Versatile contact-hitting machine Javier Sanoja called up by Marlins

[Ely Sussman]

Having just turned 22 earlier this week, Sanoja would be easily the youngest player used by the Marlins in 2024. He's a rare recent example of a homegrown hitting prospect panning out.

One of the Miami Marlins' most fascinating prospects, Javier Sanoja, was selected from Triple-A Jacksonville on Saturday, as first reported by Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase. Among the club's many pregame roster moves, outfielder Derek Hill was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left shoulder impingement.

One of the many separators between Sanoja and Hill is durability. Sanoja has played 257 MiLB games over the last two seasons alone, most among all Marlins minor leaguers during that span.

Another factor distinguishing Sanoja from his peers is his stature. The Venezuelan infielder/outfielder is only 5'7". By listed height, he will be the shortest position player in Marlins history! The lone Marlins major leaguer to measure less than 67 inches tall was right-handed reliever Richie Lewis (5'6"), who pitched for the Fish from 1993-1995.

The shape of Sanoja's journey has been uncommon as well. Currently Fish On First's 16th-ranked Marlins prospect, he received a modest $90k signing bonus in 2019. Due to the impact of COVID, he had to wait until July 12, 2021 to make his official minor league debut. Now, less than three years removed from facing fellow teenagers in the Dominican Summer League, he is on the verge of debuting in The Show.

In 110 games with Triple-A Jacksonville this season, Sanoja has slashed .294/.357/.435 (106 wRC+) with six home runs and 14 stolen bases. His strikeout rate is even more diminutive than his body—Sanoja's 6.4 K% (Jacksonville and Double-A Pensacola combined) is the best of any qualified MiLB hitter to play at a full-season level in 2024. He sacrifices quality of contact in order to make contact with virtually everything, though he is capable of crushing balls in certain situations with a respectable max exit velocity of 109.3 mph. He is also somewhat disciplined with nearly as many career walks as strikeouts.

The distribution of Sanoja's defensive reps has been unlike anything the Marlins have done with their other notable prospects. With the Jumbo Shrimp, he has played 300-plus innings at second base, shortstop and center field, practically an even three-way split between those positions. He isn't a plus fielder, but that versatility is obviously valuable.

I want to emphasize how rare it is that a position player originally signed/drafted by the Marlins has reached the big leagues with them. Sanoja will be joining Nick Fortes as the only "homegrown" hitters to appear in a game for the Fish this season. It shouldn't be that hard! This speaks to how inadequate the organization has been at hitting development, necessitating all the personnel turnover we've seen throughout the last calendar year.

Sanoja was not in the Marlins starting lineup against the Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday, but likely will be for Sunday's series finale.

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[Hans Herrera]

Isn’t today a beautiful day?

I really wish Javier the best. I hope that he takes advantage of this opportunity, and can stick around on the roster beyond this season.

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

It's good to get an MLB look at Sanoja. 

Regarding the general injury situation in MLB:

I'll make the same point that I made a few days ago. I watch a lot of baseball, and players seem to get hurt or shaken up on every play that is not spectacularly routine. It's amazing to me. Although this is obviously an anecdotal statement, I wonder how many long-time baseball fans agree with me. I became a fan in 1972, skipping fifteen years between 2004 and 2019 after the Expos moved to DC, before resuming in 2019 with a good friend who is a Nationals fan. So, perhaps something changed in my fifteen-year hiatus that players are seemingly eggshell delicate. Are there more HPBs, or is it the pitching velocity? Players are armored up, which one would think helps mitigate things. No? On the other hand, the game is supposedly faster and "better" than ever before. The players are supposedly "better" than ever before. Huh. Thinking on that.

[Ely Sussman]

4 hours ago, THOMAS JOSEPH said:

Are there more HPBs, or is it the pitching velocity? Players are armored up, which one would think helps mitigate things. No? On the other hand, the game is supposedly faster and "better" than ever before. The players are supposedly "better" than ever before. Huh. Thinking on that.

I believe the leading factor contributing to the increase is a cultural change within baseball. Pitchers are incentivized from a young age to throw with max effort on every pitch. They are willing to risk severe injury because they'll still be coveted if the quality of their stuff is exceptional enough.

On the position player side, teams are more willing than they used to be historically to allow guys a couple weeks to fully heal rather than rushing them back within a couple days.

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

Good points with which I agree and they stimulate some thoughts that I may expound upon soon. Thanks.