With their 1st pick Mariners Draft Switch Pitching College Arm, Jurrangelo Cijntje

The Mariners have had the 14th pick four different times in franchise history, but never the 15th until tonight. That list includes Tino Martinez, Ron Villone, Jason Varitek, and newly minted All Star Logan Gilbert. It's fair to say things have gone well historically for the M's when they have a first rounder in the 14-15 range. With the 15th pick tonight, the Mariners have selected a rare talent, switch pitching Jurrangelo Cijntje from Mississippi State.

Jurrangelo went 8-2 with a 3.67 ERA with 113K in 16 starts with the Bulldogs in 2024. He's a strong pitcher from the right side, throwing 95-96 MPH with a plus slider, while he can change gloves and throw in the low nineties from the left side the next inning if he wishes. Cjintje indicated during the MLB draft that he would like to continue throwing from both sides, while senior director of amateur scouting Scott Hunter expressed that it would be Jurrangelo's choice to give the switch pitching a shot in pro ball.

We are trilled to add Jurrangelo to our organization, a player we scouted since his days as a high school prospect, Jurrangelo is a unique talent who throws with both arms that will thrive in our pitching development program.

The 21 year old was born in the Netherlands, where his father, Mechangelo, was a pro ball player. Cijntje grew up in Curacao before moving to Florida at 16 years old. He played high school ball at Champagnat Catholic High, and committed to Mississippi St. Scott and the Mariners continued their recent tradition of favoring college arms, their current MLB staff includes four homegrown college arms drafted in the last several years.

The only starter on the roster that's not a homegrown college arm is Luis Castillo, and that includes Emerson Hancock as well. I asked Scott about the repertoire, and which of Jurrangelo's pitches gets the organization excited. He mentioned the rising fastball in the mid nineties, as well as the plus slider. He also mentioned the curveball, and the changeup, which has nice depth but hasn't been used as frequently as the rest of mix.

During the media time with Cijntje after the draft, I asked Jurrangelo “Is there a message or mindset that you’ve taken from your father as a pro ball player?” He responded, "you always have to have the mindset of being the best player on the field, and you can beat anybody, my father taught me that.” Kramer and a few others also asked about his switch pitching, velocity, etc. He wants to continue developing from the left side, but did confirm that he throws harder from the right side. Jurrangelo said his best pitch from the right side is either his slider of his changeup, but from the left side it is definitely his slider. He hasn't been to Seattle yet, but he's excited to get here soon and visit before officially playing for the big league club.

From a comp perspective, Jurrangelo has been compared quite a bit to Marcus Stroman from the right side due to his smaller frame (5'11", 200), though some scouts have fought the comparison. In fact, he confirmed himself that enjoys the comparison to Stro and grew up watching him. Hunter talked about the upside of the pick, and how there is more ceiling than what you might typically expect from some college arms.

Obviously, we all want to see Jurrangelo continue to switch pitch, since the rarity of the feat itself makes him must watch baseball. Scott advised that the left/right start decisions could be based predominantly from a developmental standpoint rather than day to day matchups etc., at least before they decide to stick to one glove (if they do). Someone like Shohei Ohtani should give Mariners fans hope, look at how he's been able to defy scouting reports, and traditional wisdom by doing both. Either way, this is an exciting pick at the right time for this organization.

Obviously, the jury is out, but I expect Cijntje to slot ahead of Michael Morales as the #1 pitching prospect in the Mariner’s org. Considering Morales is ranked #11 overall in Seattle’s system by MLB.com, we can conservatively say the Mariners needed to add some pitching in this draft. Since Jurrangelo has the 60-grade fastball and plus slider from the right side, he grades at least as a 50 FV prospect right now, if not 55. I have him around Tai Peete, perhaps even ahead of both Peete and Farmelo. We’ll see what the guys at Baseball America, Prospectus, and MLB have to say this week.