Felnin Celesten heating up, Kade Anderson still on fire | Seattle Mariners extra
Welcome to The Seattle Times' Sunday inside baseball page, where we review the week that was on the diamond, highlight key trends with the Mariners and present our weekly MLB Power Rankings.
Stat of the Week
41
Rick Rizzs is in his 41st and final season calling Mariners games on radio, and Sunday's Mariners-White Sox game will mark his final broadcast in his native Chicago. Rizzs grew up on the South Side and graduated from Southern Illinois University in 1975. He announced plans to travel for just four Mariners road trips this season.
Ex-Mariner of the Week
José Caballero held onto the Yankees' everyday shortstop job even after former top prospect Anthony Volpe was activated from the injured list last week. Caballero has had a strong start to his first full season in New York, posting a 1.1 fWAR through his first 38 games with four homers, 13 steals and a 103 wRC+. The Mariners traded Caballero to Tampa Bay for Luke Raley in January 2024.
Who's Hot
Josh Naylor leads the majors with a .394 batting average in his previous 66 at-bats coming into the weekend, hitting three homers with three doubles, a 1.014 OPS and seven stolen bases since April 17.
Who's Not
Luis Castillo was touched up for four runs - on two two-run homers - on Saturday against the White Sox, raising his ERA to 6.57 in his first eight starts of the season.
Prospect Watch
Switch-hitting shortstop Felnin Celesten carried a 14-game hitting streak into the weekend for High-A Everett, during which he's hitting .453 (with 24 hits in 53 at-bats). Through his first 101 at-bats this season, Celesten, 20, had a .317/.413/.465 slash line (.878 OPS) with two homers, 20 RBI, seven doubles, one triple, 25 strikeouts, 17 walks and seven steals in 10 attempts.
https://twitter.com/MiLBMariners/status/2052593956861669717
Left-hander Kade Anderson, 21, the Mariners' No. 1 pithing prospect, was sensational again for Double-A Arkansas on Friday night, allowing just two hits and one run in 5.2 innings, with nine strikeouts and one walk. Right-hander Ryan Sloan, the M's No. 2 pitching prospect, followed with a strong start Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits, with six strikeouts and no walks in five innings.
https://twitter.com/MiLBMariners/status/2050382662863634722
In the Arizona Complex League, 18-year-old outfielder Yorger Bautista hit his first home run for the Mariners' rookie-level team Friday night, and it was a walkoff blast to send the M's to a 2-1 victory over the Giants' rookie team. Baseball America ranks Bautista as the Mariners' No. 12 prospect. The Mariners signed him out of Venezuela in January 2025 for $2.1 million.
https://twitter.com/MiLBMariners/status/2052973317641085210
Mariners Top 5: Who's down with OBP?
As part of the M's 50th season, we'll look back each week at the team's all-time leaders in various statistical categories. This week, we list the Mariners with the highest on-base percentage (OBP) in a career (minimum 2,000 plate appearances). Source: FanGraphs
1. Edgar Martínez, .418
2. John Olerud, .388
3. Phil Bradley, .382
4. Alvin Davis, .381
5. Ken Griffey Jr., .374
5. Alex Rodríguez, .374
Note: Edgar led the majors in OBP in 1995 and the AL in '98 and '99, and he posted the five highest OBP seasons in Mariners history each year from 1995-99. Ichiro led the AL with a .414 OBP in 2004, the year in which he broke the single-season hits record (262).
Power Rankings
MLB's definitive weekly rankings, from The Times' Adam Jude
1. Cubs (Last week: 4)
2. Braves (2)
3. Yankees (3)
4. Dodgers (1)
5. Rays (9)
6. Brewers (10)
7. Padres (5)
8. Guardians (7)
9. Reds (6)
10. Mariners (13)
11. Pirates (12)
12. Tigers (8)
13. Blue Jays (16)
14. A's (14)
15. Cardinals (18)
16. Rangers (11)
17. Royals (22)
18. Orioles (17)
19. Diamondbacks (15)
20. Phillies (21)
21. Nationals (26)
22. White Sox (23)
23. Marlins (19)
24. Red Sox (24)
25. Rockies (25)
26. Twins (20)
27. Mets (30)
28. Astros (27)
29. Angels (28)
30. Giants (29)
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.