Forget the acronym TINSTAPP—There Is No Such Thing As a Pitching Prospect—at your own peril. While the Mariners, in recent years, have had a high degree of success in drafting and developing pitching prospects, especially starters, the tongue-in-cheek acronym reminds us that, as rocky the trip is to blossoming from minor- to major-leaguer, a pitching prospect’s journey to the bigs is more like the 99-bend road.
The Mariners took Isaiah Campbell with their supplemental draft choice in 2019, making him for all intents and purposes a second-rounder. As Campbell led his Arkansas Razorbacks on a playoff run deep into the College World Series, the staff ace looked for all the world like a surefire starting pitcher at the next level with his big, durable starter’s body and a deep arsenal of pitches.