The Mariners and top shortstop prospect Colt Emerson are in agreement on an eight-year contract extension, according to a report from Robert Murray of FanSided. The deal guarantees Emerson $95MM and includes a club option for a ninth season. That guarantee is a record for a player who has not yet made his MLB debut. The deal also includes a no-trade clause for the ACES client and can max out at over $130MM after incentives.
Emerson, 20, beats the previous record guarantee for a player without any MLB service time (previously held by Jackson Chourio) by $13MM. It’s not hard to see why the Mariners are giving him a guarantee that nearly reaches nine-figures before even seeing him take a single MLB at-bat, however. The youngster is a consensus top-10 prospect in the sport and rocketed through the minors last year. After starting 2025 at the High-A level, he walked at an excellent 13.1% clip and swatted 32 extra-base hits in just 90 games. That forced the issue enough to earn him a promotion to the upper minors and, across 40 games between Double-A Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma, Emerson slashed .293/.383/.470 in 188 plate appearances. That would be an impressive slash line for any player, but even more so for a 19-year-old who plays quality defense all over the infield.
More to come.
