SURPRISE, AZ: Kade Anderson of the Seattle Mariners in a Spring Training game against the Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium on March 6, 2026. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Kade Anderson led Louisiana State to victory in the 2025 College World Series. The left-hander has been even better in 2026 for the Seattle Mariners’ Double-A team.
Try these numbers produced thus far in 2026 in his first nine starts as a professional for the Arkansas Travelers:
- 4-0 record, 1.43 earned run average.
- 26 hits allowed in 44 innings.
- 7 walks and 67 strikeouts.
TULSA, OK: Kade Anderson of the Arkansas Travelers sits in the dugout during a game against the Tulsa Drillers at ONEOK Field on April 19, 2026. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Anderson is standing tall. That’s directly because he can’t stand walking batters, as he told Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times in early spring training in February: “I think you can only control certain things as a pitcher and walking people is one. It really irritates me when I walk guys.”
Jerry DiPoto, the Mariners’ president of operations, said the plan is to be patient with the 21-year-old pitcher. Yet on the day the Mariners signed Anderson, DiPoto did not rule out a spot on Seattle’s staff sometime in 2026.
“Kade is polished,” Dipoto said last July. “He’s already pitched at the highest level, at the College World Series, and he’s done it arguably as well as anybody in the country.”
Asked if he thought Anderson would be MLB-ready in 2026, DiPoto said: “I don’t know. That’s a lot to ask of a guy, but we’re seeing more and more guys fly through systems. We have a pretty gifted group of pitchers, and I think Kade can learn a lot from them. That being said, he was the third pick for a reason. He was the top guy on our draft board for a reason.”
MLB.com agrees. He is ranked No. 6 in their Top 100 list for 2026.
The ‘Top Guy’ Everywhere
Anderson has always dominated. He posted incredible numbers at St. Paul’s High School in Covington, LA: 28-1 record, 0.22 ERA and 212 strikeouts. All of that was only through his junior year – when he had Tommy John surgery.
He missed all of 2023 and did not pitch again until his freshman year at LSU in 2024.
OMAHA, NE: Kade Anderson of the LSU Tigers pitches against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers in Game 1 of the NCAA College World Series baseball finals at Charles Schwab Field on June 21, 2025. (Photo by Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images)
Getty Images
Covington is about 75 miles east of LSU. “I was influenced to come to LSU because I am a true Tiger fan,” he said. “It was the only place I have ever wanted to go. To play at LSU was my dream ever since I was little.”
Anderson went 12-1 with a 3.13 ERA in 2025, striking out a nation-leading 180 in 119 innings on the way to winning the College World Series. The strikeout total is third-best in school history behind Paul Skenes (209 in 2023) and Ben McDonald (202 in 1989).
Skenes was the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2018 by the Pittsburgh Pirates; McDonald went No. 1 overall in 1989 to the Baltimore Orioles.
BATON ROUGE, LA: Ben McDonald of Louisiana State University pitching in April 1989. (Photo by Ronald C. Modra/Getty Images)
Getty Images
The Mariners made Anderson the third overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft and paid him an $8.8 million signing bonus. The 6-foot-2, 179-pound pitcher said before the draft he hoped to go to the Mariners, citing the organization’s ability to draft, sign, and develop these current starting pitchers.
2018: Pick No. 14, RHP Logan Gilbert, for $3,883,000.
2019: Pick No. 20, RHP George Kirby, $3,242,900.
2020: Pick No. 6, RHP Emerson Hancock, $5,700,000.
2021: Pick No. 113, RHP Bryce Miller, $400,000.
2021: Pick No. 174: RHP Bryan Woo, $318,200.
Ryan Sloan hopes to join the evential MLB list, too. The 6-foot-5 right-hander was picked in the second round, No. 55 overall, last year out of high school and got $3 million to sign. The 20-year-old is now Anderson’s teammate.
How Much Is Too Many?
Seattle’s wealth of starting pitchers has caused a bit of a bump in the road. Manager Dan Wilson is trying to fit six men into a five-man rotation. He recently used veterans Luis Castillo and Miller in a “piggyback” role three times. Castillo starts and Miller is brought in earlier than a usual reliever. Or vice versa.
“I was kind of asking, ‘Maybe one more inning?’” Castillo told Daniel Kramer of MLB.com after the first instance. “He told me that Bryce was ready. But as a competitor, you kind of want to go out there and just continue. But at the same time, you’ve got to respect his position. We knew that was part of the plan, and you’ve got to respect what his decision was.”
Three-time all-star Castillo, 33, was off to a rocky start but has pitched well in the abbreviated outings, lowering his ERA from 6.41 to 5.53. Miller, 27, opened the season on the injured list. He’s 1-0 with a 1.71 ERA, 20 strikeouts and 3 walks in 21 innings since coming back.
Kade Anderson’s Future With The Seattle Mariners
Anderson’s performance right now has fans clamoring for the kid to be called up. But there’s really no room for him in Seattle. A few more overpowering outings may get him 35 miles from T-Mobile Park – with the Tacoma Rainiers of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.
The PCL, with many teams playing at higher elevations, traditionally is heaven to hitters and a pitcher’s nightmare. Tacoma’s staff currently has a lofty 4.26 ERA – and that LEADS the league. The PCL average ERA is 5.45.
TACOMA, WA: Logan Gilbert of the Tacoma Rainiers pitches against the Salt Lake Bees at Cheney Stadium on May 29, 2025. (Photo by Nik Pennington/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
Minor League Baseball via Getty Images
Anderson’s confidence has been boosted in the Texas League, where his Travelers team has a league-leading 3.69 ERA.
A move up one notch will be foreboding. The Mariners often have skipped over the PCL with their best pitching prospects. Here’s what they did in Tacoma:
- Woo: 3 starts, 11 1/3 innings in 2024. He had been called up from Arkansas in 2023.
- Kirby: 1 start, 2 innings in 2022; 3 starts, 10 innings in 2025.
- Gilbert: 1 start, 5 innings in 2021; 3 starts, 9 2/3 innings in 2025.
- Miller: 5 starts, 19 innings in 2025 and 2026. He had been promoted from Arkansas in 2023 and was at Tacoma rehabbing from injuries.
- Hancock: 26 starts, 139 innings in 2024 and 2025.
The team has young position players on the rise, too. Three-time All-Star outfielder Julio Rodriguez, 25, is in his fifth season. Rookie infielders Cole Young, 22, and Colt Emerson. 20, are making an impact for a ball club with serious sights set on getting to its’ first World Series.
The Seattle Mariners lead the AL West. While there doesn’t appear to be room for him, Anderson could get a late-season call. A left-hander with his pedigree in the rotation or helping out in relief would not be a bad thing.