Fish On First Prospects Report: Compton on verge of 30 homers; Taylor's hitless streak snapped

[Kevin Barral]

For the 2026 season, Fish On First will provide weekly reports on the Miami Marlins farm system, covering all levels. This is the first check-in since the Dominican Summer League season concluded, leaving only full-season affiliates participating in official games moving forward.

This report covers the games played from August 11-18.

 

Triple-A Jacksonville

The Jumbo Shrimp posted a 2-4 week against the Syracuse Mets. Karson Milbrandt started the Saturday game, where in five innings of work, he allowed three runs on five hits, two walks and struck out seven. That was actually among his "best" starts since being promoted to the Jumbo Shrimp. The right-hander now owns a 7.65 ERA, 6.86 FIP, 8.50 K/9 and 7.65 BB/9 in 42 ⅓ innings pitched. After a dominant start at the Double-A level, Milbrandt is experience failure and hopefully learning from it.

Jack Ralston recently had his contract selected, but has been optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville, yet to make his Marlins debut. The month of August has been the worst of his 2026 season up to this point, posting a 6.23 ERA in four appearances. Overall, he has a 1.70 ERA, 3.86 FIP, 11.26 K/9 and 4.32 BB/9 in 58 ⅓ innings pitched.

In his first appearance for the Jumbo Shrimp, waiver claim Wikelman González surrendered two runs on no hits, but walked three. He tossed just one inning.

It took until Tuesday, in his 10th game with the Shrimp, for trade deadline acquisition Brayden Taylor to record a hit. He was one of three players acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays in the Liam Hicks trade. His slash line with his new organization is .040/.368/.120/.488.

As shown below courtesy of TJStats, Taylor is being way too patient, swinging at barely one-third of all pitches. His contact ability is there, but the quality of that contact is not good enough right now.

It was a nice week for Kemp Alderman, who continues to make his case as a potential September call-up. Against Syracuse, he had two home runs, his 16th and 17th respectively. He is now slashing .265/.345/.471/.816 with 17 home runs, 51 RBI and a 113 wRC+.

Along with Alderman is Deyvison De Los Santos, notching three home runs during the week and another on Tuesday. Unlike Alderman, De Los Santos is on the team's 40-man roster, sporting an 1.167 OPS in the month of August. He is slashing .279/.342/.489/.831 with 18 home runs and 63 RBI.

Since joining the Jumbo Shrimp, Jonathon Long is slashing .321/.513/.393/.906 with three RBI. In the series against Syracuse, Long had four hits and drove in one run. He continues to split time between left field and first base with the Marlins organization.

In seven games at the Triple-A level, Brendan Jones is slashing .267/.421/.400/.821 with one RBI and four stolen bases. Jones, one of four players acquired in the Ryan Weathers trade, Jones could factor into the Marlins' outfield plans next season.

 

Double-A Pensacola

The Wahoos kept their winning ways rolling in grand fashion in their series against the Biloxi Shuckers, sweeping them in a six-game set. It was the first six-game sweep since 2023 for Pensacola, which has now won 16 of their last 19 games. The bats were out in abundance for the Wahoos as they won the run differential battle, 58-24. They have their sights set firmly on the playoffs as they now lead the Southern League South by 3.5 games during the second half of the season.

Brandon Compton just continues to do Brandon Compton things, being not-so-arguably the best hitter in Minor League Baseball. Over the course of the six-game series, Compton went 9-for-28 with two home runs. He upped his wRC+ to 159, which is 12th in all of MiLB.

There really are only two caveats to consider regarding Compton's success: he’s done virtually all of his damage against righties and he is defensively inflexible, limited to only corner outfield in a system chock full of lefty-hitting outfielders. Regarding the latter, Fish On First has recently learned that during the series against Biloxi, Compton began doing infield work including taking grounders and rehearsing plays at first base, which has been a position of weakness for the Marlins in the majors. The plan is for Compton to start receiving in-game reps at first base as early as this coming week.

Now up to 29 home runs on the season with the ability to spray the ball to all fields via great strength and quick hands, Compton is proving this isn’t just a hot stretch—it is something he is capable of on a regular basis.

In an organization that has recently become known for developing lefty bats and getting the most out of them, Compton is in an advantageous situation. If things work out well at first base, he could make that his primary home next season in Miami, with Kyle Stowers reacquainting himself with the outfield.

Not to be lost in all of the offensive production from the Wahoos was another solid start from Joey Volini. Rebounding from a short outing his last time out, the Marlins’ 2025 sixth-rounder worked a career-high seven innings on six hits and three earned runs, two of which came on homers. He struck out five and walked one. Volini pitched to batters in the eighth inning, making him the first Pensacola starter to reach that mark in a game since Luis Palacios in 2023.

After a slow introduction to pro ball, Volini is now clearly stretched out. In previous outings, he was able to limit walks but lapses in command caused him to run into trouble on the scoreboard. In this start, Volini looked spectacular, limiting damage by finding his spots consistently. He induced eight groundouts, mainly with his changeup. Still young to starting having only been made a featured arm his final year of college at FSU, Volini is still honing his craft and feeling things out, but he has started to show good strike zone knowledge and the ability to mix well with four pitches.

Because none of his pitches truly stand out as plus offerings just yet, Volini's future is still pretty volatile, but if he can continue to make positive strides as he’s being challenged pretty quickly, he could reach the ceiling of a back-end starter. This week’s past start was a good look at that potential ceiling against the most advanced competition he’s faced in his career. At the very least, Volini has an MLB future as a bulk reliever.

 

High-A Beloit

Powered by a four-run 10th inning in their first game and a season-best 16-run performance in their penultimate game, the Carp took four of six from the Peoria Chiefs for their first series win since late July. Their outburst on Sunday was powered by seven home runs, the most Beloit has hit in a single game during their affiliation with the Marlins. With the win, the Sky Carp climbed to 29-19 in the second half and are in a deadlock for their division lead with Quad Cities, whom they will match up against in two weeks.

It’s been an up-and-down season for Starlyn Caba. A fantastic first half in which he slashed .265/.404/.442 has given way to a disappointing second half. Since June, Caba is hitting just .202/.373/.326. In this series against Peoria, though, Caba showed signs of breaking the cycle. In five games, he went 4-for-16 including a three-hit performance in the final game which included a homer and four RBI.

During his dry spell at the plate, Caba’s patience and ability to work his way on via a walk have sustained. His 19% walk rate ranks in the 95th percentile league-wide. However, his K rate has also leapt from 21% to 27%. Caba is forcing pitchers to come into the zone and is seeing tons of strikes, proven by the fact that has a whiff rate in the 77th percentile as well as a O-swing percentage in the 83rd percentile. The issue is Caba is just simply not swinging the bat. With a swing percentage of just 38.7%, Caba’s passivity has reached new heights. Opposing pitchers are exposing this trait by locating well, allowing them to work ahead early and finish ABs well, leading to his heightened K rate which is in the 35th percentile.

What worked in the first half for Caba in terms of his approach will need to be slightly altered in order for him to get back on track. Teaching a young, light-hitting infielder to alter his approach and adjust back to a higher level of competition can be a tall task, but if the Marlins can persuade Caba to become a bit more aggressive particularly in longer counts when its strength versus strength, these are gaps that can be filled. Hopefully for the slick-fielding shortstop, the start of that turnaround has already begun.

Julio Mendez is not a name you’ll see on top prospects lists, but he has been a consistently solid and reliable left-handed pitcher since arriving in the Marlins organization in 2022. After holding down a 3.83 ERA with a 95/43 K/BB in 91.2 IP at Low-A last season and restarting there to begin this season, Mendez matriculated up to High-A this past month. He’s had to adjust a bit to his new level of competition was recently able to do so advantageously. His latest outing this past week was a five inning shutout performance in which he walked four and struck out five.

A 5’11”, 180-pound southpaw, Mendez isn’t an imposing physical specimen nor will he wow with velo, but he is a true strike-thrower who has garnered an enhanced ability to collect whiffs inside the zone. At 49.5%, Mendez’s zone percentage ranks in the 80gj percentile in the Midwest League. He also has a CSW% of 30.7, which ranks him in the 76th percentile league-wide. Mendez lives by a fastball that sits 93 mph and tops at 95. From there, Mendez owns a wide arsenal. His best secondary is a slider with outstanding spin rates in the 2600s, giving it wipeout action. Mendez also throws two different changeups, a traditional variety and a faster cutter, giving him the ability to inside-out hitters.

Mendez just keeps producing. With a strong pitcher’s IQ, this under-the-radar arm is a potential MLB contributor someday.

 

Low-A Jupiter

FOF prospect of the week Echedry Vargas has been putting on a special power display at the Low-A level. In the week against the St. Lucie Mets, where the Hammerheads went 5-1, Vargas had nine hits, 10 RBI and hit five home runs. Vargas became the first Hammerheads player to have a 20-homer season since Marcell Ozuna back in 2012. He also leads the Florida State League in home runs (21). Vargas is now slashing .310/.365/.580/.945 with 72 RBI and a 141 wRC+.

Along with Vargas, Andrés Valor has nothing left to prove in Jupiter. After a rough start to the season, he is slashing .220/.341/.395/.737 with 13 home runs, 44 RBI, 51 stolen bases and posting a 99 wRC+.

Marlins first-round draft pick Jacob Lombard is now slashing .244/.396/.463/.859 with three home runs, 12 RBI, six stolen bases and a 130 wRC+. He has also committed five errors in that small sample.

Yohanfer Santana made his Low-A debut as a reliever, topping out at 100.4 mph and averaging 99.4 mph. The 6'7" right-hander tossed one inning, allowing one hit and striking out two.

Santana spent most of the 2026 season at the complex level. He posted an 8.49 ERA, 6.12 FIP, 15.78 K/9 and 9.40 BB/9 in 16 appearances (12 starts). 

 

DSL Marlins & DSL Miami

The Dominican Summer League regular season concluded on Tuesday. DSL Marlins and DSL Miami had final records of 32-23 and 12-43, respectively.

Gregori Arias had a tough year at the plate, homered in two of his last three games. He has also drove in five runs over those three games. In August, Arias hit .286 with a .429 OBP and a .643 SLG. On the year, Arias finished at .189 with four home runs, 15 RBI’s and 13 stolen bases.

Ronny Muñoz hit his fourth home run of the year on Saturday. August was the best month of the year for Muñoz. The strikeout rate is a serious issue moving forward, ending at 36% over the summer, but the power is certainly there.

Santiago Solarte placed 19th among DSL qualifiers in batting average (.339) and seventh in SLG (.598). According to Ely Sussman, he became the first player in modern minor league history to have a 10 HR/40 SB season in rookie ball.

Left-hander Keyner Cedeño, even in a slugfest, remains untouchable. On Saturday, in a 14-13 win over DSL Rangers Blue, Cedeño pitched the final 2 ⅔ innings and struck out four, notching his fifth win of the year in the process. From June 15 onward, he went 33 consecutive innings without giving up an earned run.

 

This week's schedule

• Triple-A Jacksonville at Memphis
• Double-A Pensacola vs. Knoxville
• High-A Beloit vs. Cedar Rapids
• Low-A Jupiter at Bradenton

 

View full article