Seattle Mariners Could Reportedly Change Up Draft Philosophy in 2024
The Seattle Mariners could reportedly look at changing up their recent strategy when the MLB Draft kicks off next Sunday (July 14) night.
The M's have had a clear focus over the last few years of taking high school position players in top rounds (Harry Ford - 2021, Cole Young - 2022, and Colt Emerson - 2023), but this time around they could potentially look at high school pitching, which is an area they have stayed away from over the last several years.
The following comes from Scott Hunter, the Director of Amateur Scouting, via Seattle Sports 710:
“There’s a lot of high school pitching, which I know we haven’t really done much at the top of the draft, but it’s actually really in play for us because we have to consider every demographic in the draft,” Hunter said. “And we don’t want to make poor decisions, but we also want to make sure we’re giving our best ourselves the best chance to make a good decision. Sometimes the high school pitcher could be that guy.”
Seattle hasn’t taken a high school pitcher in the first round since Hunter was hired following the 2016 season.
They did take college pitching in the first round each of the 2018-2020 drafts with Logan Gilbert, George Kirby and Emerson Hancock getting selected. Those picks have largely worked out with Gilbert and Kirby becoming two of the top pitchers in the American League since debuting in 2021 and 2022, respectively.
The Mariners own the No. 15 pick in the first round of the upcoming draft, which takes place as part of the MLB All-Star Game festivities. The draft is a three-day event which wraps up on Tuesday, July 16.
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