It was a brutal week for the Rainiers, dropping five of six to the Salt Lake Bees on the road. This team has weathered a substantial amount of turnover as of late and is certainly down several of their core players, but with plenty of injury issues still present on the big league roster, it looks unlikely they’ll see substantial reinforcements anytime soon. As a Triple-A affiliate, such is life.
Seattle, WA
Seattle Mariners Minor League Roundup – Week Nine
It was unsurprisingly a tough week for most Rainiers this week after the thorough butt-kicking they took, but longtime Mariner farmhand Colin Davis had a fantastic showing offensively. Collecting 12 hits that included two homers, Davis raised his season OPS to .887 and has been one of the better performers for this ballclub. They need someone to step up and replace the offensive output Colt Emerson provided for this lineup, and so far, Davis has done an excellent job at doing just that.
The Travs continued their winning ways against Springfield this week, taking four of six from the pesky Redbirds. They maintain their spot atop the division and are in prime position for the first half crown.
Bouncing back from his first tough start last week, Kade Anderson was back to his usual self against the Cardinals, working 4.2 scoreless innings back home in DSP. The lefthander whiffed seven and walked two, allowing just three hits on the afternoon. Anderson’s season ERA sits at 1.63 and has a great chance to lead the Texas League for the rest of this 2026 season; the M’s head brass have indicated a promotion to Triple-A is unlikely at this point in time. Still just 21 years old, it’s fair to be cautious with his promotion schedule, though getting him closer to fans in the PNW would certainly be a big perk for the Rainier faithful.
With as much fanfare as the top names get on this roster, former 19th rounder Charlie Pagliarini has led the way for this Traveler offense and has been on an absolute tear during the month of May. An infielder out of Fairfield University, Pagliarini is a Three-True-Outcome type of bat that’s displayed impressive power this season, mashing his way to a season OPS of .892. Over the last several weeks, Pagliarini is slashing an absurd .392/.483/.716 with a ~20% K% and ~14% BB%, routinely hitting the ball incredibly hard and explaining away at least some part of his elevated BABIP. At 25, Pagliarini is a candidate for Triple-A this season and could be the latest in a long line of Mariner developmental successes.
The Frogs were unable to even the series in Sunday afternoon’s bout against the Dust Devils and ended up dropping the weekly slate by a score of four to two. The Frogs aren’t officially eliminated just yet, but with a middling record in a lopsided race, a first half title is looking tougher and tougher by the day.
Jonny Farmelo had a very impressive showing at the plate this week, managing a 6-18 series with an even 5:5 K/BB ratio. Farmelo has utilized his speed to get plenty of extra-base knocks this year, and though the stolen bases are coming inefficiently right now, they’ve begun to trend up as of late after a middling start to the season. Now with a season OPS at the .799 mark, Farmelo’s solid month of May is a great sign of positive things to come for the rest of the season.
Though his legendary hit streak was thwarted at 25 games this week, it’s worth reflecting on just how gaudy a month Felnin Celesten has been having. Playing excellent shortstop defense essentially every day, Celesten has managed a .409/.512/.667 slash line with as many strikeouts as walks. It’s unfortunate he was just a few games away from breaking the league’s all-time record, but his incredible achievements over the past few weeks deserve to be celebrated thoroughly. There have been very few months in the history of the Northwest League better than what he’s been able to accomplish in the month of May, and it seems likely he’ll be on his way to Arkansas once the first half comes to a close.
It was a weird week for the 66ers, as despite excellent offensive production throughout the entire series, the pitching was unable to hold up their end of the bargain, ultimately leading to a narrow series loss. For context, Inland Empire averaged over 8 runs a game this series, yet only managed to win two games. Peak minor league baseball.
Corner outfielder Aiden Taurek has been torching the baseball for the better part of a month at this point, and this past week was no exception. Collecting eight hits on the week, half of Taurek’s knocks went for extra bases and ultimately raised his monthly OPS to .995, a whisker shy of the coveted 1.000 barrier. Taurek was an OBP machine in his brief taste of pro ball last July, but now tapping into more power, Taurek looks like a very sneaky bat that could fly through this system over the next few seasons.
Another week, another excellent start for Mason Peters. One of the only bright spots for this pitching staff all week, Peters continued his reign of terror over the California League and looks a step ahead of his competition. Lowering his season ERA to 1.74, Peters’ three shutout innings featured just four baserunners all day, and he matched that total with four punchouts of his own. He’ll be on the shortlist for Everett this summer.
In case you missed it, Baseball America ($) published a piece featuring Yorger Bautista as a major breakout candidate this season, as his batted ball metrics and swing decisions have ascended several grades on the 20-80 scale through the early goings of this season. Accomplishing this without sacrificing any bit of power whatsoever, Bautista has the underlying metrics that scream a big jump in production is coming. He could be a real threat to see the California League some time this summer and has the tools to be a mainstay on top 100 prospect lists for years to come.