‘Crushed that one, huh?’ Mariners top prospect Jarred Kelenic tags first spring training homer
Jarred Kelenic called his shot before it happened.
Before he stepped up to the plate in the eighth inning Monday afternoon, the Seattle Mariners top prospect studied Rockies pitcher Alexander Guillen.
“I called it — in the most non-arrogant way possible,” Kelenic said. “I looked at his fastball and I just said to Carson (Vitale), our field coordinator, ‘Listen, man. If I get one heater, I’m going to hit it out. I swear.’
“The rest is history.”
Kelenic got the fastball he was looking for on the first pitch, and one loud crack of the bat later, the baseball bounced on the berm and over the sidewalk — well beyond the 385-foot fence in right center.
He offered a sly smile when describing his first Cactus League dinger after the game: “Crushed that one, huh?”
Fans chased after the landmark homer — Kelenic’s first in a Mariners uniform — as he raced around the bases, pointing at the dugout triumphantly after he rounded third.
“He said that he was going to hit a home run if the guy threw a fastball, and he did,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “He was pretty excited about it.”
When the game ended, a few minutes after his homer ignited the crowd, Kelenic sprinted toward left field, where his parents, girlfriend and other family members waited for him.
Kelenic was glad they all got to see the first one.
“The whole crew,” he said. “It’s pretty special.”
The Mariners eventually lost, 9-6, but Kelenic’s two-run shot offered a glimpse into what Seattle hopes is a bright future for many of its young prospects.
“It’s still early, so as a team we’re just trying to get our reps in before we have to break, before the regular season starts — no matter where we’re going,” Kelenic said. “Unfortunately we lost today, but we’re still making really good strides.
“It might not look like that to all the fans here, but the meetings that we have, everybody is on cue. We’re all working together, and we’re going to be ready.”
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREHow will we cover spring training in 2020?
The Seattle Mariners are ready to report to spring training and so is The News Tribune. Beat reporter Lauren Smith will be on the ground in Peoria, Ariz., from the first full squad practice. And our coverage will continue through the final roster decisions at the end of March, bringing fans the latest on the second year of Seattle’s rebuild. Click on the arrow in the top right for more.
Looking to the future
While the Mariners aren’t exactly expected to contend for a playoff spot in 2020, these six weeks of preseason workouts and games will give us a closer look at some of the top prospects — like outfielders Jarred Kelenic and Julio Rodriguez, and former first-round draft pick Logan Gilbert — expected to be key pieces of the club’s future, and some of the young players battling for Opening Day roster spots. We’ll also be able to catch up with the more experienced players — like veteran third-baseman Kyle Seager and ace pitcher Marco Gonzales — already in Seattle’s clubhouse.
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This story was originally published March 2, 2020 at 3:34 PM.
