Seattle Mariners Top Prospect and Trade Possibility Dealing with Injury

Seattle Mariners top prospect Harry Ford, who is well-regarded by both Baseball America and MLB.com, was scratched from his start at Double-A Arkansas on Tuesday night. Here's the latest:

Great Britain catcher Harry Ford slides into second base with a double in the second inning against Mexico during the World Baseball Classic at Chase Field in 2023. / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Seattle Mariners top prospect Harry Ford was scratched from his game at Double-A Arkansas because of injury.

The report came from Daniel Kramer of MLB.com, who spoke with M's general manager Justin Hollander via text:

Harry Ford was scratched tonight at Double-A Arkansas due to a back spasm that he experienced during pregame drills and “should be fine in a day or two,” Mariners GM Justin Hollander just shared via text.

Harry Ford was scratched tonight at Double-A Arkansas due to a back spasm that he experienced during pregame drills and “should be fine in a day or two,” Mariners GM Justin Hollander just shared via text.

— Daniel Kramer (@DKramer_) July 10, 2024

It's certainly good to hear that Ford is expected to be OK relatively quickly, but injuries among prospects are always worth monitoring. First off, Ford is the No. 2 prospect in the organization (per MLB.com) and is a Top 30 prospect in all of baseball by the same outlet. The Mariners want him playing and playing well so he can matriculate to the big leagues as quickly as possible.

Furthermore, given Ford's prospect status, he'd also be a desirable trade piece for another organization at the upcoming trade deadline. His trade value will not be as high if another team thinks that he is hurt.

Drafted in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft, Ford is hitting .253 at Arkansas this year. He's got five homers, 30 RBI and a .376 on-base percentage. He has played catcher all year but recently appeared in left field.

The following comes from a portion of his MLB.com prospect profile:

The right-handed-hitting backstop will be just 21 for the entirety of the 2024 season and has already shown some serious offensive ability. He has a very advanced approach at the plate, finishing third among all Minor League hitters in 2023 with 103 walks. There’s at least above-average power he’s still learning to tap into, and he can drive the ball to all fields. He’s a plus runner who swiped 47 bags over his first two full seasons of pro ball, and he has 20-20 potential at the highest level.

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