The biggest questions still unsolved about this Marlins offseason

With the 2023 Winter Meetings already underway, the Miami Marlins have a talented front office in place with a new President of Baseball Operations (Peter Bendix), Director of Baseball Operations (Vinesh Kanthan) and Assistant General Manager (Gabe Kapler). However, on the field, there are still obvious issues to address.

What will happen in the Rule 5 Draft?

The draft takes place on Wednesday and the Marlins are in danger of losing notable prospects. Three names to keep an eye out for are first baseman Troy Johnston, catcher Will Banfield and shortstop Nasim Nuñez. Johnston was the 2023 Marlins Minor League Player of the Year, while Banfield and Nuñez are great defenders at premium positions. They weren't selected to Miami's 40-man roster prior to last month's deadline. Johnston in particular is likely to be gone after having so much offensive success in the upper minors.

As of Tuesday morning, the Marlins still have one opening on their own 40-man, so it's possible that they make a pick themselves, though Bendix comes from a Tampa Bay Rays organization that has traditionally passed on the Rule 5.

What will the rotation look like?

Sandy Alcantara went down with Tommy John surgery and there is still a lot of uncertainty when it comes to what the Marlins will get out of Trevor Rogers and Max Meyer. Bendix says both will be ready for spring training, but they are coming off of lat and elbow injuries, respectively.

With top free agent pitchers being out of the Marlins' price range, Miami will have to look at cheaper options. A realistic best-case scenario would be Eduardo Rodriguez, who had a 3.30 ERA, 3.66 FIP, 8.42 K/9 and 2.83 BB/9 last season.

If the club is focused only on short-term deals, Mike Clevinger had a nice season with the Chicago White Sox, posting a 3.77 ERA, 4.28 FIP and a 7.54 K/9.

Building a rotation using only current internal options would look something along the lines of Jesús Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, Eury Pérez, Edward Cabrera and Rogers/Meyer, with Ryan Weathers also being in the mix.

Who will be the Marlins' starting catcher?

Nick Fortes and Jacob Stallings split time behind the plate over the last two seasons, but Stallings is now gone. The Marlins admit that they need to look outside the organization for more help. What qualities are they looking for?

"You want a catcher that is a leader and that pitchers love throwing to," said Skip Schumaker during his press conference on Monday. "A catcher who can hold guys accountable, so that's a big position. It's not just strictly an offensive position to me because we are so pitching-heavy, you need to be able to throw to a guy that you love throwing to. The offensive part obviously, we would love to have, but having a leader back there, that is really important."

Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported that the Marlins were in the mix to possibly sign free agent catcher Martín Maldonado. He is well known for his defense and being "a guy that you love throwing to," as Schumaker would say. Offensively, he has struggled, though he does have three straight seasons of double-digit home runs.

Ideally, the Marlins should target someone like Mitch Garver or Gary Sánchez in free agency, but those would be bigger, multi-year commitments.

Is ownership willing to pay for upgrades in free agency?

Related to the previous two questions, Bendix can only do so much with a limited budget. The projected 2024 Marlins Opening Day payroll is already very similar to 2023 and that's before adding any more pieces. Principal owner Bruce Sherman has not said how much he's willing to increase it to field another playoff team.

This free agent class is pretty weak at catcher and shortstop where the Marlins have holes to fill, so it is fair to assume that the Marlins will be more active through the trade market when searching for solutions.

Who are the ideal trade partners?

For a team that would still like some pitching help, maybe the Marlins can work a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals. The names that stand out are Tommy Edman and Tyler O'Neill, who are both Gold Glove outfielders with good offensive upside. Edman also saw a lot time at shortstop in 2023.

One of the prized shortstops on the trade market is Willy Adames of the Milwaukee Brewers. He is a buy-low candidate after having his worst season in terms of wRC+. Even then, he still had 24 home runs and eight defensive runs saved.

Aside from focusing on specific positions and skills, Bendix has said he wants to make decisions that can have long-term impact. Any hitter who's still in his pre-arbitration years could be a fit if the asking price is reasonable.

Who are the top trade chips?

The Marlins can't get anything done without sending talented pieces back in return.

In trading with the Rays last month, they showed a willingness to deal low-level prospects (Erick Lara and Andrew Lindsey), so maybe we see another deal like that. Between Cabrera, Rogers and Meyer, the Marlins should also be open to sacrificing an unproven starter in order to add offense.

Isaac Azout is in Nashville to cover all the action from the Winter Meetings, so make sure to give him a follow on Twitter (@IsaacAzout) and turn on his notifications so you are up to date on the latest.

Photo: Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports