Mariners lock up first-round slugger Ace Reese

Seattle didn't waste much time. Ace Reese, the third baseman the Mariners took 24th overall out of Mississippi State, is officially off the board and in the organization after agreeing to a $3.5 million signing bonus, just under the $3,818,700 slot value for that pick.

Jim Callis

@jimcallisMLB

As reported by @DKramer_ on @MLBDraft day, Reese agreed w/@Mariners for $3.5 million (slot 24 value = $3,818,700) & officially signed today. @HailStateBB 3B, tremendous lefty power, 45 HR in two seasons w/@Bulldogs.

Reese's path to the first round wasn't a straight line. He started his college career at Houston before transferring to Mississippi State for 2025, and the move paid off fast — SEC Newcomer of the Year that season, then first-team All-SEC at third base this year. Over his two years in Starkville he slashed.341/.425/.719, an eye-popping 1.144 OPS that had scouts drooling over the raw pop in his lefty swing.

For a Mariners org that's built its recent pipeline almost entirely on pitching and toolsy prep bats, grabbing a college third baseman with legitimate over-the-fence power is a change of pace. Reese is reportedly Seattle's first college position player taken in the first round since Evan White back in 2017, and White's up-and-down big league path is a reminder that college bats aren't automatic sure things, even when the numbers look this loud.

The bonus itself tells its own story. Signing a shade below slot at $3.5 million against the $3,818,700 value gives Seattle a little extra bonus-pool flexibility to spread around on other picks who might need overslot money to buy out college commitments. It's a common July chess move for teams, and it suggests the front office had a plan for that saved money elsewhere on the board.

Now the real work starts. Reese heads into the Mariners' player development system as one of the more advanced college bats in this year's class, with the kind of raw power that profiles as a middle-of-the-order threat if the hit tool catches up at the pro level. Seattle's farm system has a real chance to add a corner power bat that's been missing from the upper levels, and how quickly Reese moves through the minors will say a lot about whether this pick ages as well as it looked on draft night.