Mariners 3rd-round draft pick belongs on radar as team's next great pitching project

As great as they've been, the Mariners' one-of-a-kind homegrown group of starting pitchers won't last forever. Barring a possible extension, Logan Gilbert will be the first to hit free agency in 2028 with George Kirby following in 2029 and Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo in 2030. Though talented, Seattle doesn't seem particularly worried about the idea of watching these pitchers walk away. They're already slated to have Kade Anderson on the Opening Day roster and have more help on the way.

Ryan Sloan and Mason Peters are just a few years away from making their debuts and Seattle is still loading up on arm talent from the draft. According to some, the organization's 2026 class may already include the next great franchise arm.

Third-round pick Nathan Taylor is already profiling as an elite pitching prospect for Seattle

Nathan Taylor was drafted out of the University of Cincinnati, where he had a strong collegiate career. After a rocky first year, he showed significant improvement and posted a 3.60 ERA over 90 innings in his final season with the Bearcats. He's already ranked as Seattle's No. 17 prospect and after taking a closer look at what he has to offer, it's no surprise why.

Baseball America published a report card for the Mariners' most recent draft class and awarded Taylor with two accolades: best fastball and best secondary pitch. Though his average velocity sits in the low-90s, he has the ability to get up to 97 mph if needed but more importantly, his extension of more than seven feet gives hitters less time to react than the velocity may lead you to believe. This would put him in roughly the 95th percentile for the metric and should allow his pitches to outperform their intrinsic characteristics.

The secondary pitch that excited Baseball America so much was the slider, a pitch that he threw more than his fastball. Sitting in the mid-80s, its impressive movement makes it a difficult pitch to hit and had a 44% whiff rate in final collegiate season. It has been his primary weapon during his career and is comfortably his highest-rated pitch.

With a 6-foot-5, 230-pound frame, it's easy to see that Taylor has plenty of physical potential. Given the right mechanical adjustments, there's a good chance his velocity and arsenal could both take significant steps forward. If the past few years have been any indication, there are few organizations that are better at refining uncut gems like him.

After an immensely disappointing 2026, it may take a little while before the Mariners return to playoff contention, especially if they have a sleepy offseason. Nonetheless, be it next year or some other season down the line, Seattle is slowly but surely working their way back to competitive relevance, one homegrown piece at a time.

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