The MLB draft was this past week, and the Mariners selected RHP George Kirby from Elon University in the first round with pick #20.
There had been some talk leading up to draft day that the Mariners would be targeting a high school infielder with this pick, with the specific names linked to the team New Jersey’s Anthony Volpe, defensively-plus Nasim Nunez, and fast-riser Keoni Cavaco. While both Keith Law at ESPN and FanGraphs reported the link between Seattle and a prepster, either the Mariners didn’t like the numbers they heard from those camps, or they player they truly did want to target (Cavaco) was gone at pick 20, as they went with college hurler Kirby.