Let’s take a look at how some of the new players are doing in their initial professional experience.
Starting at the top, first-round draft pick Danny Hultzen is not yet active. Hultzen is working out at the Mariners camp in Peoria, Ariz., and will not pitch in games until the fall – he is likely to see action in the Arizona Fall League.
Second-round pick Brad Miller signed two weeks ago and joined the Mariners’ low Single-A affiliate in Clinton, Iowa. After a week of games, the shortstop out of Clemson was batting .375 (9-for-24).
Miller is one of several 2011 draft picks who is now playing for Clinton.
Third-round pick Carter Capps has made three starts for the Lumber Kings, and the hard-throwing right-hander has struck out 18 batters in 142/3 innings while posting a 3.07 ERA.
Catching is an area of concern in the Mariners’ minor league system, so the club used several high draft picks on catchers.
John Hicks, a fourth-rounder out of the University of Virginia, signed quickly and already has more than 100 at-bats for Clinton. He’s hitting .308 with two home runs and 20 RBI in 32 games, and has thrown out 50 percent (17-of-34) of the attempted base stealers.
Mariners’ 12th-round pick Michael Dowd hasn’t hit real well in his pro debut, batting .224, but he has caught 43 percent of the base stealers at Everett.
Another new catcher is Jake Marder, a 16th-round pick who was a shortstop at the University Oregon. The Mariners are having him catch for high Single-A High Desert, and he is hitting .320 with a homer in his first 50 at-bats.
PCL UPDATE
In the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, three of the four division races are all but sewn up.
Sacramento and Round Rock have locked up playoff spots, and Reno was on the verge of eliminating Tacoma on Saturday night and clinching another.
Sacramento’s division title was its fifth in a row, and 10th in 12 years since joining the league. Round Rock is in the playoffs for its first time since 2006, and Reno will be appearing in the playoffs for the first time.
The American North Division is still unsettled, with Omaha nursing a four-game lead over Memphis with 10 games remaining going into Saturday’s games.
Mike Curto is the radio broadcaster for the Tacoma Rainiers.
