Keith Law: Who Mariners could trade from No. 1 farm system for impact now

Jan 30, 2025, 11:30 AM | Updated: 4:06 pm

Seattle Sports

The Seattle Mariners currently have the top farm system in baseball, according to The Athletic’s Keith Law.

How M’s prospect Cole Young rediscovered his game in Double-A

Law unveiled his annual farm system rankings on Thursday morning, placing the Mariners at No. 1 ahead of the No. 2 Boston Red Sox and the No. 3 Los Angeles Dodgers.

Law has six Mariners in his Top 100 prospect rankings, all of whom are position players: shortstop Colt Emerson at No. 5, shortstop Felnin Celesten at No. 24, shortstop Cole Young at No. 45, outfielder Lazaro Montes at No. 66, catcher Harry Ford at No. 79 and second baseman Michael Arroyo at No. 81. Mariners outfield prospect Jonny Farmelo also was among Law’s next 15 prospects outside the Top 100.

However, most of Seattle’s top prospects are still a ways from reaching the majors. Of the Mariners’ top seven prospects, Young and Ford are the only one who have reached Double-A.

“As much as I love their system, I don’t think any of the best guys in the system are going to impact the club this year,” Law said Thursday during an appearance on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk. “I think it’s 2026 rather than 2025 that you’ll see some of them – Emerson, Cole Young, maybe Harry Ford depending on how this year goes for him. That’s when those guys will start bubbling up to the big leagues.

“There’s some lower-down guys who’ll show up in the big leagues this year. But in terms of the impact guys, I think they’re all a year, maybe a little more than a year away.”

However, Law said that doesn’t mean the Mariners can’t benefit from their top-ranked farm system in 2025.

“I can’t imagine they’re not gonna trade Cole Young at some point,” Law said. “Nothing against him, but they’ve got a billion middle infielders, and he’s kind of just less exciting. He doesn’t have the upside, the star potential of an Emerson or a Celesten. So he’s the guy I just think other teams would value in a trade.”

Mariners prospect Cole Young

Young, a 21-year-old left-handed-hitting middle infielder, is widely considered to be the closest of the Mariners’ top prospect to reaching the big leagues. Since being drafted as a first-round pick in 2022, Young has quickly risen through Seattle’s farm system while showcasing an advanced approach and overall hitting ability. He spent last season in Double-A Arkansas, slashing .271/.369/.390 with nine home runs and a .759 OPS in 124 games.

Law believes Young would give the Mariners the best chance of dealing from their farm system to acquire an impact bat for 2025. Just weeks ahead of spring training, Seattle still has a pressing need to bolster its lineup to pair with a stellar starting rotation that led the majors in ERA last season.

“They’ve gotta go get a bat,” Law said. “If they want to contend this year, they have to do something to boost the offense. (Young) is the name that’s always jumped out at me. It’s not that I’ve heard him in trade rumors. I’m just trying to take their front office perspective, looking at the system thinking who’s the guy who’s good but who we could part with and who other teams would also be willing to value.

“That’s the best way for them to get 2025 impact from the current farm is trading somebody – and he’s just the name who jumps out.”

Listen to the full conversation with The Athletic’s Keith Law at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.