Seattle Mariners Recent Draft Choice Named Breakout Possibility By Baseball America

Selected in the second round of the MLB Draft last season out of the high school ranks, Ryan Sloan has turned heads this spring.

A detailed view of the Seattle Mariners armed forces day hat in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning at Truist Park in 2023. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Seattle Mariners' top pitching prospect Ryan Sloan has been named a breakout candidate at the minor league level by Baseball America.

Per the outlet on social media:

Ryan Sloan already had the ingredients that you’d want in a prep pitcher:

Workhorse frame
Plus fastball
Two secondaries
Solid command.

Throw in the @MsPlayerDev pitching lab, and he has breakout written all over him.

Ryan Sloan already had the ingredients that you’d want in a prep pitcher:

✅ Workhorse frame
✅ Plus fastball
✅ Two secondaries
✅ Solid command.

Throw in the @MsPlayerDev pitching lab, and he has breakout written all over him.https://t.co/rARaslGhWE pic.twitter.com/5matCCVrmu

— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) March 22, 2025

The Mariners have gone in cycles with their draft philosophy since Jerry Dipoto took over a decade ago. The M's have built their major league roster on pitching, including homegrown draft picks Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo and Bryce Miller, but they went to a hitting-first philosophy in the draft in 2022, selecting Cole Young, and the again in 2023 with Colt Emerson.

Now, with the major league pitching established and the minor league hitting coming along, the M'sare swinging back to pitching. They took switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cjtinje in the first-round in 2024, then took Sloan immediately following.

Sloan is expected to begin the season with Low-A Modesto, where the Nuts are coming off a second straight California League championship. Sloan participated in the "Spring Breakout Game" earlier this month, pitching one inning and giving up one earned run. He struck out two.

That was his first game action since getting drafted last season.

The Mariners are coming off a year in which they went 85-77 at the big-league level, missing the playoffs by one game.

The major league season opens up on Thursday, March 27.

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