After the Milwaukee Brewers gave shortstop Cooper Pratt an extension — Pratt has never played a game in the major leagues — the Seattle Mariners decided to hop on the extension train. According to MLB Insider Robert Murray, the Mariners and infielder Colt Emerson are in agreement on an eight-year ($95 million) contract, which includes a ninth-year club option.
Emerson also has a full no-trade clause and escalators that can make the deal worth $130 million.
Emerson played at three levels in the Mariners organization last season (High-A to Triple-A) and batted .285 with a .842 OPS and 16 home runs in 130 games. In three games in Triple-A this season, he’s hitting .357 with a double, a home run and two RBI.
The Mariners are locking up their potential shortstop of the future
Emerson shouldn’t have long to wait to make his major league debut. The Mariners drafted Emerson in the first round (22nd overall) in the 2023 MLB June Amateur Draft from John Glenn High School in New Concord, OH.
Mariners’ everyday shortstop J.P. Crawford is on the injured list (shoulder) and has not played a game this season. In seven games in the spring, Crawford batted .125 with a .292 OPS.
Entering the final year of his five-year, $51 million contract, the Mariners are likely to let Crawford walk and hand Emerson the reins. With a looming work stoppage potentially stopping the 2027 season, the Mariners and others are making sure to lock up their prospects before the doors for making deals close. At 20 years old, Emerson would get the chance to become a free agent at 29, still in the prime of his career.