Colt Emerson was slated to spend Sunday afternoon playing in front of a few thousand fans at Triple-A Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium.
Instead, the Seattle Mariners’ top prospect ended up making his MLB debut in front of a nationally televised audience on NBC’s “Sunday Night Baseball.”
Mariners call up top prospect Colt Emerson to make MLB debut
After a whirlwind afternoon that included a quick drive up Interstate 5 to T-Mobile Park, the 20-year-old Emerson started at third base and batted ninth in the Mariners’ series finale against the San Diego Padres. In doing so, he become the youngest Mariners player to make his MLB debut since franchise legend Félix Hernández at age 19 in 2005.
Emerson’s promotion on Sunday coincided with third baseman Brendan Donovan being placed on the 10-day injured list with a left groin strain – his second trip to the IL for the same injury in less than a month.
“This wasn’t on my bingo card this morning,” Mariners general manager Hollander said. “I didn’t know that BD was going to be on the IL, … but we want to do the right thing for Colt, and we also want to do the right thing for the Mariners.”
Emerson, a consensus top-10 overall prospect in baseball, was widely expected to make his MLB debut at some point this season. It was seemingly only a matter of when – especially after Emerson further proved his readiness with a strong first month and a half in Tacoma.
Given Donovan’s health issues and the need for an everyday third baseman, the Mariners felt the time was now.
“This period will give (Emerson) some runway,” Hollander said. “This is not a 15-at-bat or a 20-at-bat tryout to see if he’s capable of taking the job and running with it for the rest of the year.
“I have zero concerns that he’s emotionally ready to handle it, that he’s mature enough to handle the day-to-day of the major league life. He certainly has the tools and skills to go compete at this level.
“You never really know with a young player until they get out there and show us what they can do, but we do have all the confidence in the world that he can go take the job and run with it.”
Emerson, a first-round draft pick by the Mariners in 2023, has rocketed through Seattle’s system.
Back in March, Emerson signed a reported eight-year, $95 million contract extension with the Mariners. At the time, it was the largest-ever deal for a player who had yet to reach the majors.
Emerson followed that with a strong showing in Tacoma, where he slashed .255/.347/.469 with seven home runs, one triple, eight doubles and an .816 OPS in 38 games this season.
Along the way, Emerson continued to show maturity beyond his years. According to Hollander, that was evident again when Emerson found out he was being called up.
“Colt (was like), great, I’ll be right there,” Hollander said. “Like, he was very matter of fact. There was no jumping up and down, no celebrating. It was like, I’m going to go pack my bag, I’ll head right up. He’s just wired that way.”
Ultimately, Emerson has been billed as the Mariners’ shortstop of the future. But with veteran shortstop J.P. Crawford currently entrenched at the position, Emerson’s more immediate future has figured to be third base – even if Donovan was healthy.
Donovan, a Gold Glove utility player in 2022, has plenty of positional flexibility, having manned every position except catcher and center field during his five-year career in the majors. So, if Emerson takes hold of the third base position, Donovan could move into more of a utility/designated hitter role.
Hollander said he doesn’t have a timeline for Donovan’s return, but hopes he can resume baseball activities in two to three weeks.
Donovan’s initial IL stint for his left groin strain lasted nearly three weeks. He also missed games due to a right groin issue and a hip problem. He reaggravated the left groin strain earlier this week during Seattle’s series in Houston against the Astros.
Hollander said the injuries are likely related to Donovan undergoing sports hernia surgery this past offseason.
“Between the off-season surgery and the groin strain, it’s definitely related,” Hollander said. “I’ve talked to the (club’s high performance) staff. They feel strongly that when you have the core surgery, you’re more susceptible to groin strains and core muscle strains after that for a little bit.”
Donovan will receive a platelet-rich plasma injection for his groin strain, as well as a different injection in his adductor, according to Hollander.
“I think the most important thing we can do is make sure that we’re putting him in position to go out there and feel good every day,” Hollander said. “Clearly, we need to take a step back based on how he felt yesterday after the Houston series and how he feels this morning.
“We did some scans this morning and he’s inflamed, it’s irritated and it’s back to where it was when he went on the IL the first time. So we need to get it right.”
Yet while it’s another setback for Donovan, the runway is now officially open for Emerson.
“He doesn’t have to come in here and do anything different than he’s always ever done,” Hollander said. “As (we) told him this afternoon, go have fun, go be yourself, go have fun, and the rest will take care of itself.”
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