Analyzing how every Marlins prospect did in the 2024 Arizona Fall League

The Arizona Fall League is mercifully over for the Peoria Javelinas and the Miami Marlins prospects who were on their roster. In 2024 more so than any previous year, lots of AFL games were free to stream, but be careful what you wish for. The Javelinas were a tough watch. By winning percentage, they were one of the worst teams in AFL history. Complete stats are available here.

The AFL is commonly referred to as the "finishing school" for top prospects, but the quality of talent sent by each MLB organization varies. The Marlins, for example, mainly used the fall league to give extra reps to players who spent portions of the regular season on the injured list, even though most of those players are doubtful to have major league roles in the future.

The players are ordered below based on how I'd rank them as overall prospects moving forward.

OF Andrew Pintar (.271/.376/.374, 3 HR, 9 SB in 126 PA) ⭐

Pintar's 2024 minor league experience was a tale of two seasons. He posted terrific numbers with High-A Hillsboro, but horrible ones at the Double-A level (both before and after being traded to the Marlins).

His fall league production was smack dab in the middle. Pintar validated himself as a disciplined hitter, plus runner and passable center fielder (making all of his defensive appearances there). That was enough to earn a Fall Stars Game selection. He told Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline that it's been a "fun transition" to CF, but he still has room to improve when it comes to getting reads on hard line drives.

The quality of Pintar's batted balls leaves something to be desired. He can spray line drives to all fields, but not with the oomph to record many extra-base hits. His contact ability is merely okay. He's trending toward being a prototypical No. 8 or No. 9 hitter in the majors. 

OF Kemp Alderman (.306/.375/.833, 6 HR, 1 SB in 40 PA) ⭐

During his brief AFL stint, Alderman was outstanding. He homered five times in his first four games, and these weren't wall-scrapers. He had a 443-footer that registered an exit velocity of 119.5 mph, easily tops among all batted balls in the fall league. It would have tied for 10th among all exit velos from this past MLB season. Continuing a regular season trend, he frequently used the opposite field, recognizing that he's powerful enough to slug without having to pull the ball.

Alderman possesses an above-average arm by left field standards, though that doesn't fully compensate for his limited range.

Alderman was excused from AFL competition a few days in advance of his October 26 wedding and did not return after that. He garnered a Fall Stars selection from afar. He raised his prospect stock, but could have potentially done so to a greater degree with more reps.

RHP Jun-Seok Shim (6 G/0 GS, 19.80 ERA, 3.60 WHIP, 5 K in 5.0 IP)

There is no sugarcoating it: Shim's AFL performance was worrisome. At the very least, the expectation was that we would see the plus velocity that made him a notable international free agent signing two years ago, but his fastball only sat in the 91-93 mph range while working in one-inning spurts. That is well below average by righty reliever standards.

Moreover, Shim showed hardly any ability to locate. Only 43.5% of his total pitches were strikes as he frequently missed his spots low and to the arm side.

In ranking Shim 26th on the end-of-season Fish On First Top 30 list, our staff was generously assuming that he was "back to normal" after two injury-filled summers. Even in a tiny sample of facing older competition, this glimpse was discouraging enough that he'll be dropped from the Top 30 at our next update.

LHP Justin Storm (8 G/0 GS, 10.80 ERA, 1.90 WHIP, 9 K in 10.0 IP)

Storm is a relief-only prospect. The 6'7" lefty has allowed just one home run in his minor league career. However, four different AFL opponents took him deep.

Storm's slider is a promising putaway pitch if he can throw enough strikes with his fastball to properly set it up.

LHP Patrick Monteverde (6 G/6 GS, 12.69 ERA, 2.39 WHIP, 12 K in 16.1 IP)

Monteverde has slumped ever since his 2023 Futures Game selection. The fall league was supposed to be a prime opportunity for the 27-year-old to build some sort of momentum by bullying opponents half a decade younger than him.

Unfortunately, it was more of the same. Monteverde allowed a .397 batting average against, struggling particularly against righties (.467/.529/.756 slash line). The soft-tosser's command just is not as precise as it needs to be for him to avoid barrels.

Of all the AFL participants, Monteverde has the best odds of being called up to Miami next season. However, it's difficult to imagine him sticking there.

LHP Justin King (4 G/0 GS, 8.10 ERA, 2.10 WHIP, 3 K in 6.2 IP)

Released by the Milwaukee Brewers earlier this year, King excelled out of the Double-A Pensacola bullpen. He threw up zeroes in 14 of 17 relief outings and struck out 46.4% of batters faced during that span. Maybe the Marlins found a diamond in the rough?

King's AFL campaign was inconclusive because it was cut short by an injury (made his final appearance on Oct. 23). He is expected to be fully recovered in time for spring training.

RHP Brandon White (6 G/4 GS, 6.75 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 15 K in 18.2 IP)

It's not saying much, but White was the top-performing pitcher in the Marlins' AFL delegation. He went three-plus innings in five of his six outings, the only exception being a game where the defense behind him was completely incompetent.

Drafted back in 2021, White totaled just 28 ⅔ innings pitched in his first three professional seasons. He finished at an even 100 innings this year when combining MiLB and AFL work. He'll presumably move up to High-A Beloit in 2025.

INF Jay Beshears (.115/.254/.192, 1 HR, 1 SB in 64 PA)

As you probably surmised by now, AFL conditions are very friendly to hitters. Well...most hitters. Beshears, not so much.

Almost all of Beshears' offensive production occurred in a single game (Oct. 23 vs. Scottsdale). He was practically an automatic out otherwise. That has been the case since late June when he was still with the San Diego Padres organization.

It's been a rough patch for him as a fielder, too. Used mainly on the left side of the infield, Beshears' arm is below average and his actions lack fluidity.

UTIL Dalvy Rosario (.133/.235/.300, 1 HR, 3 SB in 34 PA)

Rosario joined the Javelinas midway through the season, seemingly in reaction to Alderman's absence and/or King's injury. Frankly, it was a baffling pick considering that the 24-year-old is a pending minor league free agent who posted a 46 wRC+ in 74 regular season games. Was there really nobody else in the system available on short notice who could have benefited from the experience? 

Rosario played left field, right field and second base during the AFL. He struck out in 41.2% of his plate appearances.

Interested in learning more about the Miami Marlins' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!