The Mariners added a pair of southpaws to their system Tuesday as they announced the signing of international pitching prospects Jing-Yu Chang and Blake Townsend.
Chang, 18, is a left-hander from Kaohsiung City, Taiwan, who is coming off a national high school championship with Kao Yuan Tech. He was the winning pitcher in that tournament's title game, and he is also a member of the Taiwanese national 18-and-under team.
Chang will join the 17-year-old Townsend in the Mariners' organization. Townsend, a native of Victoria, Australia, played with his country's 15-and-under national team at the Baseball World Cup in Japan in 2016. He also participated in Australia's 18-and-under squad's tour through Arizona this past April, during which he pitched against Major League talent in Spring Training action.
Mariners director of international scouting Tim Kissner projected both pitchers as potential starters in an official team release issued Tuesday. Seattle has enjoyed success with Pacific Rim pitchers before, including Hisashi Iwakuma and Kazuhiro Sasaki of Japan and Ryan Rowland-Smith of Australia.