Cole Young Is Becoming The Mariners’ Most Important Anti-Empty-Calorie Hitter

Young’s RBI total looks good, but the timing of those RBI is what changes everything.

Apr 27, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford (3) celebrates with second baseman Cole Young (2) after scoring a run against the Minnesota Twins in the fifth inning at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

There is a difference between production and production that actually changes the temperature of a game. Mariners fans know that difference very well.  That’s what makes Cole Young’s start fascinating. He’s giving the Mariners something much more valuable than empty offensive decoration. He’s showing up in the exact moments this lineup has too often wasted.

That is how a young player grows into one of the most important hitters on the roster before anyone has time to fully process it. The latest example came Wednesday against the Twins, when Young delivered a two-run single in the ninth inning to turn a late deficit into a 5-3 Mariners win. He finished 2-for-4 with three RBI, helped Seattle take two of three in Minnesota, and pushed his average from .233 to .286 during an 11-for-22 stretch. That changes the way we talk about a player who entered the season still needing to prove last year didn’t define him.  

Stay hot, Cole Young‼️ pic.twitter.com/edYbA85yfh

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) April 29, 2026

Cole Young’s clutch breakout gives Mariners fans a debate nobody saw coming

Young’s production has not been empty calories. It comes with plenty of protein in it. Even a little fourth-quarter-of-a-football-game energy. Seattle’s offense has spent years making fans suspicious of surface-level success. A few hits here, a solo homer there, an encouraging OPS bump that somehow still comes with a runner stranded on third and one out. We know the routine. The Mariners can look better without feeling better and they can make a pitcher work while still leaving everyone staring at the inning recap wondering how nothing actually happened.

Young is doing the opposite of that. Through late April, he has turned himself into one of Seattle’s most reliable run producers, leading the team with 19 RBI and a .777 OPS. The jump from last year’s .607 OPS is loud enough on its own, but the context is what makes it matter. This isn’t a second-year player getting hot in low-stress pockets. Young is finding ways to tie games, flip games, and make the Mariners’ lineup feel less fragile. If he keeps turning the bottom or middle of the order into a place where rallies don’t go to die, the entire Mariners lineup changes shape.

Suddenly, opponents cannot just survive the stars and exhale. Now, there’s another left-handed bat capable of making a late-inning bullpen plan uncomfortable. Suddenly, the Mariners have a second baseman who is not just defending well and blending into the background. 

Is it too early to call Cole Young the best second baseman in baseball? Absolutely. But is it too early to say he has forced his way into a conversation that would have sounded ridiculous a month ago? Not at all.

The defense helps along with the improved approach. The way he has responded after a rough rookie year helps even more. Young looks less like a prospect trying to survive and more like a player beginning to understand the assignment. That’s the leap the Mariners needed to see.