2 The Bigs

By Sal Corso:

As we called out in our last Pick 2 segment, scouts LOVE two positions: centerfield and shortstop.

The Mariners clearly don’t mind stacking up their system with prospects who play the latter. Funny enough, we have already covered the other top shortstop in Seattle, and the No. 1 team prospect according to MLB.com in Cole Young. Seattle grabbed him with the 21^st overall pick in 2022. One year and a single pick later, the Mariners drafted shortstop Colt Emerson with the 22^nd overall pick.

That’s the third year in a row that the Mariners have selected a high school bat with their first round pick (Harry Ford, Cole Young, and Emerson).

The Ohio native has a ton of accolades under his belt for somebody who just turned 18-years-old:

1. Gatorade High School State Player of the Year (Ohio)
2. US National Team 18 & Under World Cup Champion
3. All-State wide receiver as a senior in high school
4. Top-15 national ranking out of high school

It’s a nice start for the kid. He hit .446 at the plate with a 1.013 slugging percentage. Yes, you read that right. I didn’t say a 1.013 OPS, I said SLUGGING percentage.

Now let’s look at his pro debut. Colt played 24 games across Rookie and Single-A-ball. Either he had a hot two weeks, or Rookie ball was a joke for him. He hit .536/.786/1.415 in eight games and was sent right up to Single-A playing for possibly the best minor league team name, the Modesto Nuts.

“Regression” may not be the best word, but considering the stats he put up in high school and then Rookie ball, there’s really no way to go up from there.

He still impressed with a .302/.444/.800 line. Colt hits the ball to all fields. He only pulled the ball 25 percent of the time during that 24-game streak. He hits the ball up-the-middle, and hard. His .374 average and .969 OPS ranked first amongst all shortstops in rookie or Single-A last year. That’s good for second among all minor league shortstops, only trailing Zach Neto. His 37 percent opposite field contact rate was fourth amongst that same grouping.

You can understand all of the stats listed, when you see his swing above. It’s both smooth and concentrated. Meanwhile, his eyes follow the ball right into the bat. He’s a lefty-shortstop who drives the ball to the opposite field with consistency. Someone, (and by someone, I mean me) could say his swing looks Jimmy Rollins-esque?

Mariners fans can dream. What’s more of a reality, is that Colt’s body is growing into producing some more power. Some scouts say he has 20-plus homerun potential. If you’ve read any 2TheBigs profiles, you know Colt is the ideal prospect for us. Contact-rate and hard-hit rate are way more important in the early stages of development than power statistics are. At 195 lbs., he has time to build muscle and grow.

2024 is a big year for Emerson. He’ll get his first full year in the pros and likely see some time in Double-A. I can officially say I’m intrigued. So intrigued that I’m going to give him a 2TB potential score above his organization-mate, Cole Young.

Emerson’s First Bowman Auto comes in the new 2023 Bowman Draft set that we highlighted here. The box is flat out overpriced. Colt is as well, with his base autograph going for $135-$170. Not to a fault of his own.

I am writing this article three weeks after the set was released. Single card sales always sell for peak values around release dates. For example, top-10 MLB prospect and sixth overall pick in the 2021 draft, Jordan Lawlar is currently going for the same value ($200 range for a raw refractor autograph). My advice, wait a few weeks or months, and then pick some up. I definitely will.