Mariners' No. 5 Prospect Opens Eyes With Power Display in Spring Training Debut

The 2025 AL West champs have another exciting bat in their minor league system

May 20, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of the Seattle Mariners armed forces day hat in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Many Seattle Mariners fans are likely eager to see how their favorite team will build on their 2025 campaign, in which they came one win away from representing the American League in the World Series. That journey started with one of the team's top prospects helping the Mariners win their first spring training game of the season.

The Mariners defeated the San Diego Padres 7-4 on Friday, in part thanks to the offensive fireworks provided by Michael Arroyo, Seattle's No. 5 prospect in 2025 and MLB Pipeline's No. 67 overall prospect for 2026. The 21-year-old hit a two-run home run on an 0-2 pitch to plate Seattle's first runs of the spring, and then added a double in the right-center gap in his second and final at-bat of the game. Both hits traveled over 390 feet and had an exit velocity over 100 mph, according to MLB.com's Daniel Kramer.

While this is an extremely small sample size of spring training at-bats, Arroyo is already turning some heads in Seattle and leaving Mariners fans craving more.

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Outlook on Michael Arroyo heading into 2026

Feb 20, 2026; Peoria, Arizona, USA; Seattle Mariners shortstop Michael Arroyo (96) hits a two run home run in the second inning against the San Diego Padres during a Spring Training game at Peoria Sports Complex. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images | Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

Arroyo was signed by the Mariners in 2022 as a 17-year-old. Since then, he's hit .275 across four minor league seasons, including a 23-homer campaign in 2024 and 17 home runs last year. But he's still only 21 and has played just 56 games at Double-A, which means Mariners fans eager to see Arroyo in the big leagues soon probably need to remain patient.

While Seattle did lose a couple of infielders from last year's team in Eugenio Suárez and Jorge Polanco, they added Brendan Donovan in a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals. The Mariners' infield depth chart also features 2022 first-round pick Cole Young, who made his major league debut last year, and top prospect Colt Emerson.

With that in mind, there's seemingly no immediate need for Seattle to rush Arroyo's development in the minors. But if he keeps hitting the way he did in his first spring training game, as well as in the World Baseball Classic for Team Colombia, the 21-year-old could be a name to keep an eye on this year.

More MiLB: Top Mariners Pitching Prospect Dazzles Early in Spring Training