Farm Report: Wilson a late bloomer for Mariners

In 2001, the Mariners spent a second-round draft pick on Mike Wilson, a high school athlete who excelled in football but seemed to have the physical tools to succeed in baseball.

But coming into 2006, Wilson was an overage prospect in the lower levels of the minor leagues.

"I scouted him out of high school," a former American League scout said of Wilson. "He was a great athletic prospect, but you never know how natural talent will take to (full-time) baseball. He really struggled to show off any extraordinary skills in his first few years."

Wilson, 23, put up unspectacular numbers in the Arizona Rookie League in 2002, his first season as a pro, hitting .238 and averaging one home run every 40 plate appearances.

The lack of offense prompted the club to return Wilson to the rookie league in 2003. His numbers improved, but he was anything but on the fast track.

After the 2004 season, in which Wilson hit .259 with nine home runs and 51 RBIs at short-season Everett, the Mariners began to treat the Tulsa, Okla., native as a sink-or-swim prospect. He was either going to start performing or fall by the wayside.

Wilson responded. The 6-foot-1, 240-pounder slugged .435 with 19 home runs for Class A Wisconsin in 2005 in a league that heavily favors pitching.

He moved up another level to begin 2006, hitting .318 at advanced Class A Inland Empire, and then was promoted to Double-A San Antonio, where he is hitting .303 with eight home runs.

"You know when someone is starting to get it when they continue their success at the next level," an AL scout said.

"He's had the ability all along," Mariners minor league hitting instructor Glenn Adams said. "He's just putting things together now. He's taking what he's learned over the past few years and using it at the plate. That's the tough part -- taking instruction and using it effectively. Mike is one of our most pleasant success stories."

RELIEF HELP: The wealth of quality relief pitchers in the system is almost embarrassing. Right-handers Emiliano Fruto and Stephen Kahn have shown scouts enough to convince them of their major league futures, while Mark Lowe is turning the big leagues into his playground. Southpaw Eric O'Flaherty is putting up zeroes for Triple-A Tacoma.

And then there's Craig James, who has served as a setup man for the better part of the year at Double-A San Antonio. He has flown under the radar with his 3-3 record and one save. But the rest of his stat line is impossible to miss. James has a 2.10 ERA in 36 games and has struck out 49 batters in 55 2/3 innings. His two worst outings removed, the former 16th-round draft pick of the Giants has produced a 1.05 ERA.

"He's been a rock down there," Mariners minor league pitching coordinator Pat Rice said. "Very solid, someone the club can count on every day and he's really taken the steps he needed to this year. He's always put up the numbers, but now he's doing it with an eye toward the big leagues."

PROSPECT HOT SHEET

1. Jeff Clement, C, Tacoma (Triple-A): Forget about the .241 average and .318 on-base percentage. Clement is regaining his batting eye for the first time since his seven-week DL stint. The catcher has seven walks this month to just nine strikeouts.

2. Anthony Butler, LHP, Everett (Short-season Class A): Butler has allowed five hits in 17 2/3 innings with Everett -- just two in his past two starts, covering 10 innings. In that span he's struck out 16.

3. Alex Liddi, 3B, Peoria (Rookie): Liddi is hitting .327 with a .523 slugging percentage in his first pro season. Some scouts believe the Italian native is among the best third-base prospects in the lower minors. Liddi turned 18 on Monday.

4. Carlos Peguero, OF, Everett (Short-season Class A): Peguero is just 1-for-15 since his promotion to Everett, but there is no denying his power potential. One NL scout calls Peguero a .250 hitter with a major league power bat.

5. Ryan Feierabend, LHP, San Antonio (Double-A): Feierabend hit a bump in the road in his last start but has gone 8-3 with a 3.21 ERA since June 9. The lefty is well on his way to the big leagues in the next year.

6. Travis Blackley, LHP, San Antonio (Double-A): Still rolling along with solid performances in Double-A, biding his time until the big club comes calling -- perhaps next month. His 3.87 ERA is more than could be expected coming into the season.

7. Casey Craig, OF, Inland Empire (High Class A): Craig, 21, has hit .316/.387/.488 since joining Inland Empire in late June. The left-handed hitter has strong on-base skills and his bat packs 20-homer power.

8. Eric O'Flaherty, LHP, Tacoma (Triple-A): O'Flaherty, 21, has tossed 3 2/3 scoreless innings since his promotion to Triple-A Tacoma last week. He could soon be summoned to the big leagues to join the fully homegrown Mariners bullpen.

9. Chris Tillman, RHP, Everett (Short-season Class A): Tillman's stuff is unquestioned, as his 21 strikeouts in 13 2/3 innings shows. His command (nine walks) is the first obstacle for the second-rounder to hurdle.

10. Gerardo Avila, 1B, Wisconsin (Class A): The Mariners shipped Avila, 20, who left the Arizona Rookie League as the co-leader in long balls, to Class A Wisconsin to challenge him. In his second game with the Rattlers, Avila went 3-for-4.

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