EVERETT — The Everett AquaSox had a new look when they returned home Monday as a dozen new faces are with the organization following the 2017 Major League Baseball draft.
That leaves the current roster at 33 players as seven players who began the season with the team have been sent back to the Arizona League.
“Good kids, good personalities,” Everett manager Jose Moreno said. “They’re very quiet and trying to learn the system, trying to get used to the professional routine. It’s only been one or two days since they arrived, but so far real good.”
The group includes six pitchers and six position players. Among the new AquaSox are Mariners first-round pick and first baseman Evan White, third-round pitcher Wyatt Mills, fourth-round pitcher Seth Elledge, fifth-round catcher David Banuelos, sixth-round pitcher Oliver Jaske, eighth-round outfielder Billy Cooke and 10th-round pitcher Randy Bell.
White made his pro debut Saturday against the Tri-City Dust Devils in Pasco, but didn’t play Sunday and wasn’t in Monday’s starting lineup because of quad tightness, according to Moreno. White is officially day-to-day and his absence is precautionary.
Several other new AquaSox have already loudly announced themselves with gusto. Outfielder Johnny Slater homered in each of his first two professional games at Gesa Stadium in Pasco, a notoriously difficult park at which to homer.
“When you see real good pitches, good things are going to happen,” Moreno said. “He was able to square up those pitches in the strike zone and it’s a good thing for us that became a big key for the game.”
Pitcher JP Sears, a 11th-round pick, struck out five in two innings of one-hit relief in Sunday’s 5-4 Everett win in 13 innings.
Unlike the group that arrived at the start of the season, the new draftees are largely unknown to Moreno and his staff.
“Communication is going to be a big key for us with the young kids, and that’s something we will try to develop almost every day,” Moreno said. “What they need to know is that we’re going to be here just to help them to develop and go to the next level and hopefully get to the big leagues very soon.”
Carrying 18 pitchers on the roster will be an interesting situation for Moreno and Everett pitching coach Danny Acevedo. The Mariners selected 23 pitchers among their 40 picks in this year’s draft and will need to find innings for all of them.
“When they come from the draft they’re going to have some kinds of limitations,” Moreno said. “We see how we want to use them, talk to our pitching coordinator and try to (come up) with a plan on how we want to use them.”
With Sunday’s game going 13 innings the AquaSox didn’t arrive back in Everett until about 5 a.m. The team didn’t take on-field batting or fielding practice Monday.
“That’s minor league baseball, that’s major league baseball,” Moreno said. “You have to take flights around 3 or 4 o’clock (in the morning). That’s part of it and that’s not going to change.”
For the latest AquaSox news follow Jesse Geleynse on Twitter.
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