At long last, the Seattle Mariners are set to call up top prospect Jarred Kelenic. Kelenic is expected to join the big-league team this Thursday, reports ESPN's Jeff Passan. GM Jerry Dipoto recently said Kelenic's promotion was drawing ""

Kelenic, a 21-year-old outfielder, is 8 for 18 (.444) with two home runs in four Triple-A games this season. He swatted both home runs on Opening Day, and he authored an impressive .291/.364/.540 batting line with 23 home runs in 117 games at three minor-league levels in 2019. Kelenic spent 2020 at Seattle's alternate site.

Our R.J. Anderson ranked Kelenic the No. 3 prospect in baseball before the season. Here's his scouting report:

The Mariners are averaging 4.06 runs this season, eighth fewest in baseball, and they were no-hit by John Means last week. Seattle's outfielders are hitting a woeful .201/.287/.391 this year. Kelenic figures to step in as the full-time left fielder alongside Mitch Haniger and reigning AL Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis.

Former Mariners president Kevin Mather made headlines in January when he said Kelenic rejected a long-term contract extension, and that the team planned to keep him in the minors long enough to push back his free agency. That has happened -- Kelenic can not become a free agent until the 2027-28 offseason now rather than 2026-27 -- so he is being called up.

Of course, the MLBPA is likely to file a grievance on Kelenic's behalf, alleging blatant service time manipulation. Kris Bryant lost his service-time grievance to the Cubs because he could not prove he was held down for service-time reasons. In Kelenic's case, a high-ranking team executive all but admitted he would to be held down to delay his free agency.

The Mariners will play a quick two-game series with the Dodgers on Tuesday and Wednesday. They will open a seven-game homestand with the first of four against Cleveland on Thursday, so Kelenic will debut at T-Mobile Park.

Seattle acquired Kelenic in the Robinson Canó/Edwin Díaz trade with the Mets. New York selected him with the No. 6 pick in the 2018 draft.