Kings in Spring (March 22)

In today’s 9-5 Mariners victory over the Chicago White Sox in Peoria, right-hander Tom Wilhelmsen (’10) struck out all three batters he faced — Brent Morel, ageless-wonder Omar Vizquel and Brent Lillibridge – in a perfect seventh inning.  Even more intriguing, his catcher was Steven Baron (’10).

I figured on Wilhelmsen staying in camp this late with a potential shot to make the 25-man roster as a reliever, but the fact that the 20-year-old backstop Baron is still with the big club makes me wonder if he isn’t bound for High Desert or even higher.  Baron, who struggled offensively in his first taste of the Midwest League last season, is hitting .667 (6-for-9) with a double, home run and two RBI in nine Cactus League games.  Yes, it’s Spring Training, but it’s also impressive that he’s stuck in camp this long alongside a host of experienced catchers fighting for a roster spot (Adam Moore, Miguel Olivo, Josh Bard, etc.).  We’ll see what this experience means for the 2009 supplemental first-round pick.

That’s all for now.

-DL