Potential M’s draft target spins gem at College World Series

Jun 22, 2025, 12:09 PM | Updated: 3:53 pm

Seattle Sports

LSU left-hander Kade Anderson, a potential option for the Seattle Mariners at No. 3 overall in next month’s MLB Draft, dazzled the college baseball world on Saturday evening.

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Anderson tossed a three-hit shutout in Game 1 of the best-of-three Men’s College World Series finals, carrying LSU to a 1-0 win over Coastal Carolina with a 130-pitch gem. The 6-foot-2 sophomore struck out 10 and worked around five walks to snap Coastal’s 26-game win streak and place the Tigers on the brink of a national title.

Anderson also had a brilliant outing against Arkansas in LSU’s College World Series opener last week. Over his two MCWS starts, the 20-year-old Madisonville, La., native racked up 17 strikeouts while allowing only one run and six hits in 16 innings.

For the season, Anderson has a 3.18 ERA with 180 strikeouts and 35 walks over 119 innings.

Kade Anderson in Game 1 of the MCWS Finals 😮‍💨

🔺 10 strikeouts
🔺 130 pitches
🔺 Complete Game
🔺 Shutout

INCREDIBLE ‼️ @LSUBaseball pic.twitter.com/hbZ3947soH

— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) June 22, 2025

In recent mock drafts, The Athletic’s Keith Law and CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa both projected the Mariners to take Anderson with the No. 3 overall pick. Other analysts have Anderson going in the top two picks. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel projects Anderson to the Washington Nationals at No. 1 overall, while MLB Pipeline’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis project him to the Los Angeles Angels at No. 2.

During a June 12 appearance on Seattle Sports’ Extra Innings, Mayo mentioned Anderson as possibility for the M’s. Mayo also brought up Florida State left-hander Jamie Arnold and Oregon State shortstop Aiva Arquette as other options. On MLB Pipeline’s draft prospect rankings, Anderson is No. 3, Arnold is No. 4 and Arquette is No. 6.

“Kade Anderson has kind of shot up to the top of the boards with the way he’s pitched this year,” Mayo told Extra Innings host Curtis Rogers. “It’s a combination of delivery and stuff and feel for pitching. The stuff has picked up. I think there’s more confidence in his ability to start than just about any other college arm in the class.

“I mean, Jamie Arnold from Florida State is right up there too. He’s probably also in the Mariners’ mix. And then Aiva Arquette from Oregon State is another guy. … (They) very well could be there for the Mariners to choose from come July.”

Listen to the full conversation with MLB Pipeline’s Jonathan Mayo at this link or in the audio player at the bottom of this story. Tune in to Extra Innings from 7 to 9 p.m. on Mariners off days throughout the MLB season.