While the Mariners are still looking for a new manager, a slice of their player development group has had its eyes on the club’s Arizona Fall League contingent. Last week brought a big bat, a busy bullpen line and one especially loud inning for the Peoria Javelinas.
The top offensive performer was first baseman Matthew Ellis, who earned hitter of the week honors after going 4-for-11 with two homers, five RBIs and two walks against just two strikeouts. One of those drives left his bat at 104.5 mph, and his three-game line settled at .364/.462/.909 for a 1.371 OPS.
Ellis, 26, has been in the organization since signing a Minor League deal in August 2024. An undrafted free agent out of Georgia Tech, he moved from Single-A Modesto to High-A Everett, where he spent all of last season and hit 17 home runs.
He was also at the center of the week’s biggest swing of momentum. Ellis went 2-for-4 with a homer, two runs and four RBIs in a game that featured an 11-run fifth inning for Peoria, pushing the Javelinas to a 13-5 win over the Scottsdale Scorpions.
NO. DOUBTER.
Mariners prospect Matthew Ellis caps off an 11-run inning for Peoria with a two-run MOONSHOT that disappears into the night sky. pic.twitter.com/eaIFoCWyjQ
- MLB's Arizona Fall League (@MLBazFallLeague) October 14, 2026
On the mound, right-hander Tyler Smith kept flashing the stuff that’s made his rise one of the more notable stories in the system. Across two outings, both against Scottsdale, he struck out four of the five batters he faced over 1 2/3 innings. Through four AFL appearances, he’s been scoreless in three, with no walks and only two hits allowed, good for a 0.55 WHIP.
Smith’s 2026 has already taken him through a maze. He started with the Nationals organization, was traded to the White Sox in Spring Training, then landed with Seattle ahead of the Trade Deadline in the Luis Castillo deal. The Javelinas are his fifth team this year, counting the clubs and affiliates he’s passed through on his way to the Fall League.
His time at the plate has been quieter - he went 2-for-12 last week - but Smith said the bigger value is in what he’s absorbing.
“Whether it's good or bad, there's always something to learn,” Smith told Mayo. “And knowing that now, it's just, ‘How can I surround myself with the best of the best?
And how can I come out better than what I came in going into the Fall League?’ That's my attitude.”
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