Mariners top prospect Colt Emerson went to Arizona last month for some extra seasoning.
While there, the former Everett AquaSox infielder was on a quest to find the best seasoning.
When he wasn’t playing against elite competition in Arizona Fall League games, Emerson found extended time to dabble in a favorite hobby: cooking.
His one goal this fall: to grill the perfect steak.
“First, you have to find a good seasoning,” the left-handed-hitting 19-year-old shortstop said in a phone interview. “We’ve got a butcher here in Peoria where I get my seasoning from, and a good seasoning is really important.”
Emerson’s attention to detail has served him well on the plate and, ahem, at the plate too.
In a 30-game season showcasing many of baseball’s top prospects, Emerson lived up to the billing as one of the premier players in the Fall League, hitting .370 and leading the league in doubles (with nine) in his 54 at-bats.
In 13 games with the Peoria Javelinas, Emerson had 20 hits, a .435 on-base percentage and a .506 slugging (.972 OPS), he was 8 for 8 in stolen-base attempts and he was named one of the league’s “Fall Stars,” cementing his ascension this year as the Mariners’ No. 1 prospect.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to get to play more games down here — games I missed this year because I got hurt,” said Emerson, who was sidelined with an oblique injury and a foot fracture in the spring. “I’m just grateful for the extra at-bats and a chance to compete against some really good competition. Some of these pitchers have been in Double-A and Triple-A already.”
Emerson had a torrid start in the Fall League last month, with six doubles in his first 12 at-bats. He was slowed by a minor hamstring injury, and the Mariners eventually decided to shut him down in late October.
By then, he’d done enough to confirm his place among the fastest-rising prospects in baseball. In their latest rankings, Baseball America has Emerson as the No. 11 prospect in the sport.
Emerson, from Cambridge, Ohio, was still 17 years old when the Mariners made him their first pick (No. 22 overall). A year and a half later, he looks like a steal, and someone the Mariners can dream on.
“Colt is a phenomenal young man,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said. “He’s smart. He’s professional. He’s thoughtful. He’s as hard a worker as anyone we’ve ever had. Really, any flattering adjective you could use — Colt just hits them all.”
He’s been lauded for his advanced feel at the plate and his mature approach to the game. This fall, he said he’s been focused on maintaining a consistent mindset when he steps into the batter’s box.
“I just feel like when I come out, I’m not worried about anything other than just competing at the plate,” he said. “I’ve got a process that I go about. I’m just hunting my pitch and trying to be on time and put a good swing in the pitch. I mean, you try not to overthink it much, but at the same time it’s a lot easier said than done. It’s baseball and it’s hard sometimes.
“But now I’ve got a process and it works for me, and that’s why I’ve stuck to it this whole time.”
Emerson has simple goals for this offseason — to get stronger and faster. Last winter, he made a concerted effort to add bulk to his 6-foot-1 frame — arriving at spring training 20 pounds heavier, at about 215 pounds.
That, he realized, was too much. He naturally lost almost all of that weight during the season — a summer illness contributed to some of that weight loss — and he said he feels most comfortable and most athletic playing a little lighter.
“I lost about 20 pounds, which just tells me that my optimal body weights is probably around 200 to 210,” he said. “So that’s another piece of information that I never would have known if I didn’t go through this first full season. I came in probably a little too heavy and probably bigger than a shortstop needs to be. But right now it’s not that big of a deal and I’m in a good spot, for sure.”
The Elite Eight
Baseball America ranks the Mariners’ farm system No. 7 among the 30 MLB teams. The latest rankings have eight Mariners prospects ranked in the Top 100, the most of any MLB team.
1. Colt Emerson, SS
The 19-year-old shortstop has jumped up to No. 11 in the Baseball America list, the youngest prospect in the top 15.
2. Lazaro Montes, DH
The hulking Cuban slugger who finished his 2024 season with the AquaSox was named the Mariners’ Ken Griffey Jr. Hitter of the Year after he drove in 105 runs combined between two Class A stops this year. The 20-year-old has top-of-the-scale raw power.
3. Cole Young, 2B
The Mariners’ 2022 first-round pick with a sweet left-handed swing is expected to open the 2025 season in Triple-A Tacoma and projects as Seattle’s opening day second baseman in 2026.
4. Jonny Farmelo, CF
Another first-round pick in 2023, Farmelo is an elite athlete lauded for his outfield defense. A torn ACL in June will keep him out for much of 2025.
5. Harry Ford, C
The 21-year-old played a full season for Class AA Arkansas, slashing .249/.377/.367 (.744 OPS) with 26 doubles, seven homers and 35 steals in 116 games.
6. Logan Evans, RHP
A 12th-round pick in 2023, Evans is the Mariners’ latest pitching gem … and he could find his way to Seattle in 2025.
7. Michael Arroyo, 2B
Perhaps the Mariners’ most underrated prospect, the 20-year-old Arroyo had a strong season in Modesto and Everett, hitting a combined .285 with a .909 OPS and 56 extra-base hits in 120 games.
8. Felnin Celesten, SS
Injuries have limited Celesten early in his career, but the 19-year-old flashed his vast potential in 32 games in the Arizona Rookie League this summer, hitting .352 with a .999 OPS in his first 125 professional at-bats.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
