Each offseason, MiLB.com goes position by position across each organization and honors the players -- regardless of age or prospect status -- who had the best seasons in each farm system. Next up in our 2023 Organization All-Stars series are the Seattle Mariners.
2023 organization summary:
Triple-A Tacoma: 77-73
Double-A Arkansas: 73-65
High-A Everett: 74-58
Single-A Modesto: 77-55 (California League champions)
ACL Mariners: 31-25
DSL Mariners: 27-25
Overall record: 359-301 (3rd among MLB organizations)
Midseason Farm System Rankings: 19
Mariners 2023 Organization All-Stars
C: Harry Ford (SEA No. 2, MLB No. 39)
A+: .257/.410/.430, 118 G, 15 HR, 67 RBI, 89 R, 103 BB, 24 SB
Perhaps the busiest player on the planet, Ford showed elite patience at the plate, drawing the third-most walks in the Minors. The 20-year-old¡¯s OBP ranked third among the 68 prospects with at least 15 homers and 20 stolen bases. Ford has had little time off since the start of 2022, playing for Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic and qualifiers. He¡¯s currently continuing his season with Peoria in the Arizona Fall League.
1B: Robbie Tenerowicz
AA/AAA: .282/.391/.451, 134 G, 19 HR, 101 RBI, 89 R, 62 BB, 2 SB
The 28-year-old journeyman had not played a 100-game season since 2018 but made the most of the opportunity. Tenerowicz, playing in his third different organization, had the seventh-best average and 10th-best OBP among the system¡¯s qualifiers. In a brief stint last year, the 2016 27th-rounder batted .170 with a .559 OPS in his first Triple-A action with Louisville but posted a .264 average with a .709 OPS in 47 games this year at Tacoma.
2B: Josh Hood
A/A+: .273/.355/.417, 114 G, 13 HR, 69 RBI, 78 R, 56 BB, 18 SB
The highlight of the season for the 2022 sixth-rounder was his 26-game hitting streak for Modesto, which tied for the longest in the Minors this season. During that span, he batted .375 with four homers, 23 RBIs and a .992 OPS. Shortly after the streak was over, the 23-year-old was promoted to Everett, where he enjoyed a strong start but cooled at the end of the regular season and in the playoffs.
3B: Jake Scheiner
AAA: .252/.369/.509, 124 G, 30 HR, 105 RBI, 91 R, 81 BB, 5 SB
A year after leading the system with 34 doubles, Scheiner turned that gap power into over-the-fence pop to lead all Mariners¡¯ prospects in homers, RBIs and slugging. Acquired from the Phillies in 2019, the 28-year-old has hit more long balls (69) than anyone in the system since 2021. In his first year at Triple-A, Scheiner¡¯s average was identical to his 2022 season, and he posted the best walk rate of his career (14.6 percent).
SS: Cole Young (SEA No. 1, MLB No. 37)
A/A+: .277/.399/.448, 126 G, 11 HR, 62 RBI, 92 R, 88 BB, 22 SB
Mariners player development director Justin Toole said that Young, ¡°has that city-kid heartbeat where things don't speed up on him.¡± The Pittsburgh native was one of only seven Minor Leaguers with at least 30 doubles, 20 steals and 90 runs scored and one of only 17 prospects to record at least nine triples. Playing in his first full season, the 20-year-old got better as he advanced to Everett, where he hit more homers in 100 fewer at-bats.
OF: Gabriel Gonzalez (SEA No. 3, MLB No. 66)
A/A+: .298/.361/.476, 116 G, 18 HR, 84 RBI, 78 R, 36 BB, 10 SB
At the time of his promotion in July, Gonzalez led the California League in batting (.348) and hits (103), ranked second in SLG (.530) and OPS (.933) and third in RBIs (54) and extra-base hits (32). The competition caught up to the 19-year-old at High-A, where he batted .215 with a .677 OPS in 43 games. Toole said that a more selective approach might be beneficial for Gonzalez, whose strikeout rate jumped to 21.5 percent at Everett.
OF: Jonatan Clase (SEA No. 8)
A+/AA: .242/.353/.449, 129 G, 20 HR, 68 RBI, 102 R, 82 BB, 79 SB
Clase is the first player since record tracking began in 1961 to have a 20-70 season in the Minors, a feat which has only been accomplished four times at the Major League level. The 21-year-old was batting .333 with a 1.154 OPS when he was promoted in May. Although his slash line didn¡¯t jump off the page with Arkansas, he still managed to lead the Texas League in steals (62) while scoring 79 runs.
OF: Alberto Rodriguez (SEA No. 17)
A+/AA: .300/.380/.504, 118 G, 14 HR, 85 RBI, 78 R, 51 BB, 8 SB
Rodriguez was the Mariners¡¯ Hitting Prospect of the Year after he was designated for assignment and cleared waivers in January. The 23-year-old led the system in batting and doubles (38) and ranked second among Seattle¡¯s full-season qualifiers in wRC+ (136) and BABIP (.378). Rodriguez didn¡¯t tap into his power much in Arkansas, but he posted a similar average (.291) and still got on base at a decent clip (.361 OBP) at the higher level.
RHP: Jimmy Joyce (SEA No. 28)
A+/AA: 2-3, 2.57 ERA, 70 IP, 83 K, 20 BB, .223 BAA, 1.10 WHIP
Joyce opened the season on the injured list with a forearm strain and did not make his first start until June. He quickly built up to a regular workload and left the Northwest League with a 1.60 ERA and 12.36 K/9. The 2021 16th-rounder completed eight scoreless innings in his final three starts with Arkansas, including playoffs. Joyce was initially slated to pitch in the AFL but is no longer on Peoria¡¯s roster.
LHP: Reid VanScoter
A+: 10-6, 3.27 ERA, 143 ? IP, 157 K, 35 BB, .255 BAA, 1.23 WHIP
In his first professional season, VanScoter led the system in strikeouts and was one of only 14 pitchers in the Minors to complete at least 140 innings. Among that group, the 24-year-old ranked first with a 2.94 FIP. VanScoter, who was named the Northwest League¡¯s Pitcher of the Year, completed at least five innings in 21 of his 25 starts and recorded a season-high 12 punchouts in his final start of the season on Sept. 4.
RP: Prelander Berroa (SEA No. 15)
AA: 5-1, 6 SV, 2.89 ERA, 65 ? IP, 101 K, 39 BB, .193 BAA, 1.29 WHIP
After five strong seasons as a starter, Berroa transitioned seamlessly to the bullpen. Toole compared Berroa¡¯s shift and subsequent stint in Seattle¡¯s bullpen to another Mariners¡¯ starter-turned-reliever, Matt Brash. Like Brash, Berroa features an upper-90¡¯s heater with a hard-breaking slider, and the organization felt that the move was a better use of his skill set. The 23-year-old was one of only six pitchers in the Minors with at least 100 strikeouts in fewer than 66 innings.