Drayer: The reasons top M’s prospect Colt Emerson is a spring standout

You see it every spring. Young prospects in their first big league camp often will start out hot at the plate creating a little buzz around them. As camp goes on, however, they start to move in the opposite direction as more experienced pitchers get more innings under their belts and start to look more like their regular season selves.

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Top Seattle Mariners prospect Colt Emerson appears to have not received that memo as his bat is heating up at the midpoint. In his last four games, Emerson has put together a 14-pitch at-bat, hit a home run with a 112 mph exit velocity, and followed it up with a 104 mph lineout and 100 mph double in his two plate appearances Sunday in an 8-1 Mariners win over the Rockies.

Just what are we seeing with Emerson of late? According to the 19-year-old shortstop, who is the top-ranked Mariners prospect per both Baseball America (No. 16 overall) and MLB Pipeline (No. 20), probably not the whole picture.

“It kind of just reassured my process is good,” Emerson said of his recent success at the plate. “I don’t read too much into the results, things just kind of worked out and played into it. I feel comfortable, I know the results haven’t really shown but I am swinging at the right pitches and I am on top of fastballs. I’m in a great spot, I’m comfortable at the plate. That’s all I care about at this point.”

Despite being one of the youngest players in Mariners camp, there is not a hint of being overwhelmed with Emerson. Not his surroundings, not what he is seeing at the plate. With just one full minor league season behind him, his learning curve has been steep, with a big boost given by his chance to continue playing this fall.

“I credit that to the (Arizona) Fall League,” Emerson said when asked if he had seen anything in Cactus League play he hadn’t seen before. “Just getting that great opportunity to compete against those guys, I saw a lot of stuff I was not used to and I handled that well. That just gave me a lot of confidence through preparation for spring training and just coming in knowing that I have seen everything I could possibly see, I could walk in being confident. It’s been great.”

Mariners officials have raved about Emerson’s maturity, which is something manager Dan Wilson has seen since Day 1 of camp.

“He’s got that mental capacity for the game that is beyond his years,” Wilson said. “He’s resilient, he keeps his confidence, he’s true to who he is and that shows.”

Who Emerson is is a hitter who believes he’s best when he keeps things simple with his swing and approach. Be on time for the fastball, stay inside the ball, and realize pitchers are human – that no matter what the name or number is on their backs, they all make mistakes.

“That’s the one I’m looking for, and knowing you are probably going to get one of those in an at-bat or in the day, you just can’t miss it,” Emerson said of the fastball. “So I am geared up for that pitch, and the pitcher is ultimately going to throw it over the plate and I’m going to be ready to hit it.”

It was that pitch he was looking for in the 14-pitch at-bat that ended with veteran Colorado starter German Marquez threw a 97 mph fastball up and in that grazed Emerson’s jersey on March 2. In talking about that at-bat and others, the word “compete” comes out of Emerson’s mouth repeatedly. It’s a word Wilson has used in nearly every postgame press conference, clearly a stamp he wants the Mariners to put on their game. It’s a word that cannot be quantified and can be tough to define, but Emerson has a clear picture of what it means to him.

“Just being a hard out,” he said. “Being a guy that comes to the plate and the pitcher is like, “(sigh) I don’t want to face this guy right now. Being one of those guys that I guess diminishes confidence in the other team when you are up to bat. When you are in a tough situation and you come up to the plate, you are the guy that nobody wants to come to the plate. That’s a good feeling and that’s what it means to be a competitor for me.”

The manager he hopes to play for sooner than later seems to see the whole picture.

“He’s the type of player that you can see the heart he plays with,” Wilson said. “When you see that grittiness, you can have at-bats like he’s had and not have success, but then you are able to take the confidence in that even so and turn it into something big? Yesterday we saw that happen (with Emerson’s home run). The at-bat he had over at Colorado, that was exceptional. And you know it’s there. He will continue to put those at-bats back-to-back, and for a young player like he is to do that, that’s something pretty special. And he certainly has a good handle on what mentally you need to do to be successful at this level.”

The success of prospects in spring training is always a fun story, with most ending as the veterans hit their stride, the eventual separation of talent becomes pronounced, and the realization hits of just where they are in their young careers. A few others end how I suspect this one will, however: with the young player leaving you hungry for more.

Emerson won’t make the team out of spring training and it is highly unlikely we see him in Seattle this season, but down here in Arizona, it is easy to see why there is excitement in and out of the Mariners organization about Emerson. And it leaves you wondering just when we do see him up north.

More on the Seattle Mariners

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• MLB insider Morosi believes Mariners OF could be one of MLB’s best
• Mariners’ Andrés Muñoz lands on ESPN list for spring buzz
• Seattle Mariners Analyst: J.P. Crawford prime bounceback candidate

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