Offishial News: Yet another Edward Cabrera preseason injury

Miami Marlins right-hander Edward Cabrera had some control issues during Thursday's start, as illustrated below. Only two of his 12 pitches found the strike zone as he exited the game without recording a single out.

Turns out that Cabrera had a blister on his middle finger. That should sound familiar—several regular season starts during his career have been abbreviated for the same reason. However, the timing of this one is particularly damaging. The 26-year-old hasn't been stretched out beyond two innings in any spring training outing and now he'll have to refrain from throwing until the blister fully heals.

With Opening Day only 13 days away and the fifth spot in the Marlins rotation due up in 17 days, there isn't sufficient time for Cabrera to get ready. It is going to be the fourth time in the last five years that he has been injured entering a new baseball season (his 2024 malady was a right shoulder impingement, for example).

I'd expect Connor Gillispie and Valente Bellozo to be the primary candidates to fill Cabrera's starting rotation spot on a short-term basis.

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🔷 Speaking of frustrating setbacks, former first-round draft pick PJ Morlando underwent an ulnar nerve transposition on his left elbow on Thursday. The surgery is expected to sideline him for 8-10 weeks. Morlando's first professional season was cut short by a back injury. By the time Fish On First's 19th-ranked prospect returns to the field, he'll be 20 years old with only one pro plate appearance under his belt.

🔷 Fellow Top 30 prospects Adam Mazur (#11), Dax Fulton (#14), Victor Mesa Jr. (#17) and Aiden May (#27) have also been removed from Miami's Spring Breakout roster. Only Mesa (hamstring) has a known injury, but we'll get clarification on the others shortly. The replacements for them are Abrahan Ramírez, Nathan Martorella, Jacob Miller, Jesse Bergin and Will Schomberg.

🔷 The Marlins are assembling a practice squad of former collegiate and pro players to be based in Jupiter and compete against their Low-A affiliate during the 2025 season. The compensation is $150 per day for five-hour sessions that would take place leading up to the start of Hammerheads home games. Another selling point: the Marlins describe it as a stepping stone to future playing/coaching opportunities.

🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Tampa Bay Rays announced that they "cannot move forward" with plans to build a new ballpark that would replace Tropicana Field. Jeff McNeil is expected to miss 3-4 weeks with an oblique strain. McNeil joins catcher Francisco Alvarez, left-hander Sean Manaea and right-hander Frankie Montas as notable veterans who won't be available for the New York Mets when they face the Marlins for the first time from March 31-April 2.

🔷 First pitch of the Spring Breakout exhibition between the Marlins (probable starter LHP Thomas White) and St. Louis Cardinals (LHP Quinn Mathews) will be at 12:10 p.m. It's scheduled to go nine innings, a refreshing change after last year's was only seven. The Cardinals-produced television broadcast is being carried locally on FanDuel Sports Network Florida.

🔷 The Grapefruit League game between the Marlins (RHP Max Meyer) and Boston Red Sox (RHP Richard Fitts) will follow at 4:10 p.m.

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