Marlins promote Griffin Conine to Major Leagues

[Kevin Barral]

The Miami Marlins are calling up the son of Jeff Conine, a 27-year-old outfielder who had been raking lately for their Triple-A affiliate. Griffin will debut with the same franchise that his father won two World Series titles with.

Following the conclusion of Sunday's game against the Chicago Cubs, the Miami Marlins announced that outfielder Griffin Conine has been called up. The son of former Marlins legend and current advisor Jeff Conine will have his contract selected from Triple-A Jacksonville to make his Major League debut on Monday in Denver against the Colorado Rockies. Craig Mish of SportsGrid broke the news first. Shortstop Xavier Edwards (lower back discomfort) will be going on the 10-day injured list to make room for Griffin on the active roster, per MLB.com's Christina De Nicola.

With this promotion, the Conines will become the second father/son duo to play for the Marlins organization. David and Ryan Weathers were the first.

Griffin, 27, was drafted by the Marlins in the 31st round of the 2015 MLB Draft, but did not sign as he went to play baseball at Duke. After three collegiate seasons, he would be drafted in the second round of the 2018 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Conine made it up to the Low-A level with the Blue Jays organization. In 2020, when there was no Minor League Baseball being played, the Marlins traded infielder Jonathan Villar to the Blue Jays in exchange for a PTBNL, which ended up being Conine.

Throughout his time in the the Marlins system, Conine has been a great power hitter. He ranked second among all minor leaguers with 36 home runs in 2021. The following season, he set the Pensacola Blue Wahoos record for most home runs in a single season at 24.

On the other hand, strikeouts have been the main issue holding him back. Conine's strikeout rate across parts of six MiLB seasons is 34.8%. He has lowered that to 29.5% in 2024, but that is still higher than all but six qualified MLB hitters. He isn't ranked on the latest Fish On First Top 30 prospects list.

Conine has been streaky this season. Overall, he is slashing .268/.350/.475/.825 with 19 home runs, 68 RBIs and a 113 wRC+ in Jacksonville. He really turned it on over his last 10 games with a .414/.514/.586/1.101 slash line. His production is far better against righties (.890 OPS) than lefties (.653 OPS).

Defensively, Conine's strong arm profiles best in right field. He can also play left if the Marlins plan to continue using Jesús Sánchez as their main right fielder.

The Marlins begin a week-long road trip on Monday, including four games against the Rockies and three against the San Francisco Giants. Conine could play his first home game on September 3 when they host the Washington Nationals.

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