Offishial News: Revisiting the Jake Burger trade as Maximo Acosta debuts

It is unclear what his specific role will be or how long his initial stint in The Show will last, but Maximo Acosta is being called up to help the Miami Marlins. That's what good teams need from their 40-man roster depth: the versatility to contribute when a need suddenly arises.

Acosta began the 2025 season on a hot streak before falling off dramatically for much of April and May. But in 60 games played since Memorial Day, he's been very good (113 wRC+ with 10 HR and 14 SB). Important to note, the 22-year-old has been one of the youngest players in their entire Triple-A International League.

As a reminder, the Marlins picked up Acosta from the Texas Rangers in the Jake Burger trade last offseason. It was, from what I recall, a very unpopular move in the eyes of most Miami fans considering Burger's strong finish to the 2024 campaign, his awesome reputation in the clubhouse and his status as a pre-arbitration-eligible player with four years of club control remaining.

In 84 games with the Rangers, Burger is slashing .242/.275/.416 with a 90 wRC+ and 12 home runs. He has had two injured list stints (for his left oblique and left quad), drawn walks at one of the league's lowest rates and been defensively limited to first base. That down year would still constitute an upgrade over his nominal replacement, Eric Wagaman, but only a marginal one. Burger's main issue is chasing pitches outside the strike zone, an area in which the Marlins have collectively improved a lot under their new coaching staff, so maybe he would be more successful had he stayed put. It's impossible to say for sure.

In addition to Burger, the Marlins received left-hander Brayan Mendoza and infielder Echedry Vargas, both of whom have spent the entire season with High-A Beloit. Mendoza has started in only four of his 19 appearances, posting a 5.45 ERA in 69 ⅓ innings pitched with a walk rate that has nearly doubled from year to year. Vargas owns a 52 wRC+, which would rank dead last in the Midwest League if he had enough plate appearances to be a qualified hitter. Needless to say, both players' stocks have dropped since joining the organization.

Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville won, 6-5. Victor Mesa Jr. (3-4, 2 RBI, BB, SB) was the walk-off hero in his return from the injured list. Double-A Pensacola lost, 6-3. Ryan Ignoffo homered and he's now up to 58 RBI in 73 games played this season. High-A Beloit won, 1-0. Scoreless start for Brandon White (6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K, 73 pitches/48 strikes). Big offensive performance by Ian Lewis (3-3, 2 SB) despite not directly contributing to any runs being scored. Lewis is slashing .400/.479/.475 with eight steals in 11 games at the High-A level. Low-A Jupiter won, 2-1. Another scoreless start for Dameivi Tineo (5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K, 72 pitches/40 strikes).

More Marlins news and content below:

🔷 Jakob Marsee is the MLB leader in wins above replacement since debuting on August 1 with 1.6 fWAR. For some context, Jesús Sánchez has never reached 1.6 fWAR in any single season of his career! "Marsee Mania" cannot be dismissed as a stretch of good luck. No other MLB hitter comes close to his .493 expected weighted on-base average this year, which clears Aaron Judge by 41 points.

🔷 The final reporter to interview Joey Wiemer prior to his call-up? Fish On First's own Nate Karzmer, who happened to be in Jacksonville over the weekend.

🔷 MLB.com's Christina De Nicola spoke with Otto Lopez's father about his unique baseball journey.

🔷 Liam Hicks discussed what it's like to catch several of his current and former teammates with David Laurila of FanGraphs.

🔷 With six weeks to go in the MLB regular season, Xavier Edwards (.3025) has pulled ahead of Will Smith (.3022) in the National League batting title race.

🔷 The Prediction Time leaderboard has been updated through the first 40 series. Become a SuperSub and we'll keep track of your predictions all season long!

🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Milwaukee Brewers' 14-game winning streak was snapped. The Los Angeles Dodgers swept the San Diego Padres to regain control of the NL West. Cal Raleigh hit his 47th homer of the season, one shy of tying the all-time MLB single-season record for a catcher. Philadelphia Phillies ace Zack Wheeler will be sidelined indefinitely due to a blood clot in his right shoulder. It's the most significant health issue of his six-year tenure in Philly and likely removes from National League Cy Young contention.

🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins begin a three-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals (probable starters RHP Eury Pérez and LHP Matthew Liberatore). The Cardinals have been horrible since the All-Star break, posting a 10-18 record which ranks second-worst in the big leagues. Among their many issues during that span, the team is slugging only .366—it's as if their entire lineup was full of Eric Wagamans. The Marlins have a 52.2% chance to win, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 6:40 p.m. ET.

🔷 Prior to the series opener, Fish On First LIVE will preview it all beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET. FOF LIVE is presented by About The Fans. Check out our new merchandise collection (coupon code fof10 for 10% off).

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