Bellozo and Mazur shine as prospects lead comeback in spring opener

[Kevin Barral]

The Miami Marlins opened the spring with a 7-6 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.

JUPITER, FL—Marlins baseball returned on Saturday afternoon under first-year manager Clayton McCullough. Trailing 6-0 through six innings, young prospects drove in seven runs against the Cardinals bullpen to win by a final score of 7-6, marking back-to-back years where Miami has won its Grapefruit League opener.

Making the start for the Marlins was right-handed pitcher Valente Bellozo. His outing only lasted one inning, not allowing a hit and striking out two. After his fastball only averaged 89.2 miles per hour in 2024, his average fastball velocity ticked up to 92.3 miles per hour on Saturday. He topped out at 92.9 mph.

"Last year when the season finished, they told me to get stronger so I can maintain the velo," Bellozo said. "That was my goal for the offseason. I think all my breaking pitches were good, I threw strikes...The only thing was the velocity. I think velocity was good today."

Catcher Nick Fortes observed that Bellozo's fastball was "a little bit sharper, which showed that he was missing some barrels. Today, guys were swinging underneath, which is a good indication that he's spinning in the ball pretty well."

"Was in and around the zone with everything," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough following the game. "Easy to mix and match and be able to alter speeds and get us going on the right foot."

Following Bellozo was 23-year old Adam Mazur, who was one of four players acquired in the Tanner Scott and Bryan Hoeing trade. Mazur's biggest focus this offseason was fine-tuning his changeup and curveball.

"Same [curveball] grip from last year," Mazur said. "Just getting more comfortable with it because really started using the curveball more last year, so just kind of getting a full offseason with it under my belt has been a lot of fun and has really paid off."

Mazur also added a sweeper this week and threw it once on Saturday.

"It's kind of funky, like the release height is higher than usual," Mazur said. "It's getting a little bit more depth, which is kind of nice because it's kind of a two-plane pitch and it's not just straight across or straight down."

Mazur debuted in the majors with the Padres in 2024, making eight starts, but struggled posting a 7.49 ERA through 33 ⅔ innings pitched. For the Minnesota native, having that experience provides some comfort.

"I think to myself more and how I need to go out there and get out so it's definitely taking what I learned last year and apply it to this year and just try to get better every single day."

Fish On First's number ten prospect finished the day going one inning, not allowing a hit or run. He didn't strike out or walk anyone.

"Fell behind in some counts," said McCullough. "He was able to come back and pitch a clean inning. First one out of the way there, so it was good for him to have a clean 1-2-3 and I know he'll go back and say prioritizing strike one and staying ahead of people."

The following pitchers also entered in relief: Anthony Veneziano, Lake Bachar, Connor Gillispie, Luarbert Arias, Zach McCambley, Christian Roa, John Rooney and Matt Pushard.

Prospects were responsible for all seven Marlins runs. Brought over from minor league camp, outfielder Colby Shade drove in the first run of the spring in the bottom of the seventh inning. Non-roster invitee Heriberto Hernández hit a bases-clearing RBI double to make it a 6-4 game. Third baseman Jacob Berry grounded out to short, but still managed to drive in a run to make it a one-run game. In the bottom of the eighth inning, minor league Rule 5 selection Jack Winkler hit an RBI double to drive in the game-tying run. Fish On First number 11 prospect Joe Mack delivered the winning run.

"It's credit to what's been going on here the last year-plus," said McCullough. "Acquiring and infusing talent into our system and they come over into a major league spring training game for the first time for a lot of them and just go out there and play. They looked comfortable, they looked like they were at ease and just went out there and played."

 

The Marlins will drive about 40 minutes north on Sunday to take on the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie at 1:10 pm. Sandy Alcantara will take the mound for Miami. It will mark the first time he will pitch in an official game since September 2023. Expect a completely different group of position players from the ones who started the opener.

Sunday's game will be televised on SNY.

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[MarlinzDude86]

Nice seeing some promise at the bottom of the rotation. That competition for the fifth spot is great to see.

[rurrusuno]

Great to see prospects showcasing their talent in this remarkable comeback. That's a great sign of our farm system getting better. #CardiacFish