Marlins to be 'active participants' in free agency to upgrade bullpen, lineup for 2026

[Ely Sussman]

Published on Wednesday following Peter Bendix's end-of-season press conference, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports that the Miami Marlins will not be as complacent during the offseason as they were during Bendix's first two years on the job. "At the very least, Miami will try to add an established bat and bullpen help; they’re willing to make competitive offers for players they decide to target," according to Jackson.

The only major league free agent deals that Bendix has done as Marlins president of baseball operations were one-year contracts for potential bounce-back candidates Tim Anderson ($5 million guaranteed) and Cal Quantrill ($3.5 million). He also picked up Eric Wagaman ($770k) on a split contract and Wagaman ended up sticking in the majors for the entire season. None of those acquisitions meaningfully made the team better.

The Marlins bullpen had an effective 2025 season overall, ranking fifth in win probability added. However, that unit was only 24th in MLB in strikeout rate. Going after relievers with premium swing-and-miss stuff and a track record of effectiveness against left-handed batters would make a lot of sense.

Wagaman's primary position, first base, is the most obvious spot for the Marlins to shop for offensive help, as Kevin Barral explained for Fish On First. Perhaps Agustín Ramírez eventually moves to that position, but Bendix insisted during the presser that Ramírez will continue to focus on improving behind the plate for the time being.

The Marlins had MLB's lowest payroll in 2025. Only Sandy Alcantara ($17.3M) and former Fish Giancarlo Stanton ($10M) and Avisaíl García ($5M) are currently on their books for 2026. Arbitration-eligible players include Edward Cabrera, Braxton Garrett, Anthony Bender, Max Meyer, Ryan Weathers, Calvin Faucher and Andrew Nardi. Of that group, Cabrera is projected to receive the most substantial raise (salary in the $5M-6M range).

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[Guest]

If the Marlins do anything in the free agent market it will probably be just to do SOMETHING because they have been criticized for doing NOTHING. As usual, it will be something CHEAP, hoping to get lucky by getting someone for not a lot of money who will then have a career year. I've seen these kinds of moves for YEARS. In 2012 they went for Heath Bell rather than other pitchers. They went for Jose Reyes when Albert Pujols turned them down. Recently we had Avisail Garcia. And Wei Yin Chen. There were several guys like Martin Prado and Placido Polanco. Rafael Furcal. Edinson Volquez.

The Marlins should SPARE US THIS BULLCRAP this year and instead of throwing money away on "has been types" and "never was types" just to prove to MLB that they are NOT just sucking up luxury tax money, use that money on THEIR OWN GUYS so they don't leave the firast chance they get.

 

[rurrusuno]

Give me Pete Alonso!!! 

[THOMAS JOSEPH]

Some thoughts here. No one can tell the future, however, the consensus outlook for the CBA is ominous. Combine that with the usual and necessary Marlins frugality, I figure any FA deal is unlikely or only for the 2026 season. Trading Cabrera at high value and while healthy, perhaps the deal will be sweetened with an outfielder, seems logical to me. Both positions have abundant options. If we agree that first base needs an upgrade, who can the Marlins target? Although we can name any number of  affordable options, returning to my first statement pushes me to the conclusion that there will be internal options. Ramírez is the obvious, despite Bendix's proclamation. I don't really buy the iconic Ron Washington "it's incredibly hard" comment about first base. The team has time, a plethora of coaches, and an elite athletic foundation to build upon. Like many of us, De los Santos was the fast answer for the future first baseman. That's dimmed quite a bit. 

[One Regend]

I'm not buying into Bendix's statement on keeping Gus behind the plate. If he's been watching ball, he knows just how absolutely dreadful Gus and his defense was as a catcher. I want to believe that, as an analytics nerd, Bendix is not stupid enough to ignore analytics that are staring him right in the face with blaring red flags.

But if he really does hold true to his word and continue to stubbornly start Gus behind the plate, then it'd be a crime not to have Gus at least take groundballs at 1B during practices and pre-game workouts. The fact he wasn't doing that at all this year was already damning all on its own.