Seattle, WA
Seattle Mariners farm system report: 7 early-season standouts
We’re a little over a month into the minor league season, which makes it a good time to take a glance at the Seattle Mariners’ farm system. Here’s a look at seven Mariners minor leaguers who are off to strong starts.
Mariners RHP Bryan Woo to start Friday in return from injured list
OF Lazaro Montes (age 19, Low-A Modesto)
Montes, the No. 86 overall prospect in Baseball America’s Top 100, has long drawn comparisons to Houston Astros slugger and fellow Cuban native Yordan Álvarez. They both have massive frames, elite raw power and similar left-handed swings that were honed by the same hitting instructor.
The 6-foot-4 Montes is on an Álvarez-like tear right now, with five home runs in his past 11 games. He is slashing .327/.432/.564 in 27 games this season, with six homers, one triple, six doubles and a .995 OPS that ranks third in the California League. This comes on the heels of a strong stateside debut last year, when he hit 13 homers and posted a 1.001 OPS in 70 games between the Arizona Complex League and Modesto.
Perhaps the most encouraging sign? Montes’ strikeout rate continues to drop, even as he climbs the minor league ladder. After a concerning 33.2% strikeout rate during his 2022 pro debut in the Dominican Summer League, he cut it to 25.2% last season and just 14.4% so far this year.
“A magical [Lazaro] Montes moment once again!”
The @Mariners‘ No. 4 prospect launches a grand slam for the @ModestoNuts. pic.twitter.com/rJkTBKEECR
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 6, 2024
1B Tyler Locklear (age 23, Double-A Arkansas)
Locklear, a 2022 second-round draft pick who set the single-season home-run record at Virginia Commonwealth, continues to steadily produce at the plate. The muscular 6-foot-2 right-handed slugger is slashing .298/.421/.500 with four homers and nine doubles in 28 games this season. His .921 OPS ranks seventh in the Texas League. He also had an impressive showing in major league spring training, hitting .320 with one homer and three doubles in 25 at-bats. In his three pro seasons, Locklear has posted a .902 OPS with 24 homers in 144 games. Just about the only thing that’s slowed him down was a hit by pitch last season that broke a bone in his hand and sidelined him for two months.
MAY THE FOURTH (HOME RUN) BE WITH YOU, TYLER LOCKLEAR ‼️
2-RUN BLAST PUTS THE TRAVS UP 4-0 IN THE B3! pic.twitter.com/PQ6lbwHPj6
— Arkansas Travelers (@ARTravs) May 5, 2024
RHP Logan Evans (age 22, Double-A Arkansas)
Evans, a 12th-round draft pick out of the University of Pittsburgh last summer, might be the latest revelation in the Mariners’ pitching development pipeline. The 6-foot-4 right-hander had an underwhelming college career at Pitt, but has added significant velocity and morphed into one of Seattle’s top pitching prospects since entering the system. He was touching 99 mph in spring training and his six-pitch mix includes a nasty sweeper that has massive horizontal break. The results are showing in Arkansas, where he has posted a Texas League-leading 1.57 ERA with 23 strikeouts and 11 walks in 28 2/3 innings this season. In his latest start on May 4, he threw six shutout innings of one-hit ball with nine strikeouts and no walks.
Logan Evans.
The @MsPlayerDev product now ranks No. 7 in Seattle’s system 👀
He’s one of 15 notable additions to Top 30s: https://t.co/JX5PtsbzkT pic.twitter.com/ljpYFOv7ri
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) May 7, 2024
LHP Jhonathan Díaz (age 27, Triple-A Tacoma)
Díaz signed a minor league contract with the Mariners in February after spending his previous eight pro seasons in the Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Angels organizations. The 6-foot left-handed starter made his major league debut with the Angels in 2021 and pitched 35 1/3 innings at the MLB level with them over the past three seasons. He has a 2.37 ERA in 38 innings with Tacoma this season, while totaling 42 strikeouts and just eight walks in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He is near the top of the PCL leaderboard in several categories, ranking second in ERA, second in WHIP (0.97), second in strikeout rate (27.1%) and first in walk rate (5.2%).
IF/OF Michael Chavis (age 28, Triple-A Tacoma)
Chavis, a 2014 first-round draft pick by the Boston Red Sox, made his major league debut in 2019 and has played in 357 MLB games with three teams over the past five seasons. He signed a minor league contract with the Mariners in January and is off to a strong start in Tacoma, slashing .303/.394/.532 with six homers, one triple, five doubles and a .926 OPS in 31 games. At the MLB level, he has a career .238/.283/.401 slash line and 42 homers. He spent last season with the Washington Nationals, hitting .242 with two homers in 48 games.
IF/OF Caleb Cali (age 23, Low-A Modesto)
Considering his name, it’s appropriate that Cali was the California League Player of the Month in April. A 16th-round draft pick out of Arkansas last summer, Cali is slashing .360/.473/.584 with two homers, two triples, 10 doubles and a 1.057 OPS in 23 games during a scorching full-season debut. The 6-foot-3, 230-pounder leads the California League in batting average by 33 points, slugging percentage by 20 points and OPS by 53 points.
Power Cali 💪
There’s a reason @Caleb_Cali won April’s California League Player of the Month. #TridentsUp pic.twitter.com/avQlZchruN
— Mariners Player Development (@MsPlayerDev) May 3, 2024
RHP Will Schomberg (age 23, Low-A Modesto)
Schomberg signed a minor league contract with the Mariners last summer as an undrafted free agent out of Davidson. The 5-foot-10 right-hander has burst onto the scene in his full-season debut, posting a 2.48 ERA with 36 strikeouts and 15 walks in 29 innings. Over his past two starts, he has pitched 11 scoreless innings and totaled 16 strikeouts while allowing just two hits and two walks. He leads the California League with a .158 opponents’ batting average and ranks fourth with a 30% strikeout rate.
Masterful pitching performance from Will Schomberg.
6 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 10 K pic.twitter.com/AAIIrSjWkD
— Mariners Player Development (@MsPlayerDev) May 3, 2024
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SEATTLE, Wash. – There were at least 200 protesters that showed up in Seattle Wednesday night in what speakers called an “emergency protest” in response to the fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis Wednesday.
“We want justice, we want peace, we want justice, we want peace, we want ICE off our streets, we want ice off our streets…” they chanted.
Seattle protesters outside the Federal Building following a fatal shooting by ICE agents in Minneapolis. (FOX 13 Seattle)
After listening to speakers, protesters went on the march and circled the blocks near the Federal Building in Seattle.
Though the protest was organized on short notice, some protesters say they were compelled to come out Wednesday with urgency because they felt what happened in Minneapolis was a bridge too far.
What they’re saying:
“ICE has gone too far. We’ve felt this, we’ve known this for a long time. There have been people protesting,” said Raleigh Watts, protesting the ICE shooting. “We’ve been hearing the news. Today I came out because when I heard, it was my sign that a line has been crossed that I can’t stand anymore. So, I’ve come to say, ‘No ICE, you’ve gone too far’.”
“A lot of people out here are really, really angry, confused and sad, but I think we have what it takes to fight back,” said Sophia Van Beek, protesting the MN ICE shooting. “I’m certain there are going to be actions.”
Sophia says in order to make a difference, protesters need to create an actionable political program.
Seattle protest on fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis
Members of law enforcement were in the area and helped to block off the streets during the protest and march. There were no clashes during this protest and it wrapped up at around 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
“I am proud of all the hundreds of people who have turned out tonight at the federal building in Seattle. I’m proud of the people who are in Tacoma that are protesting at the ice detention center and in Minneapolis and in cities across the country. This is not okay for ICE to kill somebody,” said Watts.
What’s next:
Some people at Wednesday’s demonstration said they were planning to organize more protests in the coming weeks.
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The Source: Information in this story came from original FOX 13 Seattle reporting and interviews.
SEATTLE — Seattle activists are rallying to demand justice on Wednesday following the fatal shooting of a woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Minneapolis.
The Seattle Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (SAARPR) and Seattle Against War (SAW) have organized an emergency press conference to protest the incident.
The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building in Seattle.
Woman killed by ICE officers in Minneapolis; Mayor tells ICE to ‘get the f***’ out
The shooting occurred on Wednesday morning at the corner of 34th and Portland Avenue in Minneapolis. According to preliminary information, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said, the woman was sitting in her vehicle blocking the roadway when a federal law enforcement officer approached on foot. When the vehicle began to drive away, at least two shots were fired, and the vehicle crashed on the side of the road.
In response, emergency protests have erupted in Minneapolis and are expected to continue through Jan. 11.
The Seattle groups are joining the Legalization 4 All Network in calling for an immediate end to ICE raids and mass deportations.
They are also demanding justice and accountability for the woman who was killed, including the release of the name of the ICE agent involved and the names of all agents participating in such operations.
This is a developing story; check back for updates.
This month’s West Seattle Art Walk on Thursday will feature a type of art that’s not often seen during the monthly event – quilt art! We received the photos and announcement this afternoon from Jill Boone:
The Contemporary QuiltArt Association is featured at Windermere in the Junction this Thursday for the Art Walk. We are doing a big inventory reduction sale and handmade, creative fiber art pieces will be available in a huge price range. We will have handmade cards for $5/ each and matted art that are 5×7 and 12 x 12 pieces from $10 to $200. In addition, four of our member artists will have their art quilts for sale and they are stunning! We hope people will come shop and also stop in to talk with some of our members about CQA, as we are a vibrant and welcoming group of artists – beginners to world renowned!
Windermere is at 4526 California SW; this show is set for 5-8 pm Thursday (January 8). See the full list/map of this month’s Art Walk venues by going here!
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