ESPN ranks Mariners’ core group 2nd only to Dodgers in MLB
Sep 8, 2025, 12:30 PM
The Seattle Mariners have prided themselves on being a draft and development team during the Jerry Dipoto era.
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According to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, they’ve done a pretty good job in delivering on that philosophy.
McDaniel recently released his annual MLB core rankings, which judges teams based on players who under contract through the next two full seasons. The list includes current big leaguers and top prospects expected to contribute in the majors by early 2027.
The Mariners came in at No. 2 in McDaniel’s rankings behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers. It’s a step up from Seattle’s fourth-place ranking a year ago.
The list broke players up into three tiers: elite (5+ WAR, or perennial All-Stars with MVP chances, plus (3-5 WAR) and solid (1.5-3 WAR, or lower-end starters and valuable role players).
The M’s were one of six clubs with multiple elite-tier players (Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez). Seattle had four more (Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Andrés Muñoz) in the plus tier and 17 in the solid tier.
Perhaps the best news for the Mariners from McDaniel’s rankings is that its two elite-tier players are under contract for the long-term. The extension Raleigh signed before this season will keep him in Seattle through at least 2030 and as long as 2031. Rodríguez’s deal has in the organization through at least 2029 and as long as 2034.
The M’s also have plus-tier members Kirby (2028), Woo (2029) and Muñoz (2028) past the 2027 cutoff date for McDaniel’s rankings.
Here’s what McDaniel said about Seattle.
Raleigh and (Bryan) Woo have taken big steps forward this season while the rest of Seattle’s top-end big league talent has, at least, held strong, if not improved a bit.
Similar to the Dodgers, the Mariners also have one of the top farm systems, ranking third. Seattle has eight top 100 prospects, and most of them will be in Double-A or Triple-A to start next season. That next wave of talent looks impactful and could affect the major league level in 2026. That would be timely, as J.P. Crawford and Randy Arozarena are set to hit free agency after 2026, while (Logan) Gilbert’s team control ends after 2027.
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