2012 Seattle Mariners: Top 10 Prospects

TOP TEN

 

PROSPECTS

1. Jesus Montero, c
2. Taijuan Walker, rhp
3. Danny Hultzen, lhp
4. James Paxton, lhp
5. Nick Franklin, 2b/ss
6. Francisco Martinez, 3b
7. Chance Ruffin, rhp
8. Tom Wilhelmsen, rhp
9. Vinnie Catricala, 3b/1b/of
10. Phillips Castillo, of
BEST

 

TOOLS

Best Hitter for Average Jesus Montero
Best Power Hitter Jesus Montero
Best Strike Zone Discipline Vinnie Catricala
Fastest Baserunner Jamal Austin
Best Athlete Taijuan Walker
Best Fastball Taijuan Walker
Best Curveball James Paxton
Best Slider Chance Ruffin
Best Changeup Danny Hultzen
Best Control Danny Hultzen
Best Defensive Catcher Steve Baron
Best Defensive Infielder Gabriel Noriega
Best Infield Arm Carlos Triunfel
Best Defensive OF Dan Carroll
Best Outfield Arm Johermyn Chavez
PROJECTED 2015

 

LINEUP

Catcher Jesus Montero
First Base Justin Smoak
Second Base Dustin Ackley
Third Base Francisco Martinez
Shortstop Nick Franklin
Left Field Vinnie Catricala
Center Field Trayvon Robinson
Right Field Phillips Castillo
Designated Hitter Guillermo Pimentel
No. 1 Starter Felix Hernandez
No. 2 Starter Taijuan Walker
No. 3 Starter Danny Hultzen
No. 4 Starter James Paxton
No. 5 Starter Hector Noesi
Closer Chance Ruffin
TOP PROSPECTS

 

OF THE DECADE

Year Player, Pos 2011 Org
2003 Rafael Soriano, rhp Yankees
2004 Felix Hernandez, rhp Mariners
2005 Felix Hernandez, rhp Mariners
2006 Jeff Clement, c Pirates
2007 Adam Jones, of Orioles
2008 Jeff Clement, c Pirates
2009 Greg Halman, of Mariners
2010 Dustin Ackley, of/1b Mariners
2011 Dustin Ackley, 2b Mariners
TOP DRAFT PICKS

 

OF THE DECADE

Year Player, Pos 2011 Org
2002 John Mayberry, OF Phillies
2003 Adam Jones, SS/RHP Orioles
2004 Matt Tuiasosopo, SS Mariners
2005 Jeff Clement, C Pirates
2006 Brandon Morrow, RHP Blue Jays
2007 Phillippe Aumont, RHP Phillies
2008 Josh Fields, RHP Red Sox
2009 Dustin Ackley, OF Mariners
2010 Taijuan Walker, RHP Mariners
2011 Danny Hultzen, LHP Mariners
LARGEST BONUSES

 

IN CLUB HISTORY

Danny Hultzen, 2011 $6,350,000
Dustin Ackley, 2009 $6,000,000
Ichiro Suzuki, 2000 $5,000,000
Jeff Clement, 2005 $3,400,000
Victor Sanchez, 2011 $2,500,000
MARINERS

 

LINKS

Mariners Team Page
Mariners Top 10 Scouting Reports

 

image: http://legacy.baseballamerica.com/architecture/images/premium.gif

Premium

Last Year’s Mariners Top 10 Prospects
2011 Draft: Mariners (Basic Database)
2011 Draft: Mariners

 

image: http://legacy.baseballamerica.com/architecture/images/premium.gif

Premium (Advanced Database)

2011 Draft Report Cards: Seattle Mariners

 

image: http://legacy.baseballamerica.com/architecture/images/premium.gif

Premium

Complete Index of Top 10 Prospects
Pre-Order the 2012 Prospect Handbook

At first glance, the Mariners’ 2011 season wasn’t much better than the year before, which was arguably the worst in franchise history. They finished 67-95, the third-worst record in baseball, had a 17-game losing streak and wound up in the American League West cellar for the sixth time in eight years. Not coincidentally, the team drew fewer than 2 million fans for the first time in a full season since 1992.

Seattle’s leadership believes things are moving in the right direction, though. After bottoming out in 2010, the major league team showed enough promising signs last year that GM Jack Zduriencik earned a contract extension before his third season at the helm had ended.

Former GM Bill Bavasi left the Mariners saddled with bad contracts and a gutted farm system. Zduriencik has preached rebuilding through player development, and he has stayed true to the plan despite the pain involved. For all that went wrong in 2011, a major league-high 18 rookies did appear in Seattle.

The most notable were Dustin Ackley and Michael Pineda. In just his second pro season, Ackley took over at second base and hit .273/.348/.417. Pineda led all rookies with 173 strikeouts in 171 innings.

The rookie parade also featured intriguing storylines. Tom Wilhelmsen made it to the big leagues after quitting baseball in 2005 and taking four years off, spending time as a bartender and traveling. Steve Delabar worked as a substitute teacher after the Padres released him in 2008, then worked out for the Mariners in April, signed a minor league contract and reached Seattle in September. Alex Liddi became the first player born and raised in Italy to play in the majors.

The Mariners reaped benefits from their deals at the trade deadline, when they were among the most aggressive sellers in the game. They added big leaguers Casper Wells and Charlie Furbush and a pair of quality prospects in third baseman Francisco Martinez and righthander Chance Ruffin when they shipped Doug Fister and David Pauley to the Tigers. Seattle also landed major league outfielder Trayvon Robinson from the Dodgers and outfielder Chih-Hsien Chiang from the Red Sox in a three-way deal that sent Erik Bedard and former first-round pick Josh Fields to Boston.

The strength of the system now clearly lies with its pitching, a fact that became even more pronounced when Seattle used the No. 2 overall pick in the draft on polished lefthander Danny Hultzen. In November, the Mariners hired Padres director of player personnel Chris Gwynn as farm director. Replacing Pedro Grifol, who now will manage the club’s high Class A High Desert affiliate, Gwynn will oversee the development of Hultzen, Taijuan Walker, James Paxton and Co.

Seattle’s pitching riches allowed it to make a blockbuster deal to upgrade its woeful offense in January. The Mariners sent Pineda and hard-throwing 19-year-old righthander Jose Campos to the Yankees for Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi. Montero immediately becomes the most dangerous hitter in Seattle’s lineup, though it remains to be seen if he can remain a catcher.

Comments are closed.

Download our app

Read the newest magazine issue right on your phone