Seattle Mariners Notebook: Prospect debut, latest on Julio

Colt Emerson, the Seattle Mariners’ first-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, made his spring debut on Wednesday.

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The 18-year-old shortstop came over from the minor league side to be a replacement player in a 9-7 loss to the Royals. Taking over for J.P. Crawford in the top of the fourth, Emerson went 0 for 2 with a walk in his first action with the major league campers.

“I thought his at-bats were really good,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “He handled himself great. I was curious to see him play. We will see him over here again before camp is over. He’s wired the right way. Really talented, just really young.”

Emerson found out the night before that he was getting the call up for the day, and he was all smiles on the field following the game.

“I didn’t mind the results,” he said. “I had a process coming in here. I did my process, it didn’t turn out the way we wanted it but we are here playing baseball. Couldn’t be anything but happy.”

From the press box, Emerson looked bigger than when seen at T-Mobile Park last season shortly after signing his contract. He told reporters that with training and diet, he has put on 20 pound.

“I’m where I should be,” he said. “I feel strong, I feel fast, I feel explosive. I just have to keep going through the season like that.”

The Mariners plan to rotate through a number of top prospects who were not invited to MLB camp as the spring goes on.

Seattle Mariners spring training notes

• Julio Rodríguez continued his work towards returning to the field after experiencing inflammation in his left hand earlier this week. Servais expects he will return to the lineup Saturday to make his 2024 spring debut.

• ICYMI: MLB commissioner Rob Manfred met with Mariners players for about 45 minutes this morning as part of his annual spring 30-team tour. Shortly after the meeting ended, catcher Cal Raleigh joined Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk and said the new jerseys were a topic that was raised in the session with the commissioner and that there could be resolution with the situation. For more, click here for an article that includes both full video and a podcast of the interview.

More on the M’s

• Mitch Garver: What makes each of Mariners’ five starters stand out
• Raleigh: Mariners hitters ‘want to start pulling our end of the bargain’
• How offseason for Mariners’ Ty France looked at Driveline
• Mariners announce video webcasts for some spring games
• Mariners infield defense under guru Perry Hill all starts at a wall

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