Mariners Lineup: Colt Emerson returns for game on ESPN

The Seattle Mariners will be on national TV on Thursday, and they’ll have their standout rookie and top prospect back in the lineup for it.

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Colt Emerson is playing shortstop and hitting ninth in the series finale in Baltimore, which is set for a 4 p.m. start on ESPN. The 20-year-old Emerson has missed the last three games after being scratched from Monday’s lineup due to back tightness.

While the TV broadcast for Thursday’s game is exclusively on ESPN, the Mariners Radio Network broadcast with Gary Hill Jr. and Shannon Drayer on the call remains free on Seattle Sports 710 AM, the Seattle Sports app and streaming on SeattleSports.com beginning at 3 p.m. with the pregame show. Click here for details on how to hear Mariners radio coverage depending on your location.

Here’s the full Mariners lineup for Thursday against the Orioles:

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Emerson is hitting .242 with four home runs, five doubles, a triple, nine runs scored and 10 RBIs in 19 MLB games.

The Mariners called Emerson up from Triple-A Tacoma last month after starting third baseman Brendan Donovan hit the injured list with a groin strain. The 2023 first-round MLB Draft pick came up through the minors as a shortstop, though, and has shifted over to his natural position with J.P. Crawford out of action with a right hand contusion suffered last Friday in Detroit. When Emerson landed on the bench with his back issues, the Mariners moved starting second baseman Cole Young to shortstop. The 22-year-old Young also came up as a shortstop in the minors after being drafted in the first round in 2022.

Patrick Wisdom has generally played third base since Crawford’s injury, but lefty-swinging utilityman Miles Mastrobuoni, who returned from the injured list on Wednesday, is playing third Thursday with the Orioles starting right-handed pitcher Kyle Bradish.

The Mariners, who won the first two games of the four-game series in Baltimore, can clinch a series win with a victory Thursday. Seattle holds a two-game lead in the AL West with a 36-33 record, while the Orioles are 10 games back in the AL East and 4 1/2 games out of a wild card spot with a 32-37 record.

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