Offishial News: Marlins take surprising path to where they were always supposed to be

The Miami Marlins were widely expected to be one of the worst teams in baseball in 2025. For the first time, their season-to-date performance is reflecting that. Tuesday's lopsided loss puts the Fish on a 67-95 pace. They reside in last place in the National League East division and have a minus-46 run differential, which is third-worst in the majors.

Starting rotation struggles have caught up to them. Any chance they have of proving the naysayers wrong hinges on Sandy Alcantara snapping out of his career-worst slump and internal replacements stepping in, whether that be those coming back from injuries or coming up from the minor leagues.

But the point is, we live in a short attention span society. Whatever the Marlins may think that they "accomplished" early on has been fully undone. If they want to be respected for what they're building, they'll have to get back to earning it on the field.

Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville lost, 3-2. Joe Mack provided the only offense with a two-run homer. Mack has been the best hitting catcher in the minor leagues this season in terms of wRC+. Valente Bellozo pitched 2 ⅓ hitless innings in an abbreviated start. Bellozo should be a call-up candidate for this weekend, especially if the Marlins bullpen is leaned on heavily again today. Double-A Pensacola won, 3-2. Jacob Miller carried a shutout into the seventh inning. The Blue Wahoos got the W despite recording just two hits. High-A Beloit won, 13-9. It was the Sky Carp's highest-scoring game of the season. Fenwick Trimble drove in four runs, stole his 12th base of the season and raised his on-base percentage to .400. Low-A Jupiter won, 14-1. Andrew Salas and PJ Morlando were particularly outstanding, combining to go 6-for-7 with two walks and four runs driven in.

More Marlins news and content below:

🔷 I detailed the immense struggles that the Marlins have had allowing stolen bases (17 more than any other MLB team).

🔷 In advance of Saturday's on-field debut, the Marlins are on the verge of unveiling their new City Connect uniforms.

🔷 Jamie Gatlin of Beyond the Monster spoke to Adam Mazur about lessons learned from his first major league opportunity and adding a sweeper to his arsenal.

🔷 Want to look ahead to the Marlins' May schedule? Aaron has you covered. (Let this double as a reminder that FOF has a Bluesky account!)

🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, there was a chaotic finish in Philadelphia. With the Washington Nationals down to their final strike, Nathaniel Lowe mashed a go-ahead three-run home run, only for the Phillies to walk off on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth. The Colorado Rockies suffered their 10th straight series loss to begin the season. The New York Mets' top left-handed reliever, A.J. Minter, is potentially facing season-ending surgery on his lat. Aaron Judge is hitting .412, giving him a 49-point lead on the next-best qualified MLB hitter.

🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter RHP Cal Quantrill) wrap up their road trip this afternoon against the Dodgers (RHP Tony Gonsolin). This marks Gonsolin's return from Tommy John surgery. His final major league appearance before the injury coincidentally came against the Marlins—they scored 10 runs that night on the strength of five long balls. The Marlins have a 35.1% chance to win, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 3:10 pm ET.

🔷 Today's MiLB schedule: 

• Triple-A Jacksonville at Durham, 6:35 pm ET
• Double-A Pensacola at Birmingham, 12:00 pm ET
• High-A Beloit at Peoria, 7:35 pm ET
• Low-A Jupiter at Fort Myers, 12:05 pm ET

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