Taijuan Walker Hopes To Get Started

Ask Taijuan Walker to describe himself and he'll tell you that the Mariners selected a “considerate” young man with their supplementary round selection this year. Ask scouts to describe the 17-year-old they saw throwing mid-90s fastballs and “considerate” will probably not be the first word they use. They’ll tell you about a pitcher with a lively fastball and a promising, but inconsistent curve. Walker may soon be able to show those pitches off in the Mariners’ system, since he has tentative plans to sit down and discuss a deal with the M’s once he graduates from high school this week. “I want to get signed,” Walker said on a conference call today. Walker was a promising hitter in high school and admires Mariners bats like Ichiro and Chone Figgins, but doesn’t mind giving up on hitting to focus on pitching.