Mariners’ Cole Young flexes power with 2-homer day

After a slow start this spring, Seattle Mariners second baseman Cole Young bounced back in a major way with two home runs in Friday’s Cactus League game against the Texas Rangers.

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In the third inning, the 22-year-old Young got a 1-1 changeup at the bottom of the zone from MLB right-hander Jack Leiter and pulled it over the right-field fence at Surprise Stadium for a solo shot that registered a 108 mph exit velocity.

Watch it fly, Cole! #TridentsUp pic.twitter.com/AVADK6xIZ1

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) March 6, 2026

And in the sixth, Young jumped on a first-pitch fastball from minor-league right-hander Ben Anderson and launched it over the right-field fence against for a two-run homer.

That’s another dinger for Cole Young! #TridentsUp pic.twitter.com/vjISQx6M00

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) March 6, 2026

Young finished 2 for 4 at the plate. Entering the day, he’d gone just 2 of 15 over his first seven Cactus League games – although he did hit a 442-foot homer last Sunday.

Young, a 2022 first-round draft pick who made his MLB debut last May, is in the mix to break camp as Seattle’s opening day second baseman.

As a rookie last season, Young slashed .211/.302/.305 with four homers in 77 games. He delivered a walkoff RBI fielder’s choice in his MLB debut and later had a walkoff single against the Houston Astros. He also showcased impressive power for his 5-foot-10, 180-pound frame when he blasted a 456-foot home run into the second deck in right field at T-Mobile Park.

However, Young struggled down the stretch, hitting just 3 of 51 from mid-August through the end of the regular season.

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