The Seattle Mariners will call up 21-year-old outfielder, Jarred Kelenic to make his Major League debut tonight in the first game of their series against Cleveland.
Kelenic is the Mariners’ number-one prospect in their system and the fourth-ranked prospect in all of baseball. He was drafted sixth overall in the 2018 draft by the New York Mets. However, Kelenic was shipped to the Mariners in the blockbuster trade that brought Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz to the Mets.
Going into the 2018 draft, Kelenic was the top-ranked high school bat and has more than lived up to that praise. In his three minor league seasons, Kelenic appeared in 178 games, with a slash of .293/.369/.521 in 775 PA. Kelenic also hit 31 home runs and 115 RBIs during that time. In Triple-A Tacoma this year, he slashed .370/.414/.630 with two home runs and five RBIs in six games.
With his advanced hitting approach, Kelenic should have no problem transitioning to the major leagues. However, he will have a tough challenge in his debut as he will be going against rising-star Zach Plesac of the Cleveland Indians.
Kelenic is expected to become the team’s primary left fielder. While he played the majority of his minor league career as a center fielder, the rise of Kyle Lewis will push him to a corner spot. With his arm strength and speed being plus tools, we could likely see the Mariners try and push him to center as he continues his progression as a player.
The Mariners have been impressed with the development of his power. If he continues to develop some pop in his bat, he will become the ultimate five-tool player. While he is still only 21-years-old, the expectations are very high in Seattle for Kelenic.
Kelenic made headlines this offseason for something that was not his fault. Then Mariners President and CEO, Kevin Mather basically admitted that the team was manipulating Kelenic’s service time. Mather stated that the team offered Kelenic an extension and that he would be immediately called up if the two sides could agree. Kelenic did not sign and because he was not on the major league roster on or before April 15th of this year, he will not gain one full year of service time.
Not only will the Mariners be welcoming their top-ranked prospect, but they will also be calling up top pitching prospect Logan Gilbert to start his first career game. Gilbert is the 43rd ranked prospect in baseball. He made his Triple-A debut last Friday. He pitched five innings allowing only one run and struck out five batters.
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Main Image Credit: Embed from Getty Images
