EVERETT — The Everett AquaSox are getting a major influx of prospect buzz.
The Seattle Mariners announced Friday that shortstop Cole Young and outfielder Gabriel Gonzalez, two of Seattle’s five best prospects, were being promoted to High-A Everett from Single-A Modesto.
Meanwhile, outfielder Alberto Rodriguez, who’s been Everett’s most productive hitter, was promoted to Double-A Arkansas.
Young, a 19-year-old from Pittsburgh, was Seattle’s first-round pick in the 2022 draft out of high school. The 6-foot, 180-pound Young is ranked by MLB.com as the Mariners’ second-best prospect because of his hit tool. This season in 78 games with Modesto the left-swinging Young batted .267 with five home runs and 39 RBI. He spiked his numbers with 54 walks and 17 stolen bases, which helped him to a California League-leading 60 runs scored.
Gonzalez, also 19, was a big-money international signing out of Venezuela by the Mariners in February of 2021. The 5-foot-10, 165-pounder is ranked by MLB.com as Seattle’s fourth-best prospect, again because of his hit tool. He was leading the California League in batting at .348 at the time of the promotion, and he also had nine homers and 54 RBI in 73 contests.
The additions of Young and Gonzalez, to go along with Mariners No. 1 prospect Harry Ford, means Everett had three of Seattle’s top four prospects on its roster when Northwest League play resumed Friday. The league took a four-day break corresponding with the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, with the Sox resuming at home Friday night against the Hillsboro Hops.
On the outgoing side, Everett bids farewell to Rodriguez. The 22-year-old from the Dominican Republic, rated by MLB.com as Seattle’s 26th-best prospect, was having a big-time breakout in his second season in Everett. In 72 games he batted .306 with 11 home runs and 58 RBI, ranking second in the Northwest League in OPS among qualifiers at .973. His homer and RBI outputs already surpassed his full-season output with the Sox in 2022.
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