The Next Wave: Reese's Low-A Rampage, Sloan Strikes Out 33 in His Last Four
By Taylor Anderson ·
The Next Wave covers the last 7 days of action for the Mariners farm system.
Ace Reese Has Not Wasted a Single At-Bat
Ace Reese (A, 3B, Rank: 3) went 9-for-21 this week at Inland Empire with two doubles, a homer, six RBI, and a walk against just one strikeout across 21 plate appearances. That single strikeout might be the most remarkable number in the line. Over his last 30 days, he is slashing .429/.532/.671 with three home runs, eight doubles, and 19 walks against 11 strikeouts across 94 plate appearances. His season walk rate sits at 19.0 percent with a strikeout rate of 12.0 percent. Those are not misprints. Through 100 plate appearances at Low-A, he is hitting .440 with a 19-walk, 12-strikeout ledger, which is the profile of a hitter who understands what pitchers are trying to do and refuses to let them do it.
The tools here are 65-grade raw power from the left side paired with a 55 hit tool, and through a month-plus of professional action, both grades look conservative. His swing rate sits at 40 percent, right at the edge of selective territory, and a 77 percent contact rate means he is not posting empty swings when he does go. The defensive picture at third base remains complicated: below-average range, limited lateral quickness, and a large frame that may push him to first base long term. The offensive bar is higher at first, and it is worth watching how the power translates as the level rises. But right now, more walks than strikeouts plus genuine pull-side power in a brief professional sample is a legitimately rare combination, and a push to High-A Everett before the season ends seems like the only logical next step.
Ryan Sloan's Last Month at Double-A Has Been Something
Ryan Sloan (AA, RHP, Rank: 2) went five innings this week against Double-A hitters, scattering six hits and four earned runs while walking no one and striking out seven on 78 pitches. The outing was a bit of a blemish in what has otherwise been a dominant four-start stretch: over his last 30 days at Arkansas, he has posted a 2.91 ERA across 21.2 innings with 33 strikeouts, one walk, and a 0.83 WHIP. The walk suppression is the defining feature. One free pass in more than three weeks of Double-A work, with a strikeout rate of 40.7 percent over that span and an efficiency mark of 13.4 pitches per inning, describes a pitcher operating with total conviction in his stuff and his locations.
The tools behind it are a 55-grade fastball sitting 95-97 with a two-seamer that gives him additional movement looks, a slider and curveball at 50 grades each, and 55-grade command that has consistently shown up in his numbers. His season line at Double-A reads 3.70 ERA through 97.1 innings, 124 strikeouts, 14 walks, and a 3.5 percent walk rate. Twelve home runs allowed on the season connect to the one real liability in the profile: when the fastball or secondaries drift into hittable areas against experienced lineups, damage can happen fast. This week's four-run outing was a reminder of that. The changeup still grades at 45 and sits behind the other three offerings, which limits his ceiling some and is the primary developmental point between where he is and a mid-rotation projection. A No. 4 starter floor with upside toward No. 3 depending on how the changeup develops is where this lands, and I would lean toward the better outcome given how young he is relative to the level.
Quick Hits
- Luis Suisbel (A+, 3B, Rank: 30) · went 11-for-29 with three doubles, two homers, and four RBI across 29 plate appearances at Everett. The two-homer week pushed his season total to 19 at High-A, a meaningful step forward from the 23 he posted across an entire 2025 campaign at the same level. His last-30-day numbers tell the story of a player who has flipped a switch: slashing .354/.430/.659 with five home runs and 10 doubles over 93 plate appearances. The contact rate has ticked up to 76.7 percent over that stretch while the strikeout rate has dropped to 15.1 percent, both improvements over his full-season marks. He is a switch-hitter with real pull-side power, a 55 grade in that department, though the 40-grade hit tool and some chase concerns still define the ceiling conversation. The floor is a power-first bat that stalls at Triple-A, but August and September have made that outcome look less likely.
- Jonny Farmelo (AA, OF, Rank: 4) · posted nine hits, two doubles, a triple, three RBI, and five walks across 29 plate appearances at Arkansas. The power has gone silent since his promotion to Double-A: zero home runs over his last 30 days at the level, with a .258/.375/.366 slash line and a contact rate of 67.9 percent. He spent the bulk of 2026 thriving at High-A Everett, where he posted a .267/.386/.477 line with 13 homers and 26 steals across 399 plate appearances, but the adjustment to Double-A arms has exposed his swing-and-miss tendencies. He is an everyday center field projection with 60-grade speed, a plus walk rate at 16.1 percent over the last 30 days, and 40 stolen bases combined this season. The hit tool and contact rate against upper-level spin will determine whether this is a developmental speed bump or something more structural.
- Michael Arroyo (MLB, LF, Rank: 7) · drove in six runs on seven hits, including a double and two triples, across 26 plate appearances in his final week at Tacoma before his September 6 contract selection by Seattle. He got his first big-league plate appearances shortly after. Combined across Double-A and Triple-A in 2026, he is slashing .281/.357/.468 with 18 homers and 17 stolen bases across 535 plate appearances. He is a 55 hit tool bat with a 50 power grade whose value comes from his ability to make contact and post on-base numbers without giving at-bats away. The arm and range cap his defensive versatility, but the bat has done what it needed to do to earn this shot.
- Mason Peters (A+, LHP, Rank: 20) · tossed four innings of one-hit, zero-run ball with six strikeouts and two walks, generating eight swinging misses on 64 pitches. His season ERA at Low-A sits at 1.43 across 50.1 innings with a 35.1 percent strikeout rate, but the promotion to High-A Everett has been a different story: 4.50 ERA, 11.7 percent walk rate, and three home runs allowed in 14 innings. This week's outing was the strongest of his four High-A starts, and the 55-grade fastball sitting 95-97 paired with a 55-grade curve gives him enough to work with. The reliever projection stems from a limited changeup and durability questions, but Friday's line was the start that keeps the starter conversation open.
- Luke Stevenson (A+, C, Rank: 11) · went 8-for-31 with a double, two homers, six RBI, and five walks across 31 plate appearances at Everett. The two homers gave him 22 on the season, a strong total for a catcher at High-A. Over the last 30 days he is slashing .229/.396/.494 with seven home runs, which keeps the power grade looking right even as the contact rate has dipped; his strikeout rate over that span is 33.0 percent. He is a patient lefty bat with a 20.7 percent season walk rate and a 55-grade arm behind the plate, and the power-on-base combination gives him an everyday projection at catcher if the contact holds at upper levels.
- Colton Shaw (A+, RHP, Rank: 16) · worked 5.1 innings allowing one earned run on five hits, with four strikeouts, one walk, and 11 swinging misses across 81 pitches at Everett. His last-30-day ERA sits at 2.75 over 19.2 innings with a 5.9 percent walk rate and zero home runs allowed in that stretch, a stretch that looks considerably cleaner than his season 4.43 ERA. He is a sidearm right-hander whose value comes from movement and deception rather than velocity; the sinker grades at 50 and the changeup at 55, with the sweeper giving him a lateral look against righties. The projection is a long-relief or multi-inning bullpen role, and the recent results support that path.
- Nick Becker (A, SS, Rank: 10) · went 2-for-22 with four walks and eight strikeouts across 22 plate appearances at Inland Empire, a rough week that fits into a difficult last-30-day stretch: he is hitting .164 with a 30.6 percent strikeout rate over 85 plate appearances. His contact rate over that span sits at 59.7 percent. The strikeout totals against Low-A arms are a real concern for a 19-year-old with a 50-grade hit tool projection. The profile still carries value: a 60-grade runner with genuine on-base instincts, a 19.2 percent season walk rate, and enough athleticism to stick at shortstop. The bat-to-ball piece has to improve, and it has not been there lately, but the tools and age give him room to work through it.
- Felnin Celesten (AA, SS, Rank: 6) · was placed on the 7-day injured list at Arkansas with a groin strain on September 2. He had posted a .314/.409/.534 line with 13 homers and 18 stolen bases in 364 plate appearances at High-A Everett earlier this season, but the jump to Double-A has been rough: .171/.239/.268 across 134 plate appearances before the IL stint. The tools are real and the High-A production was legitimate. The Double-A adjustment and the groin issue give the offseason some questions to answer.
- Lazaro Montes (MLB, RF, Rank: 5) · was selected from Triple-A Tacoma on September 1, arriving in Seattle after posting a .274/.369/.571 line with 13 homers across 203 Triple-A plate appearances this season. He also slashed .234/.369/.550 with 25 home runs at Double-A Arkansas, giving him 38 homers combined across two levels in 2026. The power is the carrying tool, and the September roster spot is a chance to show it against big-league arms.