Mariners takeaways: Jarred Kelenic returns, Luis Torrens continues hot streak
Jarred Kelenic is back.
The Mariners’ highly-touted top prospect — and the fourth-ranked prospect in all of baseball — was recalled Friday from Triple-A Tacoma, and returned to a Seattle team chasing its first postseason appearance in 20 years.
Kelenic’s May 13 debut was as highly anticipated as any in recent Mariners history. And while his second career game included his first major league hit — a third-inning home run that padded an already-existing Mariners lead — Kelenic’s production began to decline. When he was optioned back to the Rainiers on June 7, he had yet to break out of an 0-for-39 stretch.
In his second stint back in Tacoma, Kelenic picked up where he left off before his first big league call-up. He mashed .320 in 30 games for the Rainiers. He crushed nine homers. The Mariners, still in position to contend for a postseason spot, brought him back following the All-Star break.
And so Kelenic, who celebrated his 22nd birthday Friday, is once again in a Mariners uniform. He snapped what eventually became an 0-for-42 slump on Friday with a late-game single, and hit safely in all three games of Seattle’s series in Los Angeles over the weekend.
Despite the pressure put on Kelenic to instantly produce for a Mariners team with long-awaited postseason aspirations, manager Scott Servais has one message to the young outfielder.
“I just want Jarred to be Jarred,” Servais said before his big league return Friday. “(I want him) to come in and help the ball club any way he can.”
It’s a simple formula Servais wants Kelenic to follow — just be himself. Put together solid at-bats. Play solid defense. Run the bases well. They’re all things Seattle’s skipper believes Kelenic can do at the big league level.
Around the time Kelenic debuted in mid-May, Servais suggested that Seattle’s top prospect placed pressure upon himself to match the hype surrounding him.
“Maybe he put a little bit on himself there to get off to a fast start and (tear) it up, and all of those other things, and it didn’t happen for him,” Servais said.
It was a necessary decision, Servais said, to send the outfielder back to Tacoma in June. Approaching the game in smaller increments may be the key for more success in Kelenic’s second go-around.
“Don’t look at it (like), ‘OK, I’ve got to have this many hits to get my average over this number.’ It doesn’t really matter,” Servais said. “Whatever he can do to help us win a ballgame tonight, that’s what we need to focus on doing, and I’m pretty sure that’s where his mindset is at.”
As Kyle Lewis continues to recover a torn meniscus — Servais said last season’s American League Rookie of the Year has yet to resume baseball activity — and it’s expected Kelenic will play an every day role in the Mariners lineup.
A “soft landing” back into the big leagues was never the expectation, but for a left-handed hitter like Kelenic, facing a group of left-handed pitchers throughout Seattle’s win Friday didn’t exactly make things any easier.
He closed the chapter of his 0-for-42 slump anyway, and gave the Mariners dugout a smile.
“Not too many players who go 0-for-42 aren’t happy when they get a hit,” Servais said with a chuckle. “It didn’t surprise (me) when he had a big smile on his face, and hopefully it relaxes him a little bit.
“I’m looking forward to watching him play. He’s a good player. He just got out to a slow start his first time around.”
TORRENS SHINES IN JUNE AND JULY
Luis Torrens has a knack for hunting pitches at the plate.
If the Seattle catcher knows that the opposing pitcher has an out-pitch — a slider, split-finger, you name it — Torrens will go up to the plate looking for it.
Since being recalled from Triple-A on June 15, Torrens is hitting .268 and has mashed eight homers, a promising power surge from the 25-year-old.
“When guys get to that level of confidence, and he’s looking for (a certain pitch), he puts a good swing on it,” Servais. “He’s not afraid to take a chance, and I think you need to do that once in a while in this league.”
Torrens struggled offensively before his option to Tacoma, hitting .178 in the months of April and May. He worked on hitting the high fastball, and spraying the ball around, particularly to right center.
When he’s doing just that, Torrens is at his best, Servais said.
He was acquired by the Mariners in the seven-player trade with San Diego last summer, and from then on during the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened season, Servais thought Torrens swung the bat well. He has the ability to get a situational hit in the important moments. He moves runners along. He makes intelligent swing decisions, and knows the strike zone.
“The combination of staying with his approach, and then focusing on some areas of growth, it’s paying dividends for him,” Servais said. “I think his at-bats are very good, very competitive. … He makes adjustments in the course of at-bats, so he’s doing a lot of good things offensively.”
And as top catching prospect Cal Raleigh, who debuted ahead of the All-Star break last week, integrates himself into the lineup moving forward, Torrens is too valuable of a bat to keep out of the lineup, Servais says.
Even if he isn’t behind the plate, Torrens will often find himself in the role of designated hitter. In Tacoma, Torrens received reps at first base, and the plan is for Mariners to eventually play him in the infield as well.
Tom Murphy and Torrens are still in line to receive catching time, but Torrens appears to have positioned himself firmly in the Seattle lineup, regardless of where he is defensively.
His fourth-inning home run in Sunday’s win over the Angels propelled Seattle to what then became a 3-0 lead.
“I think Luis has a really good approach right now more than anything,” Servais said. “He has a definite plan, and he’s staying with it.”
RAINIERS OUTFIELDER ERIC FILIA IS AN OLYMPIAN
After helping the United States qualify for the Olympics, Eric Filia hoped for the chance to join the team in Tokyo. He was confident, but had to wait for the confirmation call.
Then, the phone rang.
It was skipper Mike Scioscia, calling to notify Filia that he had made the team. He was going to be an Olympian.
“It was surreal,” Filia said of the moment he got the news. “I gave it my all, so I tried to have as much confidence as I can of hopefully making the team, and try to do my part in the qualifier. I’m glad I got picked.”
For those who follow the Rainiers, Filia is a familiar name. The Mariners’ 20th-round pick in 2016, he has appeared in 62 games for Tacoma in this season as well as 2019, bookending a scrapped minor league year in 2020.
He’s hitting .247 in 27 games for the Rainiers this season — along with two homers — but his June 5 home run for the United States in its win over Venezuela that clinched an Olympic appearance may have been his most important yet.
“Playing with passion,” Filia said. “Passion’s huge. You can see it on the field when you’re playing for your country … it’s different. And not letting the moments get bigger than they actually are. It’s still the same game. It’s still baseball. (You’ve) still got to have fun, so (I’m) just trying to capture the moment, live in the moment, and just enjoy the moment.”
Team U.S.A. convened and practiced Saturday at their national training complex in North Carolina. The team “got their feet wet” regarding the Olympic experience, in Filia’s words.
It’s different gearing up for a trip to Tokyo than it is in minor league baseball, Filia admits. It’s a new team, a new coaching staff, and you’ve got to go in with an open mind.
There’s also the task of building camaraderie among a brand new group, though Filia prides himself on the mental aspect of baseball.
“You have to switch pages,” he said.
So far, the Rainiers right fielder has enjoyed every second of it. He’s looking forward to the opening ceremony, as well as the opportunity of standing on the podium if the United States takes home the gold.
In the opener of a three-game exhibition series against the Collegiate National Team, Filia drove in two runs on a first-inning, two-out single that jump-started Team U.S.A. to an 8-3 win Sunday night.
“When we win gold, hearing the national anthem, I’m excited about that … and when we win gold, being on the podium,” Filia said. “That’s going to be bone-chilling.
“I’m very humble. Very grateful. I’m trying to leave an imprint on my last name, on my family, on my kids, and hopefully this is a thing in the right direction to do that.”
INJURY UPDATES
▪ Servais announced Sunday that outfielder Jake Fraley was placed on the COVID-19 injured list after receiving a positive test.
Outfielder Dillon Thomas was recalled from Tacoma in a corresponding move.
“(The concern level) is relatively high with what’s going on around the league,” Servais said. “It’s certainly affected other clubs, players coming back after the All-Star break and having exposure. I think we all see what’s going on in our country. There’s been a spike in the COVID cases, and it is concerning. … We’re not out of the woods (from it) and it’s one of the reasons it’s so important, certainly in my opinion, to get vaccinated.”
Fraley missed the entirety of the weekend series against the Angels. As of Sunday, he is the only Mariner to have received a positive test, and the team will continue following contact tracing protocols. Fraley will miss at least 10 days.
▪ Servais announced Friday that first baseman Evan White will miss the remainder of the season after electing to undergo hip surgery.
White, who won a Gold Glove last season, last appeared for the Mariners on May 13. In 30 games for Seattle this season, he slashed at .144/.202/.237.
“He was trying to work through where he was at … could he get back, and try to get back onto the field for us this year? He decided the best for him (was) to go ahead and have surgery,” Servais said.
▪ Lewis, still recovering from a torn meniscus suffered in the outfield May 31, has yet to resume baseball activity. Servais said Lewis is moving around and feeling better, and is continuing his workouts, but has yet to swing a bat.
▪ Starting pitchers Justin Dunn (right shoulder inflammation) and Justus Sheffield (left forearm strain) are also on track to return from their IL stints.
Both are throwing, and Dunn could return to the field in roughly a week. Sheffield has yet to take the mound in practice, but is up and throwing.
ON DECK
Seattle has an off day Monday before heading to Denver for a brief, two-game set with the Rockies. The Mariners split their series against Colorado at T-Mobile Park last month.
Marco Gonzales takes the mound Tuesday at Coors Field, as the Mariners face off against Colorado’s German Marquez. The Rockies’ All-Star starting pitcher took a perfect game into the sixth inning in Seattle on June 23.
The Mariners return to T-Mobile Park for a seven-game homestand Thursday, which features two AL West opponents. Oakland arrives Thursday for a four-game set, as the Mariners look to continue building momentum in the Wild Card race. A three-game series immediately follows Monday against the division-leading Astros.