SEATTLE — The Jarred Kelenic era in Seattle will begin Thursday when the Mariners open a homestand with a four-game set against Cleveland.
The club is planning to call up MLB Pipeline’s No. 4 overall prospect from Triple-A Tacoma, a source told MLB.com, though Mariners management has not confirmed the plans, first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Kelenic, the uber-talented and confident 21-year-old outfielder, has shined in four games at Tacoma, going 8-for-18 entering Monday’s game against El Paso — including two emphatic home runs on Opening Day last Thursday. He also excelled in Cactus League play this spring, hitting .300/.440/.700 with two homers over 10 games.
Kelenic, the sixth overall pick in the 2018 Draft, came to the Mariners in the December 2018 trade that sent Robinson Canó to the Mets.
His promotion will be met with huge fanfare in Seattle, where the Mariners’ faithful have longed to see him play for more than a year after earning the Mariners Minor League Player of the Year recognition in 2019, when he topped out at Double-A Arkansas. He is the headline prospect in general manager Jerry Dipoto’s extensive rebuild, which is in Year 3 and has shown promising signs that the Mariners could be emerging as contenders in the near future — centered around blue chip pieces such as Kelenic.
Starting pitcher Logan Gilbert, MLB Pipeline’s No. 34 prospect, is also expected to be called up in the near future as well. And Julio Rodríguez, MLB Pipeline’s No. 5 prospect, will also be up at some point next season, forming a long-term outfield core with reigning American League Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis that has some in baseball circles suggesting it could blossom into one of the league’s most dynamic.
Kelenic will likely take the roster spot of left fielder Taylor Trammell, who played his way onto the team with a stellar Spring Training but has struggled against big league pitching. Trammell is hitting .157/.255/.337 through 83 at-bats.
Seattle got off to an 11-6 start but is 7-11 since then and entered Monday in third place in the AL West, 2 1/2 games behind the first-place A’s. Mariners outfielders are collectively hitting .201/.287/.391, with rookies Trammell and Sam Haggety struggling with the bat and Lewis not debuting until April 20.