Why would the Marlins target Patrick Sandoval?

When we did our free agent pitchers draft on Fish Unfiltered last month, AJ Ramos selected left-handed pitcher Patrick Sandoval with his first selection. The Miami Marlins front office has similar taste in arms, as it turns out. Fish On First has learned that Sandoval is a name that the team is interested in. There's competition for his services, with The Athletic and MLB.com both linking the lefty to additional suitors.

“Lots of teams have wanted him for a while,” one NL executive told MLB.com insider Mark Feinsand. “His fastball plays. Everybody thinks they can fix the rest.”

Sandoval, 30, recorded a 5.12 ERA, 3.77 FIP, 9.34 K/9 and 4.09 BB/9 in 15 appearances (13 starts) with the Boston Red Sox. These numbers came after missing the 2025 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Sandoval didn't make his first start of the 2026 season until July 9.

In that stretch, Sandoval's changeup recorded a run value of plus-5, generating a whiff rate of 39.7% and PutAway rate of 29.4%. It was by far his best pitch. After that, the rest of his pitches were all below the league average run value. His four-seam fastball averaged 93.4 mph, but opposing hitters had a .589 slugging percentage. As for his slider, which at his peak was at 10 RV, saw opposing hitters recording a .300 batting average and .420 slug. On the bright side, that pitch did have 28.0% whiff rate, so there is something to work on. After those three pitches, he also has a sinker, sweeper and curveball.

During his 2022 season, the best of his career, he was relying a lot more on his slider because it was putting away more hitters out and they weren't hitting that pitch at all. If he can get that slider back to where it once was, it can be his PutAway pitch instead of having to rely so much on the changeup/four-seam combo.

If he were to sign with the Marlins, the sweeper usage may go up, as that is the pitch the organization is having a lot of their starters implement. Even Sandy Alcantara added it to his arsenal. There is also a chance the four-seam usage would go down and the sinker usage would rise. Eury Pérez added a sinker into his arsenal during the season and he was able to play it off his other pitches very well. Sandoval already has it, so now it's about using it more.

What makes Sandoval such an interesting candidate not just for the Marlins, but a majority of teams in need of a starting pitcher is his strikeout rate. Even coming off the surgery, it sat at 9.34, which was above the league average and highest since 2021, when he was at his peak as a pitcher. If a team can can lower his walk-rate, it's the Marlins, which is why they have interest in him.

Throughout the entire 2026 season, only two left-handed pitchers made a start for the Marlins: Robby Snelling and Braxton Garrett. They combined for only three total outings before being injured and traded, respectively. Thomas White, who was likely to debut in 2026, missed the majority of the season due to a shoulder sprain. Adding a veteran left-handed starter while Snelling and White are waiting to get back to 100% is something that would benefit the Marlins.

Sandoval has also crossed paths with Marlins director of pitching Bill Hezel in the Los Angeles Angels organization. Hezel was the assistant pitching coach in 2022 and then the pitching strategist in 2023.

Some of Sandoval's struggles since then are the product of simple bad luck. His ERA since 2024 is 5.10, but his FIP is 3.82 (much better than the MLB average).

This is a very doable signing in terms of the dollar value that it would take. Now, it's just a matter of if Sandoval likes the vision that the Marlins have set in place with calling pitches from the dugout and being flexible with his role. At 30 years old, he does profile as one of the better bounce-back candidates in this free agent class.