Colt

Emerson

Seattle is merely being cautious with one of their top prospects with only a handful of games left in the AFL campaign. The 19-year-old phenom got off to a sizzling-hot start in Arizona and finishes with a robust .370/.435/.537 triple-slash line with nine doubles, 10 RBI and eight stolen bases across 13 games. He’s a borderline top 15 prospect from a dynasty standpoint heading into next season.

Emerson also had five hits on Tuesday, so he’s off to a scorching hot start in the Arizona Fall League. He has ten batted balls in the AFL with an average exit velocity of 97 mph, topping out at 110.4 mph on Wednesday. He hits the ball on the ground or on a line often, which will cap his power upside, but the batted ball quality is elite.

That’s a decent way to open up your AFL season, particularly for a player that doesn’t turn 20 until next July. Emerson is considered the top prospect in the Seattle system, and the 2023 first-round pick has a chance to have a plus hit-tool along with solid power while playing the shortstop position. It’s unlikely Emerson will help in 2025, but he could be the everyday shortstop in 2026.

Emerson is one of the most promising fantasy prospects in Seattle’s loaded farm system, despite the fact he’s struggled quite a bit over the last month as a 19-year-old at the High-A level. He’s been limited to just 68 games overall this season due to injury, but remains one of the better prospects out there from a dynasty standpoint. There will be divergent opinions, but it’s not outlandish to think that he’s a top-25 prospect heading into 2025.

Emerson, who missed time with a broken foot, hit .294/.400/.427 in 40 games for low-A Modesto. He’s viewed as one of the game’s top infield prospects.

He could miss about a month after fouling a ball off the foot. Emerson, a first-round pick last year, is one of the most talented prospects in the minors. He’s hit .271/.441/.414 in 19 games as an 18-year-old in full-season ball.

Emerson has been on the shelf since April 17 due to an oblique injury, but appears poised to return this weekend, according to Mariners general manager Justin Hollander. The 18-year-old shortstop is rapidly evolving into one of the top prospects in baseball, batting .318 (7-for-22) with two homers and one steal in five games this season. He batted .374 (34-for-91) with two homers and eight steals in 24 games last year after being selected 22nd overall in the 2023 MLB Draft. He’s a certifiable dude.

Emerson’s stock has exploded in long-term keeper and dynasty league formats after batting .374/.496/.550 with two homers and eight steals last year in his professional debut between the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League and Single-A Modesto. The 18-year-old shortstop was selected 22nd overall last June in the 2023 MLB Draft and appears to be on the fast track to the upper minors. There’s a chance he’s a top-10 overall prospect in baseball by the end of the 2024 campaign.

Seattle winds up going over-slot with a $3.8 million signing bonus to pry Emerson away from an Auburn commitment. The soon-to-be 18-year-old shortstop was one of the youngest players in his draft class and is the highest-profile of the three high school position players taken by the Mariners in the top 30 picks earlier this month.

The first of three top picks for Seattle, Emerson doesn’t turn 18 years old until later this month, so he’s one of the youngest players in this year’s draft class. There’s still room for the Auburn commit to grow, particularly in the power department, but he’s already an advanced hitter. Listed at 6-foot-1, 195 pounds, he batted .360 with a .515 on-base percentage over nine games for the U.S. National Team in the U-18 Baseball World Cup team last summer. His future defensive home could be third base (where he played for the National Team) or second base rather than shortstop.