Earlier this week, Seattle Mariners top prospect Kade Anderson was selected to represent the organization in the MLB Futures Game, which is a showcase for the top prospects in baseball. It takes place on July 12 as part of the preparation for All-Star Week in Philadelphia.

On Friday, Anderson will start for the Double-A Arkansas Travelers opposite St. Louis Cardinals' prized prospect Liam Doyle.

But really, all eyes are on when Anderson might make his first appearance in Seattle with the big league club.

The M's have made it clear that they are monitoring Anderson's innings with the hope that he'll have some left for the majors this season. It seems highly likely that Anderson will make his debut in the bullpen; the only question is when.

Speaking on the Thursday edition of the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast, ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney was asked about how long it could take for Anderson to transition from starter to major league reliever:

"Not long. And they've already started that transition with Kade Anderson, right, with some of what he's doing.

I think that he's someone who is going to definitely help them in the bullpen. And look, if you ask the player, because there are questions when a guy moves from the starting rotation into the bullpen. 'Okay, how do you learn the warm-up regimen? How do you recover? What's your throwing program? How much do you throw between starts? How much flat-ground work do you do between starts?'

Those are all things that you can talk about theoretically, but until you live them, when you play them out day by day, you don't really know how a player is going to adjust.

But I would tell you this: if you were to ask a minor league pitcher, "Hey, you can either start in the minor leagues or you can work out of the bullpen in the big leagues in a pennant race. Which would you rather do?"

They're not going to be deterred by the fact they have to come with this new regimen. It's just part of the learning curve for these guys. And so I think whenever the Mariners decide they have need, that's when they'll make that transition."

Drafted No. 3 overall out of LSU in the 2025 draft, Anderson has barreled through the Double-A ranks in his first exposure to professional baseball.

He's 8-0 with a 1.22 ERA in 13 starts. In 66.2 innings, he has 99 strikeouts and just 10 walks. Opponents are hitting only .162 against him. His ERA and his strikeout/walk ratio leads all minor league pitchers.

At the big league level, the Mariners are 45-43 and they'll start a new series with the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night at 7:10 p.m. PT.

The most recent 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast featuring Buster Olney of ESPN is out. You can listen here, or you can watch in the YouTube player below.

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!