ARKANSAS TRAVELERS TOP PROSPECTS
When Texas League All-Star center fielder Ian Miller got called up to Class AAA Tacoma on July 22, Bishop was called up from Class High-A Modesto to fill in for Miller, who had hit .326/.382/.430 with 29 RBI and 30 stolen bases. Bishop, the Seattle Mariners’ No. 5 prospect, according to MLB.com, exceeded Miller’s batting lines, hitting as high as .383/.444/.426 within his first 12 games. Selected by the Mariners in the third round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Bishop played 31 games for the Travs with a .336 batting average, a triple, a home run, 11 RBI and 6 stolen bases. Andrew Moore 23 RHP 6-0 185
The opening day starter for the Travelers for the second consecutive season, Moore made his major league debut last season. He started nine games for the Mariners and went 1-5 with a 5.34 ERA. Drafted out of Oregon State in the second round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Moore ascended through the Mariners farm system all the way to the majors in three seasons. Seattle optioned Moore to Class AAA Tacoma on March 11, then optioned him to the Travs for opening day.
Art Warren 25 RHP 6-3 230
Warren spent the entirety of the 2017 season in the Class High-A Modesto bullpen, where he pitched 642/3 innings in relief with a 3-1 record, 3.06 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. He is Seattle’s No. 8 prospect, according to MLB. com, which says his fastball ranges from 94-98 mph. The Mariners selected Warren in the 23rd round of the 2015 MLB Draft, and he began his career as a starting pitcher. In 2016, he went 9-1 with a 2.19 ERA in Class A Clinton, which earned him a midseason Midwest League All-Star selection. Anthony Misiewicz 23 LHP 6-1 190
Misiewicz (pronounced MI-SEV-ITCH) went on a boomerang trip on the transaction boards at the end of last season. Seattle first included him in a package trade to the Tampa Bay Rays, which gave the Mariners catcher Mike Marjama and RHP Ryan Garton. Then, the Mariners sent a reported $1 million to the Rays in international pool money Dec. 13 to get Misiewicz back. The left-handed starter is Seattle’s No. 19 prospect, according to MLB. com, which says his fastball ranges from 88-92 mph. Misiewicz went 3-3 with a 4.35 ERA in 7 starts for the Travs last season. Chase De Jong 24 RHP 6-4 205
De Jong was named Texas League Pitcher of the Year in 2016, when he went 14-5 with a 2.86 ERA for the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Class AA Tulsa Drillers. Afterward, he was traded to Seattle. He made his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2017, went 0-3 with a 6.35 ERA, went 3-6 with a 6.00 ERA at Class AAA Tacoma, then went 1-3 with a 5.97 ERA with the Travelers. Seattle’s No. 21 prospect, according to MLB.com, De Jong pitched six innings in the Mariners’ spring training and gave up three earned runs and struck out two.
Darin Gillies 25 RHP 6-4 220
Gillies was the Travelers’ second most-used reliever last season, with 592/3 innings in 39 games. The right-hander, ranked as Seattle’s No. 26 prospect according to MLB.com, had a 3-3 record in 2017 with a 3.32
ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Gillies added a changeup to his arsenal, which includes a fastball and slider. Seattle selected him in the 10th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, and he pitched 71/3 innings with a 6.14
ERA in the Arizona Fall League last year.
Chuck Taylor 24 OF 5-9 190
Taylor was named a Texas League All-Star last season after hitting as high as .386/.481/.538 by May 31. His batting average dwindled to .274 by season’s end, and he spent the offseason playing in the Venezuelan Winter League working on his pitch selection. Taylor hit .333/.401/.412 in 59 games with Cardenales de Lara, while also hitting 10 doubles and driving in 31 runs. Selected originally by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the fourth round of the 2012 MLB Draft, the Mariners picked up Taylor in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft. He is now their No. 28-ranked prospect, according to MLB.com. Joe DeCarlo 24 C 5-10 210
DeCarlo was originally drafted as a third baseman when Seattle selected him in the second round of the 2012 MLB Draft, but last season he converted to catcher while at Class High-A Modesto.
He slashed .240/.346/.415 with
13 home runs and 46 RBI. His caught stealing percentage was 25 percent (11 CS, 33 SB). DeCarlo went 4 for 6 with an RBI and a strikeout in spring training for the
Mariners. Seattle sent DeCarlo to last season’s Arizona Fall League, where he was 3 for 23 (.130) with
2 RBI and had a 30 percent caught stealing percentage (3 CS, 7 SB).