What college coach saw from Mariners’ 1st-round pick Ace Reese

The Seattle Mariners picked in Ace in the first round of the 2026 MLB Draft, only this time it wasn’t pitcher.

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Mississippi State third baseman Ace Reese went to the M’s with the 24th overall selection on Saturday, marking the first time Seattle has taken a college hitter with its first pick since selecting first baseman Evan White in the first round in 2017.

Reese’s head coach in his final season at Mississippi State, Brian O’Connor, shared some insight on Seattle’s first-round pick when he joined Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy on Monday.

“I think that’s what separates Ace Reese from a lot of other players. There’s a lot of talent out there, but a lot of times it’s the intangibles that set these guys apart for them to ultimately become big leaguers,” O’Connor said. “And the main thing that I would say about Ace Reese is he just loves to play the game of baseball. He plays the game with joy. He’s got a smile on his face. He’s got personality to him.”

Power when it counts

Reese is best known for his ability to slug. He hit 45 homers over his final two college seasons, including finishing 10th nationally with 24 this past season. Both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America ranked Reese’s power tool as 60-grade.

“The fans in Seattle are going to love him pulling home runs down that down first-base line in right field,” O’Connor said. “He’s certainly one of the best I’ve coached (in) over 30 years in college baseball, and Ace Reese is one of the top one or two power hitters that I’ve coached.”

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Some of the notable future big-league hitters coached by O’Connor include two-time All-Star Ryan Zimmerman, who hit 284 homers during his 16-year career, 2026 American League All-Star starting second baseman Ernie Clement from the Blue Jays and White Sox catcher Kyle Teel, a first-round pick in 2023 who hit eight homers in 78 games as a rookie in 2025.

O’Connor, a College World Series winner in 2015 and three-time national coach of the year, highlighted that Reese has a propensity for flashing his power in big moments. He homered in four of Mississippi State’s five games at the NCAA Tournament, including a go-ahead solo blast in the eighth inning of their loss to Georgia in the Super Regionals on June 6.

“He’s got a flair for the big moment, and I always think that that separates the players,” O’Connor said. “Does somebody hit home runs when you’re down by six runs or you’re up by six runs? Or does the guy hit them when it matters the most at the key moments in the game? And I go back and look at this year for Ace Reese, the majority of his home runs came when his team really, really needed it.”

ACE FREAKING REESE ♠️ https://t.co/zQnvoXs2KZ pic.twitter.com/9r7E24HmoF

— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) June 7, 2026

Leadership chops

O’Connor, who took over at the head coach of Mississippi State in June 2025 following 22 seasons at Virginia, spent just a season coaching Reese, but it was enough time to see he possessed strong leadership qualities.

“He’s just got that kind of personality that he assimilates really well with his teammates,” O’Connor said. “He’s not afraid to say the difficult things, in the right way though. And I’ve always believed that great leadership as a player starts with work, right? That’s the foundation of it, and he works but cares about his teammates, cares about the right things.”

Potential to rise quick

Reese spent the past two seasons playing in the powerhouse SEC, which is considered by many to be an equivalent to playing at the lower levels of the minors. Because of that, O’Connor believes Reese could make a fast rise to the majors.

“These premium college players move incredibly fast to the major leagues, and it’s because they they’ve been battle tested from 18 to 21 and they’re just a lot farther along and more prepared,” O’Conner said. “So that being said, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Ace Reese in a big league uniform in a very, very short time.”

Reese has another thing going for him, according to O’Conner.

“For players to reach this level, they’re all hard workers, which AC is. But it’s just the kind of boyish approach that he has to the game. He has fun with it,” he said. “It’s like every time he steps on the field, it’s like a Little League game for him. And I love that about him and I think that’s a quality that helps you endure your time through the minor leagues to ultimately arrive to be a big leaguer.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player in this story. Listen to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app. 

Seattle Mariners news and more

• How Mariners’ top pitching prospects fared in All-Star Futures Game
• 3 things we learned about Seattle Mariners 1st-round pick Ace Reese
• What USA skipper DeRosa saw from Mariners’ Cal Raleigh at WBC

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