Twice DFA'd last year, how Otto Lopez has earned everyday job with Marlins

Otto Lopez was kind of "just another guy" when he was claimed off waivers by the Miami Marlins last season. The then-25-year-old had been playing for the San Francisco Giants’ Triple-A affiliate when he was designated for assignment just two days into the season. He had been acquired via trade from the Blue Jays just over one month prior, in exchange for cash considerations.

Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix did what he does best: he went bargain hunting on the waiver wire and found gold. Lopez was only with Triple-A Jacksonville for about a week before Marlins fans were clamoring for this mystery man to be called up on April 15, 2024.

Lopez tells Fish On First that he felt there was "more freedom" to be himself upon joining the Marlins organization. "People just telling me, 'you have to play your game.'"

Who was this nameless infielder with 17 hits, five doubles, and two home runs in 10 games?

Even then-manager Skip Schumaker admitted he didn’t “know anything about him” when asked on the day of his call-up last year.

After Lopez was brought up to the major league club, he brought his hot streak with him. He had a 1.028 OPS through his first 35 plate appearances. After 31 games, he was hitting .297 with a .778 OPS, and was one of the most consistent hitters in a Marlins lineup that struggled everywhere else.

He struggled in the middle of the year, going on the injured list with back pain in early July, but a strong September in which he had a .903 OPS over 102 plate appearances put a punctuation on his Marlins debut season.

One thing that never wavered was Lopez’s defense. Having to step up as starting second baseman full-time after Luis Arraez was traded to the San Diego Padres in early May, Lopez proved himself as an anchor on the infield. His nine defensive runs saved were fifth among all second basemen with at least 850 innings played, and his 17 outs above average were third.

Entering Tuesday, Lopez is slightly ahead of last year's production in terms of on-base percentage (.317), slugging percentage (.393) and wRC+ (97). He also scored the game-winning run in one of the three opening week walk-offs against the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Statcast metrics suggest there could be a louder breakout coming. Lopez’s barrel rate (5.1% to 12.2%), zone contact rate (87.1% to 90.9%), and launch angle sweet-spot percentage (30.4% to 36.7%) have all increased. His expected slugging percentage is .528, per Baseball Savant, trailing only Matt Mervis (.544) among Marlins players.

In this young season, Lopez leads all qualified major league second basemen in outs above average (4).

Strange as it may sound, Lopez could be a building block for the rebuilding Marlins. Yes, we know Sandy Alcantara exists. But when you consider the financial behavior of this team, Lopez is the poster child for who the organization would want: a middle infielder with strong defense and low strikeout rates making close to league minimum, not eligible for arbitration until spring of 2027, under team control through 2029, and still in his mid-twenties.