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Mariners prospect Kade Anderson brings best stuff in minors to Futures Game PHILADELPHIA Its been an almost unfair union, that of dominant pitcher and an organization thats unparalleled at maximizing its arms.
And now, Kade Anderson and the Seattle Mariners are on the doorstep of unleashing their handiwork on the major leagues.
Anderson checked off yet another box on his high-speed ride from LSU to T-Mobile Park, earning the start and pitching a scoreless inning for the American League in the All-Star Futures Game Sunday, July 12, at Citizens Bank Park.
It was just a taste, 10 pitches for Anderson to display his wares.
Yet as the Mariners fight to stay near the top of the American League West, and Anderson continues to be untouchable, it may not be long until the worlds best hitters get a peek at what Andersons done to the Texas League this season.
Hes an amazing pitcher, Rainiel Rodriguez, the St.
Louis Cardinals top prospect and catcher at Class AA Springfield, tells USA TODAY Sports.
The first time I faced him, he was struggling a little bit and I got a hit off him.
Last time I faced him, he was way better.
Hes able to throw every pitch for strikes, locate every pitch he throws.
Hes nasty.
Yet the defining characteristic in both starts was this: Anderson was virtually untouchable.
As hes been all year.
Exactly one year after he was chosen third overall out of LSU, Anderson brings the finest resume to this Futures Game.
Nine of his 14 starts this season have been scoreless.
Hes struck out 108 in 72 2/3 innings, second-most punchouts in the minor leagues.
His 108-10 strikeout-walk ratio suggests mastery, and certainly justifies his consensus status as a top five prospect in all of baseball.
His 8-1 record and 1.36 ERA dont look right, not in an era when pitchers dont get deep into games and certainly not in the very hitter-friendly Texas League.
Blink, though, and you may miss him on his way to Seattle.
Youre probably not going to see an inning over 10 minutes, says Ryan Sloan, his Arkansas Travelers teammate and fellow Futures Game selection.
Hes going to go compete, hes going to throw every pitch for strikes, hes going to dominate.
When you see him give up a run, its like, Whoa, he doesnt let in runs.
The only question is, how soon will he be preventing runs in Seattle? 'I want to play this game a long time' Anderson was in big league camp along with Sloan this spring, and both were sponges.
Of course they were.
Seattles starting sextet of Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Emerson Hancock, Luis Castillo and Bryce Miller is baseballs deepest and probably best.
Gilbert, Kirby, Woo and Castillo are former All-Stars.
Theyve pondered a piggyback plan to best deploy all six, but the group in aggregate has been stout: They lead major league rotations in innings pitched and are third in strikeouts, sixth with a 3.65 ERA.
Given the traffic at the big league level, its not surprising that Anderson said the big boys advised him to keep his head down and stay focused.
Im really focused on myself, being patient through this process.
I feel like my time will come when it comes, Anderson tells USA TODAY Sports.
I dont want to play this game for this season.
I want to play this game for a long time.
At some point, though, the time will come when Seattle determines Anderson is undeniably one of its 13 best pitchers.
Toronto Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage was just the latest example of a top prospect unwrapped at seasons end, and he took a significant star turn last postseason.
Such a move would cap quite a ride for Anderson.
The Mariners lucked into him in a few ways, jumping several teams in the draft lottery to land the third pick last year.
In College World Series hero Anderson, the Mariners had a ready-made subject.
And he has thrived just as all those who preceded him did.
But its not the coffee in Seattle that makes them so good.
What is it? They simplify everything for you, says Anderson.
Obviously, everyones got data and analytics.
But they use the data to simplify everything and instill confidence in you.
The Mariners understand the process into getting hitters out.
They give you the confidence to throw things over the middle of the plate and good things will happen.
Anderson and the Cardinals Rodriguez agree on a massive leap Anderson made this year: His changeup.
Rodriguez faced Anderson in May and again July 3 and said it was an entirely different pitch.
Sloan, a right-hander drafted in the second round out of an Illinois high school in 2024, believes conviction is the Mariners secret sauce.
I continue to preach that they do such a good job instilling confidence in pitchers.
When you have confidence as a pitcher, its a dangerous thing, says Sloan.
The fact I can go out there and they have confidence in me to throw any pitch for a strike in any count and that its going to play.
If I throw it in a certain box it gives me a lot of confidence.
They just continue to say Hey, these pitches are really good.
Throw them there, and youll be a really good big leaguer.
They continue to say, Youre going to keep throwing your changeup even if you get hit.
Because its going to be really good in the bigs, so continue to throw it, get a feel for it.
Completing the process And now, Anderson is very close to finding that out himself.
While acknowledging the significant differences and greater overall talent in pro ball, hes now 14 months removed from his College World Series heroics at LSU.
Hes running out of levels to conquer.
Personally, I dont think the gaps that big, he says of SEC ball and the pros.
But I treat the game the same way.
When youve got nine hitters out there, you gotta get em out.
Doesnt matter whos in the box.
When youve got that kind of process, it makes it easier.
And with his Futures Game honor out of the way, Anderson is that much closer to completing the process to the big leagues.