SEATTLE -- Even after missing half of last season while recovering from major knee surgery, Mariners outfielder Kyle Lewis has again cracked the MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Prospects list, which was released on Saturday.
The 22-year-old outfielder was ranked 70th heading into the 2018 season after posting a .257/.329/.412 line with seven home runs and 31 RBIs in 49 games split between Class A Advanced Modesto and the club's Rookie-level Arizona League squad.
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Lewis spent the first half of the 2017 season working back from surgery to repair his anterior cruciate ligament as well as the medial and lateral meniscus in his right knee after a home-plate collision the previous July, just a month after being selected by the Mariners in the first round of the 2016 Draft out of Mercer University.
• MLB Pipeline's 2018 Top 100 Prospects list
The annual ranking of MLB's Top 100 Prospects is assembled by MLB Pipeline Draft and prospect experts Jonathan Mayo, Jim Callis and Mike Rosenbaum, who compile input from industry sources, including scouts and scouting directors. It is based on analysis of players' skill sets, upsides, proximity to the Majors and potential immediate impact to their teams. Only players with rookie status entering the 2018 season are eligible for the list. Players who were at least 25 years old when they signed and played in leagues deemed to be professional (Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Cuba) are not eligible.
Lewis was pulled out of the Arizona Fall League after two games in late October when some soreness popped up again in the knee, but he's used the offseason to get back to full speed and says he's 100 percent heading into Spring Training.
"I'm doing great. This is the best I've felt in about a year and a half," Lewis said. "I'm really excited. I'm getting ready to go. I expect this to be a fully strong, fully healthy year."
Lewis showed what he can do at the end of last season, when he hit .393 with a homer, triple, double and six RBIs in six playoff games to help Modesto win the California League championship.
"That was a lot of fun for me," he said. "Making a playoff run and being able to play competitive ball again after being out so long, being able to contribute and play well did a lot for my confidence. I felt like I was getting back into the rhythm of being a ballplayer again. That was fulfilling. And winning made it all the sweeter."
Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said the club will wait to see how Lewis performs during Minor League Spring Training before deciding whether to start him out this season at Modesto or bump him up to Double-A Arkansas.
Either way, the primary goal this year will be to get a full, healthy season under the youngster's belt and see where that takes him.