Putting this here since I think it will interest everyone even though its prospect oriented for the most part.
Back in Seattle for a second straight summer, baseball’s most recognizable agent squeezed through a small crowd of media members standing inside the Mariners dugout and climbed up to the top of the bench, saddling up next to his one of his newest clients, Ace Reese.
Scott Boras made himself comfortable in front of the cameras and recorders, and he sounded confident Reese would soon find a comfort zone of his own in Seattle.
And, indeed, Reese looked the part for much of his first round of batting practice at T-Mobile Park on Tuesday afternoon.
“Power in the big leagues, and power in Seattle, is a commodity — and certainly Ace brings that,” Boras said. “You can see he’s got man strength when you come in this ballpark and you can put him in the seats just like the major leaguers can.”
Reese, a 6-foot-4 third baseman/first baseman out of Mississippi State, was the Mariners’ first-round pick (No. 24 overall) in the MLB draft earlier this month. The 21-year-old left-handed hitter had his family with him for his first visit to Seattle to sign his first professional contract with the Mariners on Tuesday, for what sources have said is a $3.5 million signing bonus.
“It’s a dream come true,” said Reese, who shared batting-practice reps with 21-year-old rookie shortstop Colt Emerson. “Watching people play on fields like this when you were younger and then finally being here, it just gives you some motivation to get (back) here.”
Boras was back in Seattle for the second year in a row for the formal signing of the Mariners’ first-round pick. Boras also represents Kade Anderson, the 22-year-old left-hander whom the Mariners selected with the No. 3 overall pick in 2025.
Anderson, now a top-10 prospect in the game, is in the midst of a historic season at Double-A Arkansas, posting a 1.36 ERA with 108 strikeouts and 10 walks in his first 14 professional starts.
“He really has the skill and the command at such a young age,” Boras said. “And when he got into the league and wood bats took over, he got a different modality of how to pitch and what to do.”
American League pitcher Kade Anderson throws a pitch during the first inning of the the MLB All-Star Futures game against the National League, July 12, 2026, in Philadelphia. (Kyle Ross / Imagn Images via Reuters)
American League pitcher Kade Anderson throws a pitch during the first inning of the the MLB All-Star Futures game against the National League, July 12, 2026, in Philadelphia. (Kyle Ross / Imagn Images via Reuters)
The expectation is the Mariners, at some point later this summer, will have to consider calling up both Anderson and 20-year-old right-hander Ryan Sloan to augment the pitching staff in some capacity.
“They (the Mariners) have brought up guys from Double-A before,” Boras said. “And I would imagine that — I don’t know how this trade deadline is going to go, but I do know that with Kade, really of any pitcher in the minor leagues, there’s no one that’s been more dominant.”
Going into the 2025 draft, Boras said he had “earmarked” Seattle as the right landing spot for Anderson because of the Mariners’ reputation with pitching development.
“They know what they’re doing with the pitching category. They’re very good at it,” Boras said. “They don’t overthrow these guys. They keep them in boundaries. They have a routine with them when they throw once a week. They do a really great job. They don’t push players. They’re very thorough. So I always love to get pitchers here.”
When Anderson does arrive in Seattle, whenever that happens, Boras said he expects his client would be part of the Mariners’ starting rotation, not working out of the bullpen. In a potential playoff situation, though, Boras said he could see a scenario where Anderson could be effective as a reliever, “but they would have to prepare him for that.”
