February 27, 2026 • 19 mins
Daniel Kramer from MLB.com joins Dick Fain and Hugh Millen to talk about the latest from Mariners Spring Training in Peoria, Arizona, including Bryce Miller, rookie Kade Anderson going tomorrow, plus Cole Young and Colt Emerson’s battle at second base.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Duke of Duke Seafood. Lady, you know that
this hour of Softy and Dick on your home for
the Huskies and Kraken is proudly brought to you by
Duke Seafood. Why not make it at Duke's night Tonight
reserve table today at Dukeseafood dot com on Sports Radio
ninety three point three. Kjar all right, we talked nothing
but football so far.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
We got to switch it up. We need to change up.
No pun intended, maybe there was. Daniel Kramer joins us
from Peoria, covers the Mariagers for MLB dot Com.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Hi Daniel, how are you?
Speaker 4 (00:32):
I'm good? And speaking of change ups, we're about to
watch Luis Castillo take them ound.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
There we go. Yeah, nighttime baseball at Praia.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
Yeah, yeah, first one of the season. So we do
like the day games down here from time to time.
It kind of breaks up the extremely early mornings and
the long days and it's just like an easier pace
when we do get the occasional one. But yeah, excited
to see the rocket back out there. And we've got
a few other regulars in the lineup as well, so
(01:02):
we'll get on here shortly.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
Well, let's let's start. Since you mentioned castile, let's start
with the starting pitching. And I saw the numbers from
Bryce Miller, the velocity numbers in his last start, and
I read online they were being compared to last year's
averages and they were a good three four miles an
hour faster than what we saw the averages for last
year from Bryce Miller.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
So to your eyes, what did you see from Bryce?
Speaker 4 (01:27):
Yeah? I saw in general, I've seen more confidence and
conviction from Bryce over the past couple of weeks. He
showed up just feeling really good, which is extremely encouraging
for both him and the Mariners, given all the stepbacks
and issues that he dealt with those bone spurs that
are in his pitching elbow last season, two IL stints,
(01:48):
and you know, just a tough summer months before, you know,
really finishing strong in October. So to see how he's
come in here working on all of his pitches in
terms of you know, the off speed as well that
he was able to kind of mix in yesterday. The
big focus for him at this stage of Cactus League
play is you only get you know, twenty or thirty
(02:09):
pitches to start, and it's hard to mix in everything
and price to somebody who really wants to do those
things when he goes out there. And so the focus
has kind of been on the off speed, even though
the v LO is what really stood out, I guess
on the radar gun and the Baseball Savont charts. It's
really trying to harness, you know, the spin and the
movement of those secondary pitches. And you know what he's
(02:33):
trying to focus on in that regard is he talks
bluntly about just throwing it in the zone. We get
a really good feel for it, and if guys end
up squaring up, it's only the Cactus League and the
results don't necessarily matter right this second, So focusing really
on location with those secondary pitches. And now as we
(02:53):
get later in the camp, seeing how he can kind
of induce those chases, you know, challenge is a little
bit more. But the vlo's up. He's feeling good, he
feels like he's found in solutions this that's kind of
bug in or had been for almost a full year.
So those things are encouraging and you know, big spring
(03:17):
so far for Breston.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
Daniel Kramer with us, and so tomorrow night we see
Kate Anderson. And I've been intrigued Daniel being down in
Peoria with the with the credential you can as you know,
you're you're intermingling with these guys, your mere feet away
from them, and and the two pictures that everybody's talking about,
Ryan Sloan and Kate Anderson. Ryan Sloan looks like a
giant rugby player, you know, as you know, just thick
(03:41):
as hell and and uh and yet Kate Anderson, you know,
he looks like he's you know, comes straight out of
the Science Club. You know, they're just a different build
and you know that obviously it doesn't impact where they
can pitch, but it's gonna be interesting. Uh just kind
of what what what's your expectation for Kate Anderson tomorrow
night and what is the club's expectation.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Well, before I get into CADE, I have to share
this incredible quote from Brian Wu on Riot Sloan. But
we were talking to him earlier, came he said, Yeah,
he's got like a baby's face, like a twelve year old,
legs like a centaur, and it completely it's completely apps,
you know, watching him do stretch drills on the turf
(04:26):
adjacent to the weight room yesterday. I'm like, oh my gosh, man,
this guy's only twenty years old. He's built like a
tight end, but yes, he also kind of has that
younger look because yes, he's only twenty years old. So
I think, you know, the big power arm that he
brings has really stood out in my batting practices on
the backshields and you know, the stuff just really speaks
(04:49):
for itself. How he's kind of baffling big league hinners,
you know, not just with the velocity, but you know,
mixing in what he called his chain bitch, which I
think is kind of crazy considering that he throws a hundred.
So we don't know when he's going to eventually get
into a Cactus League game because they haven't slotted out
(05:09):
anybody to get on cage for tomorrow, but I would
anticipate it's coming soon, whether that's the start or you know,
relief spot, We're not quite sure. I would anticipated to start,
but you know, really excited to see him get out
there as well as for Caid. Yeah, I mean, I
(05:29):
think it's the most anticipated we'll see all spring, you know,
just the first one against the Padres, and you know,
typically since that's also their home ballpark here in Peoria.
You'll probably see some regulars in there, albeit the guys
who didn't leave for the WBC, whether it's Hetago, you know,
that crowd so excited to see him go up against
(05:51):
you know, actual big league cach iromposing team game environment
for the first time since the College World Series. You know,
that's how long of the layoffs he's had since he
was drafted, and then they obviously shut him down for
an extended period. But the workload that he's accumulated, you know,
one hundred and nineteen innings last year at LSU. He's
(06:14):
twenty one, soon to be twenty two. You know, the
way I watch him as he's preparing for you know,
the season down here in pork it looks like he's
preparing for a full season, you know, which is saying
something for a guy who was just drafted last year.
I haven't really seen that breadthon in major League baseball
(06:34):
hun through the history of the draft, although you have
started to see that trend a little bit more of
late when you have seasoned college arms. Paul Skeins is
a great example, not saying that kid's going to turn
into Paul Skins. Albeit they do have a similar you know,
career trajectory at this point, having won the College World
Series at LSU. But you know, he was the best
(06:54):
arm in the draft last year. He's really polished, he's
really smart and know the one thing that really stood
out to me is he's extremely competitive, but in like
a good way. You know, he's able to flush like
bad pitches and move on quickly. So I'm curious and
excited to see all of those things, like when they
(07:15):
take on the Padres tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
So is best case scenario for these two guys that
they never see a major league mound in twenty twenty
six or is best case that No? I mean they
pitched so well in Double A or wherever they end
up that they have to be put on the roster
by at the very least September, if not before.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
I think, you know, from the front office perspective, like
if you can navigate a six month season with the
starting five that you have right now, or you know,
when they're pitching.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
To their ceiling, are the best rotations in the entire sport. Yeah,
But like things happen. They had four guys go down
last year and you know, and you know Brian was
out for an entire month, but he wasn't on the IL.
You know, then you also had you know, George Bryce Logan.
So I think when I first came down here to
(08:11):
spring Train, I was concerned about their rotation depth, just
especially after losing Logan Evans to Tommy John surgery. You know,
you look at him as like the de facto number six, right,
and as much as Emerson Hancock has fit in so
well and done whatever they asked, you also have some
question marks about his effectiveness if he needs to step
(08:32):
in over the stretch of two, three, four months, if
you know, again, worst case scenario, somebody goes down, and
after watching those two guys, especially Cad, you know, it's
kind of changed my outlook on the state of their
rotation depth moving forward. I would not be shocked to
see him in the big leagues at some point this season.
I would think in a best case scenario, if he
(08:54):
did need to come up, it would probably be you know,
more towards the Midsummer. But you know, and talking to
Jerry Depoto a couple of weeks ago, you know, I
asked him about those guys in their trajectories, and he
likened it to being where Bryce Miller and Brian wou
were in twenty twenty three. You know, they hadn't yet
reached the majors. They only pitched at double A and
(09:17):
long and behold. By June of that year, they were
both in the big league rotation for good. You know,
granted that they were injury replacements to Robbie Gray and
Marco Gonzalez, so it was out of necessity, right, but
you know that opportunity was there a few months after
spring training. So to hear Jerry kind of say that
about these two guys completely different pictures, I think speaks
to where the organization views where they're at right now.
Speaker 5 (09:41):
Daniel Kramer with us and Daniel we had justin Hollander
not long ago. He kind of said, hey, look, second
base is Cole Young's to lose in training camp, and
you know, from what we understand Coley, he hasn't really surged,
we can put that way. Meanwhile, Colt Emerson seems to
(10:04):
be doing exactly that. What's the handicap in his second
base there? And what the spot for Colt Emerson could be?
Who's having a heck of a spring.
Speaker 4 (10:18):
Yeah, They're really excited about the scribe Cole made in
his off season, specifically with the footwork he's done on
defense and the muscle he's put on to do more
damage at the plate. They don't need him to be
like a huge power potential run producer, but just adding
a little bit more slug which they think could come from,
(10:38):
you know, putting on what they have to make. It
was ten to fifteen pounds in muscle, and you know,
that said he he did have a stretched there last
season where it was about fifty games where you know,
he was an above average major league hitter. That said,
there was you know, extended stretches of the same length
where he struggled and he was exposed. You know, those
(11:01):
are the types of challenges that even first round picks
can go through from a player development standpoint, like once
you do get to the big leagues, We've seen that
countless times, you know, even with guys like Julio and Cal.
You know, so I look, I mean, I'll take Hollander's
word at it. You know, if that's what they're thinking,
you know, for the opening day second base job, and
(11:21):
that's kind of what I had been anticipating as well.
You know, just he does have more reps, he has
more experience, and then you throw in Colts. There's so
much potential and so much tools, but you also don't
know what you're gonna get from that right away. And
so I came into camp thinking, you know, if Cole's
(11:45):
really going to have to struggle mightily to lose his
grip on that job, and speaking of some folks in
the organization, that's kind of the sentiment. And we just
haven't seen that yet. Conversely, we've seen Colts. Emerson really
sees the opportunities that he's had. You know, he's played
(12:05):
just about as much as anybody. In fact, I wrote
about this yesterday, more played appearances than any Mariners hitter
in the Cactus League so far, other than three guys
who are leaving for the WBC. So it shows that
they're really giving him, you know, a long look. He's
not in there tonight, sort of understandable. He's played three
games at third base and you know, another two at
(12:26):
short but Bap Crawford continues to kind of nurse this
sore shoulder situation. He could see a few more games
at the premium position before Jake comes back, and you know,
that that's expected early to mid next week. So you know,
the thing that's really stood out about Colt from my
Lands is, you know, he's just so intentional about everything
(12:48):
he does. You know, talking about the fact that he's
twenty years old, it's the mature approach and demeanor and
how he carries himself. It's really shine and that's what
everybody keeps saying about him. And to actually like put
eyes and see, you know, the tangible aspects of it,
it's it's been pretty impressive. And then the fact that
(13:08):
he's backing it up with the ability to make all
the plays at both their base and shortstop as he
flips flops from from each in these early going. But
then also it doesn't impact his bat in any way,
you know what position he is playing on any given day.
So it's it's been impressive and you know, as I said,
(13:29):
I think he's going to continue to get a pretty
extended book here. But it could have some difficult decisions
in the weeks ahead, depending on how they want to
construct their roster and whether or not it makes a
little bit more sense for him to start the twenty
six season in the minor leagues. But those are conversations
(13:49):
that we'll probably have and you know in Ernest here
in the next couple of weeks.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Daniel, we're gonna let you go in just a second
to watch some baseball.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
I do want to ask you about Brendan Donovan you
wrote about him today and how player makeup has been
a focal point for Jerry Depoto. Has that been, you know,
a hallmark of his since he's been here. Is he
really started to take that into more consideration in his
acquisitions in the last year or two.
Speaker 4 (14:14):
I would say that it's become a focal point really
over the past two three four years. I'm not going
to name names, but you can probably guess that there
were some guys who just did not fit when they
when they were here in Seattle.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
I'll name them.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Jared Kelnick, my favorite Mariner of all time, right Jackson.
Speaker 4 (14:35):
It's not just draft picks, though, it's also players that
they've either traded for or signed a free agency. There
just have been challenges with guys who come here and
just don't mesh. And I think that it's been a
very pointed emphasis of doing a lot more digging and
homework on those types of players when they want to
bring them here, and I think the urgency of knowing
(14:56):
that they are World Series contender and believing in that
they don't want to mess around when it comes to that,
especially since they have established such a strong clubhouse culture.
So right, it really goes back to the draft. Andy
McKay was incredibly influential in that regard, so losing him
that's a separate conversation for when the draft comes around.
(15:17):
That's going to be a challenge. But in terms of
the veteran guys that they brought in, Brendan Donovan and
Rob Refsnyder, I'd heard nothing but good things about them
from a makeup standpoint, getting texts from other writers who
had covered them in the past, both of those guys,
and you know, you want to see it yourself, and
getting to connect with them and have some conversations and
learn about them and how they go about their business.
(15:38):
It has validated a lot of the things that I
had heard about. Now, whether or not their bats will
transition seamlessly to you know, a ballpark that is not
very hit or friendly in April or May or or
at other parts of the season two, you know, from
a production standpoint, we still don't know, but so far,
they really are resonating with their new teammates and it's
(16:01):
it's been cool to see Daniel.
Speaker 3 (16:03):
Great to talk to you, man. We appreciate it. We'll
do it again soon.
Speaker 4 (16:07):
All right, fellows, thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
You bet you Daniel Kramer from MLB dot Com watching
some Mariner baseball down there in Peoria. He was down
there as well a couple of weeks ago, helping out
the morning show as well.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
And you know, Hugh, I mean, the thing that jumps out.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Of me about the depth chart for this season is
versus last year's. I just like the depth more. I
like the depth more in uh on offense. I like
the depth more in the bullpen. You know, the two
concerns for me is still middle infield, right, I mean,
it's Cole Young at second? Is he ready? It's JP
(16:41):
Crawford at shortstop? Has you know the door closed on
JP Crawford as a starting shortstop both offensively and defensively
in Major League Baseball? And I think those are those
are two questions that need to be answered over the
first couple three months of the season, because we know
if they're not answered, then Jerry's gonna go Dooce something
about it at the trade deadline, like he's done two
(17:02):
of the last four years and been very successful in it.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
Yeah, I think it's remarkable how perceptions can change, right,
I would add, you know, maybe there's a little bit
too much imbalance with the with the entire pitching staff
with right handed to left hand. They're they're trying to direct.
But you know, you know, I mean you think of Okay,
if you just went through you know, one through uh,
you know, ten eleven, and you said, okay, who's your
(17:30):
best pitcher, and you know, one through, rank them through
the organization, even even guys that aren't even going to
be in Seattle. Alrightyes, and you know it's really imbalanced, right,
probably as much as any team in the Maybe I
haven't gone through the other twenty nine teams, but it
just seems really Look, that's the thing about Depoto, a
(17:50):
former pitcher himself, it cannot be denied. He's got a
great feel, a great eye, a great sense of how
to acquire young pitchers that that can be debated. The
one thing about it is, again, do you have the
flexibility in both your rotation and and your bullpen with
the left handed arms and then the outfield.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
I mean, I like the depth there because you are
you are protected in case somebody goes into a prolonged
slump because you brought in a guy like ref Snyder
who just rakes left handed pitching. You got Victor Roeblace healthy,
which you didn't do last year, didn't have last year.
You've got a Rose Raina, you got Julio, you got
Luke Rayley, you got Canzone. Yeah, you don't have three
(18:33):
studs in the outfield, but you gotta stud at center.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
You got to You got to stud and left at.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Least offensively in a Rose arena. And then you've got
a bunch of guys that you know can play.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
You know you don't.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
I don't feel worried when don Canzone is starting in
right field. I don't feel worried when Luke Rayley's over there,
particularly defensively. I don't feel worried when Victor Roeblace is is,
you know, in the starting lineup. So those are It's
very very good leading into this season. Five point twenty
on ninety three point three KJRFM, Hey we come back.
(19:08):
Interesting guest that Ian had on yesterday our old friend
Jerry Brewer, who I think is up to like five
million views on on Twitter on his article that he
wrote in The Athletic. We'll play a piece from that
interview yesterday and get mine and Hughes thoughts on you
know the story the story of the week in the
sports world from Jerry Er, Brewer and Nashley on ninety
(19:29):
three point three KJRFM
This is Duke of Duke Seafood. Lady, you know that
this hour of Softy and Dick on your home for
the Huskies and Kraken is proudly brought to you by
Duke Seafood. Why not make it at Duke's night Tonight
reserve table today at Dukeseafood dot com on Sports Radio
ninety three point three. Kjar all right, we talked nothing
but football so far.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
We got to switch it up. We need to change up.
No pun intended, maybe there was. Daniel Kramer joins us
from Peoria, covers the Mariagers for MLB dot Com.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
Hi Daniel, how are you?
Speaker 4 (00:32):
I'm good? And speaking of change ups, we're about to
watch Luis Castillo take them ound.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
There we go. Yeah, nighttime baseball at Praia.
Speaker 4 (00:41):
Yeah, yeah, first one of the season. So we do
like the day games down here from time to time.
It kind of breaks up the extremely early mornings and
the long days and it's just like an easier pace
when we do get the occasional one. But yeah, excited
to see the rocket back out there. And we've got
a few other regulars in the lineup as well, so
(01:02):
we'll get on here shortly.
Speaker 2 (01:03):
Well, let's let's start. Since you mentioned castile, let's start
with the starting pitching. And I saw the numbers from
Bryce Miller, the velocity numbers in his last start, and
I read online they were being compared to last year's
averages and they were a good three four miles an
hour faster than what we saw the averages for last
year from Bryce Miller.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
So to your eyes, what did you see from Bryce?
Speaker 4 (01:27):
Yeah? I saw in general, I've seen more confidence and
conviction from Bryce over the past couple of weeks. He
showed up just feeling really good, which is extremely encouraging
for both him and the Mariners, given all the stepbacks
and issues that he dealt with those bone spurs that
are in his pitching elbow last season, two IL stints,
(01:48):
and you know, just a tough summer months before, you know,
really finishing strong in October. So to see how he's
come in here working on all of his pitches in
terms of you know, the off speed as well that
he was able to kind of mix in yesterday. The
big focus for him at this stage of Cactus League
play is you only get you know, twenty or thirty
(02:09):
pitches to start, and it's hard to mix in everything
and price to somebody who really wants to do those
things when he goes out there. And so the focus
has kind of been on the off speed, even though
the v LO is what really stood out, I guess
on the radar gun and the Baseball Savont charts. It's
really trying to harness, you know, the spin and the
movement of those secondary pitches. And you know what he's
(02:33):
trying to focus on in that regard is he talks
bluntly about just throwing it in the zone. We get
a really good feel for it, and if guys end
up squaring up, it's only the Cactus League and the
results don't necessarily matter right this second, So focusing really
on location with those secondary pitches. And now as we
(02:53):
get later in the camp, seeing how he can kind
of induce those chases, you know, challenge is a little
bit more. But the vlo's up. He's feeling good, he
feels like he's found in solutions this that's kind of
bug in or had been for almost a full year.
So those things are encouraging and you know, big spring
(03:17):
so far for Breston.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
Daniel Kramer with us, and so tomorrow night we see
Kate Anderson. And I've been intrigued Daniel being down in
Peoria with the with the credential you can as you know,
you're you're intermingling with these guys, your mere feet away
from them, and and the two pictures that everybody's talking about,
Ryan Sloan and Kate Anderson. Ryan Sloan looks like a
giant rugby player, you know, as you know, just thick
(03:41):
as hell and and uh and yet Kate Anderson, you know,
he looks like he's you know, comes straight out of
the Science Club. You know, they're just a different build
and you know that obviously it doesn't impact where they
can pitch, but it's gonna be interesting. Uh just kind
of what what what's your expectation for Kate Anderson tomorrow
night and what is the club's expectation.
Speaker 4 (04:02):
Well, before I get into CADE, I have to share
this incredible quote from Brian Wu on Riot Sloan. But
we were talking to him earlier, came he said, Yeah,
he's got like a baby's face, like a twelve year old,
legs like a centaur, and it completely it's completely apps,
you know, watching him do stretch drills on the turf
(04:26):
adjacent to the weight room yesterday. I'm like, oh my gosh, man,
this guy's only twenty years old. He's built like a
tight end, but yes, he also kind of has that
younger look because yes, he's only twenty years old. So
I think, you know, the big power arm that he
brings has really stood out in my batting practices on
the backshields and you know, the stuff just really speaks
(04:49):
for itself. How he's kind of baffling big league hinners,
you know, not just with the velocity, but you know,
mixing in what he called his chain bitch, which I
think is kind of crazy considering that he throws a hundred.
So we don't know when he's going to eventually get
into a Cactus League game because they haven't slotted out
(05:09):
anybody to get on cage for tomorrow, but I would
anticipate it's coming soon, whether that's the start or you know,
relief spot, We're not quite sure. I would anticipated to start,
but you know, really excited to see him get out
there as well as for Caid. Yeah, I mean, I
(05:29):
think it's the most anticipated we'll see all spring, you know,
just the first one against the Padres, and you know,
typically since that's also their home ballpark here in Peoria.
You'll probably see some regulars in there, albeit the guys
who didn't leave for the WBC, whether it's Hetago, you know,
that crowd so excited to see him go up against
(05:51):
you know, actual big league cach iromposing team game environment
for the first time since the College World Series. You know,
that's how long of the layoffs he's had since he
was drafted, and then they obviously shut him down for
an extended period. But the workload that he's accumulated, you know,
one hundred and nineteen innings last year at LSU. He's
(06:14):
twenty one, soon to be twenty two. You know, the
way I watch him as he's preparing for you know,
the season down here in pork it looks like he's
preparing for a full season, you know, which is saying
something for a guy who was just drafted last year.
I haven't really seen that breadthon in major League baseball
(06:34):
hun through the history of the draft, although you have
started to see that trend a little bit more of
late when you have seasoned college arms. Paul Skeins is
a great example, not saying that kid's going to turn
into Paul Skins. Albeit they do have a similar you know,
career trajectory at this point, having won the College World
Series at LSU. But you know, he was the best
(06:54):
arm in the draft last year. He's really polished, he's
really smart and know the one thing that really stood
out to me is he's extremely competitive, but in like
a good way. You know, he's able to flush like
bad pitches and move on quickly. So I'm curious and
excited to see all of those things, like when they
(07:15):
take on the Padres tomorrow.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
So is best case scenario for these two guys that
they never see a major league mound in twenty twenty
six or is best case that No? I mean they
pitched so well in Double A or wherever they end
up that they have to be put on the roster
by at the very least September, if not before.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
I think, you know, from the front office perspective, like
if you can navigate a six month season with the
starting five that you have right now, or you know,
when they're pitching.
Speaker 4 (07:50):
To their ceiling, are the best rotations in the entire sport. Yeah,
But like things happen. They had four guys go down
last year and you know, and you know Brian was
out for an entire month, but he wasn't on the IL.
You know, then you also had you know, George Bryce Logan.
So I think when I first came down here to
(08:11):
spring Train, I was concerned about their rotation depth, just
especially after losing Logan Evans to Tommy John surgery. You know,
you look at him as like the de facto number six, right,
and as much as Emerson Hancock has fit in so
well and done whatever they asked, you also have some
question marks about his effectiveness if he needs to step
(08:32):
in over the stretch of two, three, four months, if
you know, again, worst case scenario, somebody goes down, and
after watching those two guys, especially Cad, you know, it's
kind of changed my outlook on the state of their
rotation depth moving forward. I would not be shocked to
see him in the big leagues at some point this season.
I would think in a best case scenario, if he
(08:54):
did need to come up, it would probably be you know,
more towards the Midsummer. But you know, and talking to
Jerry Depoto a couple of weeks ago, you know, I
asked him about those guys in their trajectories, and he
likened it to being where Bryce Miller and Brian wou
were in twenty twenty three. You know, they hadn't yet
reached the majors. They only pitched at double A and
(09:17):
long and behold. By June of that year, they were
both in the big league rotation for good. You know,
granted that they were injury replacements to Robbie Gray and
Marco Gonzalez, so it was out of necessity, right, but
you know that opportunity was there a few months after
spring training. So to hear Jerry kind of say that
about these two guys completely different pictures, I think speaks
to where the organization views where they're at right now.
Speaker 5 (09:41):
Daniel Kramer with us and Daniel we had justin Hollander
not long ago. He kind of said, hey, look, second
base is Cole Young's to lose in training camp, and
you know, from what we understand Coley, he hasn't really surged,
we can put that way. Meanwhile, Colt Emerson seems to
(10:04):
be doing exactly that. What's the handicap in his second
base there? And what the spot for Colt Emerson could be?
Who's having a heck of a spring.
Speaker 4 (10:18):
Yeah, They're really excited about the scribe Cole made in
his off season, specifically with the footwork he's done on
defense and the muscle he's put on to do more
damage at the plate. They don't need him to be
like a huge power potential run producer, but just adding
a little bit more slug which they think could come from,
(10:38):
you know, putting on what they have to make. It
was ten to fifteen pounds in muscle, and you know,
that said he he did have a stretched there last
season where it was about fifty games where you know,
he was an above average major league hitter. That said,
there was you know, extended stretches of the same length
where he struggled and he was exposed. You know, those
(11:01):
are the types of challenges that even first round picks
can go through from a player development standpoint, like once
you do get to the big leagues, We've seen that
countless times, you know, even with guys like Julio and Cal.
You know, so I look, I mean, I'll take Hollander's
word at it. You know, if that's what they're thinking,
you know, for the opening day second base job, and
(11:21):
that's kind of what I had been anticipating as well.
You know, just he does have more reps, he has
more experience, and then you throw in Colts. There's so
much potential and so much tools, but you also don't
know what you're gonna get from that right away. And
so I came into camp thinking, you know, if Cole's
(11:45):
really going to have to struggle mightily to lose his
grip on that job, and speaking of some folks in
the organization, that's kind of the sentiment. And we just
haven't seen that yet. Conversely, we've seen Colts. Emerson really
sees the opportunities that he's had. You know, he's played
(12:05):
just about as much as anybody. In fact, I wrote
about this yesterday, more played appearances than any Mariners hitter
in the Cactus League so far, other than three guys
who are leaving for the WBC. So it shows that
they're really giving him, you know, a long look. He's
not in there tonight, sort of understandable. He's played three
games at third base and you know, another two at
(12:26):
short but Bap Crawford continues to kind of nurse this
sore shoulder situation. He could see a few more games
at the premium position before Jake comes back, and you know,
that that's expected early to mid next week. So you know,
the thing that's really stood out about Colt from my
Lands is, you know, he's just so intentional about everything
(12:48):
he does. You know, talking about the fact that he's
twenty years old, it's the mature approach and demeanor and
how he carries himself. It's really shine and that's what
everybody keeps saying about him. And to actually like put
eyes and see, you know, the tangible aspects of it,
it's it's been pretty impressive. And then the fact that
(13:08):
he's backing it up with the ability to make all
the plays at both their base and shortstop as he
flips flops from from each in these early going. But
then also it doesn't impact his bat in any way,
you know what position he is playing on any given day.
So it's it's been impressive and you know, as I said,
(13:29):
I think he's going to continue to get a pretty
extended book here. But it could have some difficult decisions
in the weeks ahead, depending on how they want to
construct their roster and whether or not it makes a
little bit more sense for him to start the twenty
six season in the minor leagues. But those are conversations
(13:49):
that we'll probably have and you know in Ernest here
in the next couple of weeks.
Speaker 3 (13:54):
Daniel, we're gonna let you go in just a second
to watch some baseball.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
I do want to ask you about Brendan Donovan you
wrote about him today and how player makeup has been
a focal point for Jerry Depoto. Has that been, you know,
a hallmark of his since he's been here. Is he
really started to take that into more consideration in his
acquisitions in the last year or two.
Speaker 4 (14:14):
I would say that it's become a focal point really
over the past two three four years. I'm not going
to name names, but you can probably guess that there
were some guys who just did not fit when they
when they were here in Seattle.
Speaker 3 (14:26):
I'll name them.
Speaker 2 (14:26):
Jared Kelnick, my favorite Mariner of all time, right Jackson.
Speaker 4 (14:35):
It's not just draft picks, though, it's also players that
they've either traded for or signed a free agency. There
just have been challenges with guys who come here and
just don't mesh. And I think that it's been a
very pointed emphasis of doing a lot more digging and
homework on those types of players when they want to
bring them here, and I think the urgency of knowing
(14:56):
that they are World Series contender and believing in that
they don't want to mess around when it comes to that,
especially since they have established such a strong clubhouse culture.
So right, it really goes back to the draft. Andy
McKay was incredibly influential in that regard, so losing him
that's a separate conversation for when the draft comes around.
(15:17):
That's going to be a challenge. But in terms of
the veteran guys that they brought in, Brendan Donovan and
Rob Refsnyder, I'd heard nothing but good things about them
from a makeup standpoint, getting texts from other writers who
had covered them in the past, both of those guys,
and you know, you want to see it yourself, and
getting to connect with them and have some conversations and
learn about them and how they go about their business.
(15:38):
It has validated a lot of the things that I
had heard about. Now, whether or not their bats will
transition seamlessly to you know, a ballpark that is not
very hit or friendly in April or May or or
at other parts of the season two, you know, from
a production standpoint, we still don't know, but so far,
they really are resonating with their new teammates and it's
(16:01):
it's been cool to see Daniel.
Speaker 3 (16:03):
Great to talk to you, man. We appreciate it. We'll
do it again soon.
Speaker 4 (16:07):
All right, fellows, thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
You bet you Daniel Kramer from MLB dot Com watching
some Mariner baseball down there in Peoria. He was down
there as well a couple of weeks ago, helping out
the morning show as well.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
And you know, Hugh, I mean, the thing that jumps out.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
Of me about the depth chart for this season is
versus last year's. I just like the depth more. I
like the depth more in uh on offense. I like
the depth more in the bullpen. You know, the two
concerns for me is still middle infield, right, I mean,
it's Cole Young at second? Is he ready? It's JP
(16:41):
Crawford at shortstop? Has you know the door closed on
JP Crawford as a starting shortstop both offensively and defensively
in Major League Baseball? And I think those are those
are two questions that need to be answered over the
first couple three months of the season, because we know
if they're not answered, then Jerry's gonna go Dooce something
about it at the trade deadline, like he's done two
(17:02):
of the last four years and been very successful in it.
Speaker 4 (17:05):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (17:05):
Yeah, I think it's remarkable how perceptions can change, right,
I would add, you know, maybe there's a little bit
too much imbalance with the with the entire pitching staff
with right handed to left hand. They're they're trying to direct.
But you know, you know, I mean you think of Okay,
if you just went through you know, one through uh,
you know, ten eleven, and you said, okay, who's your
(17:30):
best pitcher, and you know, one through, rank them through
the organization, even even guys that aren't even going to
be in Seattle. Alrightyes, and you know it's really imbalanced, right,
probably as much as any team in the Maybe I
haven't gone through the other twenty nine teams, but it
just seems really Look, that's the thing about Depoto, a
(17:50):
former pitcher himself, it cannot be denied. He's got a
great feel, a great eye, a great sense of how
to acquire young pitchers that that can be debated. The
one thing about it is, again, do you have the
flexibility in both your rotation and and your bullpen with
the left handed arms and then the outfield.
Speaker 2 (18:11):
I mean, I like the depth there because you are
you are protected in case somebody goes into a prolonged
slump because you brought in a guy like ref Snyder
who just rakes left handed pitching. You got Victor Roeblace healthy,
which you didn't do last year, didn't have last year.
You've got a Rose Raina, you got Julio, you got
Luke Rayley, you got Canzone. Yeah, you don't have three
(18:33):
studs in the outfield, but you gotta stud at center.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
You got to You got to stud and left at.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Least offensively in a Rose arena. And then you've got
a bunch of guys that you know can play.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
You know you don't.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
I don't feel worried when don Canzone is starting in
right field. I don't feel worried when Luke Rayley's over there,
particularly defensively. I don't feel worried when Victor Roeblace is is,
you know, in the starting lineup. So those are It's
very very good leading into this season. Five point twenty
on ninety three point three KJRFM, Hey we come back.
(19:08):
Interesting guest that Ian had on yesterday our old friend
Jerry Brewer, who I think is up to like five
million views on on Twitter on his article that he
wrote in The Athletic. We'll play a piece from that
interview yesterday and get mine and Hughes thoughts on you
know the story the story of the week in the
sports world from Jerry Er, Brewer and Nashley on ninety
(19:29):
three point three KJRFM
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