Bryan Woo, the 2025 All-Star, and Kade Anderson, the Mariners' top prospect, will both pitch on Friday night. And though they'll do so at different levels, they'll do so with the same mindset.
SEATTLE -- On Friday night, Bryan Woo and Kade Anderson will both take the mound for the Seattle Mariners organization.
Woo, the 2025 All-Star, will pitch in Anaheim against the Los Angeles Angels. It will be his first road start of the season after taking a no-decision on Saturday night in an eventual loss against the Cleveland Guardians.
Anderson, the team's first-round draft choice in 2025 out of LSU, will pitch for Double-A Arkansas against Midland. It will be the first start of his professional career, as he did not pitch professionally after getting drafted last year.
And even though they'll take the mound hundreds of miles apart, they'll do so with the same focused approach that has become ingrained in M's pitchers for years.
They are proof that the team's organizational philosophy is resonating up and down the system.
See, back in February, I had the opportunity to be at spring training and talk to Anderson after a dynamic live bullpen session on the backfields of the Peoria Sports Complex.
I asked him about his willingness to pitch to contact and to go right at hitters that included Cal Raleigh, Mitch Garver, Julio Rodriguez and Rob Refsnyder.
Yeah. I think as a Mariner, that's what we do. We go right at guys, seeing what it's all about. And if you give up a hit, you go right back at them. I think that's the mentality we have.
On Saturday, I was in Seattle and asked Woo essentially the same question. After seeing him pepper the strike zone all night, I asked him if he'd always been willing to attack the zone or if it was something that picked up as he'd matured.
"No, I'd say it's something that the Mariners, they preach early on as you get drafted, and just their pitching philosophy overall. Definitely wasn't how I pitched in college. And then, getting into the system, they kind of just give you a different mindset in terms of showing you just the success that you can have when you're in the zone more often and not nibbling corners as much, but attacking the middle of the zone more often."
Two pitchers at very different points in their career journeys. Two mounds separated by hundreds of miles. One similar philosophy that shows just how connected the M's are at multiple levels of the organization.
Proof that the system works.
The Mariners play the Angels at 6:38 p.m. PT while Anderson pitches at 5:00 p.m. PT.
JOIN THE CONVERSATION:
Remember to join our MARINERS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Mariners fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!