With no consensus top player in MLB draft, Mariners prepared for anything

Nobody truly knows what is going to happen early in the first round of the upcoming 2025 MLB draft.
Even Mariners Scouting Director Scott Hunter is uncertain, and he’ll be on the clock pretty quickly on July 13, when Seattle makes its first pick at No. 3 overall.
It’s one of the more unsettled drafts in recent memory, without a consensus No. 1 or No. 2 pick at the top. This year, there is no Paul Skenes, no Bryce Harper, or Stephen Strasburg certain to go off the board at No. 1.
“I say every year. I think every draft has its own personality,” Hunter said. “And this one is kind of a little unpredictable.”
Instead of several surefire top guys, the draft is crowded with both college and high school players who could go anywhere from the top five to outside the top 10.
“They’re so crammed together up there right now that I think the separation is going to be very thin in regards to, like, who we actually take,” Hunter said. “That’s why it’s so hard when you get into these drafts. I usually have a lead horse when I go in, but right now I’m waiting to see what our information (is) from other departments, our high performance, our medical teams. There’s such a fine line, like one little piece of information could really sway our room.”
Obviously, what the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels do ahead of them will determine who the Mariners can take, but nobody other than the Nationals is entirely sure of who will go first, leaving Seattle in an uncertain place.
The likely bet to go first overall seems to be LSU left-handed pitcher Kade Anderson, one of three highly touted college lefties projected to go early in the first round, the others being Tennessee pitcher Liam Doyle and Jamie Arnold from Florida State.
Both MLB and ESPN’s mock drafts have Anderson and Doyle going 1-2, with MLB’s Jonathan Mayo predicting the Mariners will take Oregon State shortstop Aiva Arquette, a former Washington Husky and the draft’s top-ranked hitter, with the third pick, while ESPN’s Jeff Passan predicts that the Mariners will take Arnold.
Oklahoma right-hander Kyson Witherspoon is another highly-ranked arm who could be available.
There is a wealth of possibilities for the Mariners, who have the most money to spend of any team, with a bonus pool amount of $17,074,400, which could allow the Mariners to get creative with how they distribute their money throughout the draft.
The bonus pool is determined by adding up the total dollar amount of the team’s “slot values,” which is the number MLB determines each draft pick to be worth. Teams can go over or under that assigned slot value, but the Mariners have to stay within their allotted bonus pool number of $17,074,400 if they want to avoid penalties.
The Mariners have the highest bonus pool amount in the draft because they are the team with the highest draft pick, who is also taking a pick in the supplemental round. The slot value for the No. 3 pick is $9,504,400, while the supplemental round pick, No. 35 overall, is $2,758,300.
Seattle could go under those amounts if they want to give more money to players selected in the draft. But with the most money of any team to spend, they could also go above slot value if, for instance, they wanted to ensure a high school player signs a contract rather than go play college ball.
“I think there’s a lot of options that could happen ahead of us,” Hunter said. “It could be straight and just like our top three guys are our top three guys. But I do think at the end of the day, what we’re looking at is to be wide open, be adjustable, and then just see what really comes our way.”
The Mariners could go several different routes with their first pick. They could take another college pitcher, as they did in 2018 (Logan Gilbert), 2019 (George Kirby), 2020 (Emerson Hancock), and 2024 (Jurrangelo Cijntje) or they could go the high school hitter route like they did when they took Harry Ford 12th overall in 2021, Cole Young 21st overall in 2022, or in 2023, when they took a trio of high school hitters in the first round with Colt Emerson, Jonny Farmelo and Tai Peete.
The draft is a bit loaded with high school hitters, several of whom could go early in the first round. Oklahoma high schooler Ethan Holliday (son of former major-leaguer Matt Holliday and brother of Baltimore’s Jackson Holliday) is one player the Mariners might be able to get. He was projected earlier to be a possible No. 1 overall pick, but could be available for Seattle now.
Mississippi high school shortstop JoJo Parker, Oklahoma high school shortstop Eli Willits, or Corona, California shortstop Billy Carlson are the other top high school hitters available, should the Mariners choose to go that route.
Seattle could also do something they’ve rarely dared to do during Hunter’s nine-year tenure as scouting director, and take a high school pitcher with their first pick. The Mariners haven’t taken a high school pitcher with their pick since taking Taijuan Walker 43rd overall in 2010.
The top high school pitcher in this year’s draft is Seth Hernandez, a 6-foot-4 inch right-hander from Corona (Calif.) High School who has a fastball that can reach 98 mph. High school pitchers come with plenty of risk though, which is why the Mariners have been hesitant to take one high in the draft in years past.
“For me, it always comes down to the end of the day, is their makeup. Does this player fit with the Mariners?” Hunter said. “We’ve been very fortunate with guys like Cole Young, Colt Emerson, you know, Jonny Farmelo. I mean, I can just, you go through the line of those high school kids, and they all have that little, I don’t say ‘It’ factor, but they’re kind of mature beyond their years.”
One guy who knows the draft experience well is manager Dan Wilson, who was the seventh overall pick in the 1990 draft by the Cincinnati Reds. He remembers eagerly waiting by the phone while trying to study for finals at the University of Minnesota, and knows the nervous anticipation that runs through players’ stomachs before they hear their name.
“It’s the culmination of a lot of hard work over the course of your amateur career and a great opportunity,” Wilson said. “I know that our scouting department, and the work they put into it, and the success they have had with the draft has been incredible. And I know they have tons of stuff going on now meeting-wise and they’re putting together their plan, and what they’ve been able to do through the draft has been awesome.”
While Hunter is excited about picking at No. 3, Seattle’s highest selection since taking Mike Zunino third overall in 2012, his job won’t be done after the first pick. The stakes are obviously high with the No. 3 spot, but the Mariners also have the 35th and 57th overall draft spots, and Hunter knows well that those picks could unveil some gems.
Seattle also picks at No. 91, 122, and 152.
“We all focus on the third pick in the draft because that’s our highest pick since I’ve been here, but we also are very cognizant that pick 35 and pick 57 are extremely important to us,” Hunter said. “I mean, we look what Cal (Raleigh) is doing, e was a third-round pick. I try not to get hyper focused on the first one. But the first pick leads us to do what we can do further on in the draft. So, it’s really taught me to be patient and adjustable and not lock into one scenario.”