Mariners snag highly-rated shortstop on first day of international signing period

The Seattle Mariners on Monday signed nine players on the first day of the new international signing period, and the jewel of the haul being Noelvi Marte, who is ranked as the No. 4 overall prospect available by Baseball America.

Marte, a 16-year-old shortstop from the Dominican Republic, is 6-1 and 181 pounds and projects as a potential 25-30 homer bat. Scouts say he’s got good mechanics and athleticism although some think he might outgrow the position as he matures. The deal, according to sources cited by MLB.com, is worth $1.5 million.

“Our scouts identified Noelvi Marte as a player with impact speed and power,” Tim Kissner, the Mariners’ director of international scouting, said in a press release issued by the team.

“Those skills, combined with his ability to hit, pushed him to the top of this international signing class. His makeup and instincts for the game are well above average, and we believe he will excel once he begins working with our player development group.”

Of the nine players the Mariners signed four were infielders: Marte, Asdrubal Bueno (Venezuela), Luis Chevalier (Dominican Republic) and Carlos Fernandez (Panama).

They also signed outfielder Jonathan Clase (Dominican Republic) and first baseman/outfielder Gabe Moncada (Venezuela) and left-handed pitcher Jose Aquino (Dominican Republic) and right-handers Adbiel Medina (Panama) and Wilton Perez (Dominican Republic).

“We’re very excited about the versatility of this group,” Kissner said. “It’s a well-balanced class of pitchers and position players who all possess the athleticism and the character to progress through our Minor League system. Each of the nine players we signed today has the skills and the makeup to make an impact in our organization over the next several years.”

Diaz honored again

For the second time this season, closer Edwin Diaz was selected as the American League Reliever of the Month for June.

Diaz, who also won the award in April, converted 12-of-13 save opportunities and posted a 1.88 ERA in 14 games. He struck out 20 in 14 1/3 innings while leading all AL relievers in saves for the month.

For the season, the Mariners closer leads the majors with 32 saves while averaging 14.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

On tap

The Mariners continue their nine-game homestand by opening a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Tuesday.

Scheduled pitchers for the 7:10 p.m. first pitch are Andrew Heaney (4-5, 3.95 ERA) for the Angels and Wade LeBlanc (3-0, 3.38) for the Mariners.

The game will be broadcast by ROOT Sports.

This story was originally published July 2, 2018 at 7:15 PM.