Colt Emerson Called up by Mariners, Brendan Donovan Placed on Injured List
By Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - Hours before their Sunday Night Baseball game against the San Diego Padres to close out a three-game series, the Seattle Mariners are calling up top prospect Colt Emerson. Emerson is ranked as the Mariners #1 prospect and the #6 overall prospect in the Major Leagues, according to MLB Pipeline. He is also ranked as the #3 overall prospect according to Baseball America. The 20-year-old has been a name many fans of Seattle have wanted to see this season due to Brendan Donovan dealing with the recovery from his offseason sports hernia surgery, as well as struggles with production from the left side of the infield.
Emerson will wear the #4 when he debuts for the Mariners. At 20 years and 301 days old, he is the youngest Mariners player to make their Major League debut since Félix Hernández made his Major League debut on Aug. 4, 2005 (19 years, 118 days). He will also be the 2nd-youngest player to make their MLB debut this season, behind only Konnor Griffin-PIT (19 years old).
Seattle Mariners infield prospect Colt Emerson during a Spring Training game against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on March 14th, 2026. (Photos by Eric Hiller for Circling Seattle Sports)
Emerson joins a list of homegrown Mariners players who appear on the Mariners roster, alongside RHP Logan Gilbert, RHP Emerson Hancock, RHP George Kirby, RHP Bryce Miller, RHP Bryan Woo, C Cal Raleigh, INF Cole Young, and OF Julio Rodríguez. Both Raleigh and Rodríguez have also signed contract extensions with the team in recent years.
The corresponding move for Emerson, being recalled, is that infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan is going on the ten-day injured list with the left groin muscle strain that’s related to his sports hernia surgery this past offseason. The move is retroactive to yesterday, when he was a late scratch from the Mariners lineup, and manager Dan Wilson said postgame that the team needed to be flexible in handling his recovery from that surgery. We wrote more about Donovan’s recovery plan here.
Donovan wasn’t seen in the clubhouse pregame, although it was a somewhat lighter day considering the different start time for this game, and wasn’t doing infield drills with the rest of the Mariners. Connor Joe and Leo Rivas were taking reps at third base, but not Donovan.
Donovan, 29, appeared in seven games for the Mariners after being reinstated from his first stint on the ten-day Injured List (left groin muscle strain) on May 8th. Over 25 games this season, he is batting .274 with nine runs, four doubles, one triple, three home runs, eight RBI, and 11 walks, reaching base at a .386 clip with a .839 OPS in 101 plate appearances.
This story will be updated.
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