Offishial News: Too dependent on De La Cruz

[Ely Sussman]

Marlins news roundup for 5/9/24

On Wednesday, Ryan Weathers looked great against the Dodgers, particularly in terms of fastball command. Unfortunately, in the bottom of the sixth inning, Teoscar Hernández lofted a middle-middle changeup just out of the reach of Nick Gordon for a game-deciding two-run home run. Miami's only run production came on Bryan De La Cruz's eighth homer of the season. In his first series back from injury, Jake Burger went 1-for-12 with an infield single and five strikeouts. The Marlins lost, 3-1.

Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville won, 6-5. OF Victor Mesa Jr. hit a go-ahead, two-run home run in the 10th inning, his sixth dinger of the season. Double-A Pensacola won, 5-1. New acquisitions OF Jakob Marsee and 1B Nathan Martorella combined to reach base safely seven times. RHP Anderson Pilar has quietly thrown 14 ⅔ scoreless innings in his first season with the Miami organization. High-A Beloit swept a doubleheader, 3-2 and 3-1. Good starts from both RHP Jacob Miller (5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, 94 pitches/66 strikes) and LHP Emmett Olson (6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, 95 pitches/68 strikes). Low-A Jupiter won, 3-2. C Ryan Ignoffo (1-for-4, 2 RBI) continues to be one of the Hammerheads' only bright spot offensively.  

Here's more Marlins news and content for you:

🔷 For the third time in less than a full year, Edward Cabrera has been diagnosed with a right shoulder impingement. Each of the previous two times, it took roughly one month from suffering the injury for him to stretch out as a starter again. Cabrera set a career high with 99 ⅔ MLB innings pitched in 2023, but he won't be able to significantly build upon that following this latest setback. It's unclear how the Marlins will fill out their rotation around Jesús Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, Ryan Weathers and Trevor Rogers in the meantime.

🔷 Kevin Barral considers the Cubs a logical trade partner for Tanner Scott and wants to see the Marlins go for quality over quantity in such a deal.

🔷 In case you missed it, browse the updated Fish On First Top 30 rankings. The aforementioned Jacob Miller was our biggest riser since spring training, while DH Jacob Berry dropped the farthest.

🔷 This (pre-trade) Jakob Marsee interview from John Conniff of Mad Friars provides good insight into how our FOF #7 prospect thinks about the game.

🔷 MLB Pipeline shouts out Anthony Maldonado as a "potential future closer." Maldonado still hasn't yielded a run through his first six MLB appearances.

🔷 Former Marlins great Juan Pierre had the honor of banging the drum for the Florida Panthers prior to Wednesday's playoff win.

🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Pirates announced that baseball's top pitching prospect, Paul Skenes, will make his major league debut on Saturday. Marcell Ozuna's big night (2-for-3, 2 HR, 4 RBI) now gives him 12 home runs and 38 RBI in 2024 (leads the majors in both categories). The Blue Jays snapped the Phillies' 11-game home winning streak. Old friend Jorge Soler landed on the IL with a right shoulder strain. He had gotten off to a mediocre start to his Giants career, slashing .202/.294/.361 (94 wRC+) with five homers in 34 games played, translating to replacement-level value.

🔷 Today's MiLB schedule:

• Triple-A Jacksonville at Omaha, 7:35 p.m. ET
• Double-A Pensacola vs. Birmingham, 7:05 p.m. ET
• High-A Beloit vs. Peoria, 7:35 p.m. ET
• Low-A Jupiter vs. Palm Beach, 6:30 p.m. ET
• FCL Marlins vs. FCL Astros, 12:00 p.m. ET

 

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[THOMAS JOSEPH]

With the season unraveling early, one of the things we can be hyper-focused on is individual player progress. I truly do not understand why the Marlins shouldn't use this obvious no-pressure go-around to get some meaningful ABs in for guys like Edwards, Conine, Johnston, Myers, Mesa, Jr., Banfield, and others. Why not? Anderson is here for a few more months, Garcia is already a sunk cost, Rivera/Lopez/Bethancourt are expendable journeymen. Let's see what happens after the deadline and/or the next round of trades, which will likely open spots at the top club. I watched the first Wahoos game to see the new guys, which didn't disappoint. 

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

I heard Samson say he would let Skip go now since there is no point in a lame-duck manager. Although wags say that the Marlins don't want to pay another guy for this year, I figure it is mainly buying time and avoiding another PR hit. More of those are coming anyway, though. Schumaker benefits from any silver linings he can create and won't be held to account for the final result as he looks for his next position. Still, the F.O. has been working on a replacement since the obligatory offseason "philosophical" split, and it wouldn't surprise me to see a change late in the year when everyone has no more rage to vent. 

[One Regend]

5 hours ago, THOMAS JOSEPH said:

With the season unraveling early, one of the things we can be hyper-focused on is individual player progress. I truly do not understand why the Marlins shouldn't use this obvious no-pressure go-around to get some meaningful ABs in for guys like Edwards, Conine, Johnston, Myers, Mesa, Jr., Banfield, and others. Why not? Anderson is here for a few more months, Garcia is already a sunk cost, Rivera/Lopez/Bethancourt are expendable journeymen. Let's see what happens after the deadline and/or the next round of trades, which will likely open spots at the top club. I watched the first Wahoos game to see the new guys, which didn't disappoint. 

I wanted to see Edwards this season, but he's on the 60 day IL and there's a good chance we might not see him this season. I also disagree with Conine seeing playing time until he can figure out a way to cut down the whiffs. But the rest should honestly be given the green light. I think Mesa Jr and Johnston has done enough to show the team that they're ready for the big show. Johnston's shown he's been ready since last year. And with how disasterous the Fortes/Bethancourt experiment has been, it wouldn't hurt to give Banfield a shot at catching to see what he can do.

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

On 5/10/2024 at 6:20 PM, One Regend said:

I wanted to see Edwards this season, but he's on the 60 day IL and there's a good chance we might not see him this season. I also disagree with Conine seeing playing time until he can figure out a way to cut down the whiffs. But the rest should honestly be given the green light. I think Mesa Jr and Johnston has done enough to show the team that they're ready for the big show. Johnston's shown he's been ready since last year. And with how disasterous the Fortes/Bethancourt experiment has been, it wouldn't hurt to give Banfield a shot at catching to see what he can do.

Oh, yes. That's a shame about Edwards. Imagine what he could have done if healthy. Perhaps, it might have made a difference regarding Rivera or Lopez, although probably not Anderson. I hope eventually gets a full opportunity. Catchers in the Marlins farm system must surely be thinking there is a wide-open path for them to Miami.