Seattle Mariners’ Top Prospect Kade Anderson Dominating Double-A

BusinessSportsMoneySeattle Mariners’ Top Prospect Kade Anderson Dominating Double-AByChuck Murr,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Chuck analyzes and writes about baseball, soccer & other sports.Follow AuthorJun 03, 2026, 07:15pm EDTSURPRISE, AZ: Kade Anderson of the Seattle Mariners in a Spring Training game against the Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium on March 6, 2026. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)Getty ImagesKade Anderson led Louisiana State to victory in the 2025 College World Series. The left-hander has been even better in 2026 for the Seattle Mariners’ Double-A team.Try these numbers produced thus far in 2026 in nine starts as a professional for the Arkansas Travelers:4-0 record, 1.43 earned run average.26 hits allowed in 44 innings.7 walks and 67 strikeouts.TULSA, OK: Kade Anderson of the Arkansas Travelers sits in the dugout during a game against the Tulsa Drillers at ONEOK Field on April 19, 2026. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)Getty ImagesAnderson is standing tall. That’s directly because he can’t stand walking batters, as he told Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times in early spring training in February: “I think you can only control certain things as a pitcher and walking people is one. It really irritates me when I walk guys.”Jerry DiPoto, the Mariners’ president of operations, said the plan is to be patient with the 21-year-old pitcher. Yet on the day the Mariners signed Anderson, DiPoto did not rule out a spot on Seattle’s staff sometime in 2026. “Kade is polished,” Dipoto said last July. “He’s already pitched at the highest level, at the College World Series, and he’s done it arguably as well as anybody in the country.”Asked if he thought Anderson would be MLB-ready in 2026, DiPoto said: “I don’t know. That’s a lot to ask of a guy, but we’re seeing more and more guys fly through systems. We have a pretty gifted group of pitchers, and I think Kade can learn a lot from them. That being said...