at third base. Fangraphs doesn’t list defensive WAR for minor league players, but he’s committed just two errors to this point in his career.

Another thing to like about Polcovich early on is his ability to hit to all fields. He’s gone the opposite way 35.4 percent of the time, just a touch under his pull rate of 36.7 percent. A youngster with the ability to spray the ball all over the yard isn’t commonplace anymore and is an easy way to beat the shift.

He’s also a switch-hitter, something the Mariners don’t have much of in the organization. Cal Raleigh, Sam Haggerty, Ty Kelly, Joseph Rosa, and Cesar Izturis Jr. are the only other switch-hitters the Mariners have across all levels.

There’s obviously still a long way for Polcovich to go, and one week certainly doesn’t immediately elevate him into can’t miss prospect territory. But for a team with a major lack of middle infield prospects, Polcovich has certainly raised some eyebrows and impressed with his early professional results.