Who's on second? Assessing the Marlins' best internal options at the position

The San Diego Padres have constructed a team full of shortstops. On the other end of the spectrum, there's the Miami Marlins, who lack a proven solution at the most premium infield defensive position. Instead, via trades, waiver claims and internal development, they have accrued considerable depth at the other middle infield spot, second base. Although this is not the backbone of a contending team, it's a positive development nonetheless to have a handful of affordable and controllable players with redeeming qualities.

Ahead of the 2025 season, the Marlins can pencil in Connor Norby, Xavier Edwards and Otto Lopez as key infield contributors. Lopez has been their primary starter at 2B in 2024, while Norby and Edwards played the position frequently during their minor league careers. Utilityman Vidal Bruján has had the third-most 2B starts this year behind only Lopez and Luis Arraez, however, he's been a replacement-level hitter who has exhausted his minor league options. The Marlins may lean toward non-tendering him this offseason, in large part because of the emergence of Javier Sanoja, the versatile 22-year-old who earned the organization's Minor League Player of the Year award. Even Jonah Bride made a pair of starts at 2B, though he profiles as a corner infielder moving forward.

Let's begin with Norby. He is a bat-first guy by way of a career .860 minor league OPS and a comparable .848 mark in the first 30 games of his Marlins tenure. He'll be a staple of their everyday lineup for the foreseeable future.

Where to deploy Norby defensively? Two-thirds of his starts in the minor leagues (270 of 402) came as a second baseman, and his below-average arm strength suggests that second base would best suit him. So far with the Marlins, he has been at third base almost exclusively and graded out poorly there, amassing minus-4 defensive runs saved (a -24 DRS pro-rated over a full season). This past Sunday was an exception to the norm, but generally speaking, he's been plagued by inconsistency.

Also worth noting, Norby started 59 MiLB games between both corner outfield spots. Perhaps he could emulate the career of Ian Happ and find a permanent home there if it's in the best interest of the team's defensive alignment.

Edwards has filled the Luis Arraez-sized void atop Miami's batting order. All but nine innings from him on the defensive side of the ball have come as the team's shortstop. While he has seized the opportunity at the plate, Baseball-Reference (-12 total zone and -8 DRS), FanGraphs (-5.3 UZR/150) and Statcast (-10 OAA and 6th-percentile FRV) all paint the picture of him being miscast at SS. His average 79.6 mph throws from the 6-spot pit him 53rd among 58 different fielders to attempt an assist at the position.

On the contrary, Lopez has graded out exceptionally well defensively, currently tied for fourth in total runs saved among second basemen, per Fielding Bible. The question is whether the volatility of his bat merits regular playing time, especially when there are suitable alternatives. He endured an 80-game homerless stretch from May 14-September 6 this season—his 60 wRC+ in that span ranked last among 153 hitters to take at least 300 plate appearances. Even with a solid finish to his campaign, Lopez has a mediocre 86 wRC+ overall.

The Marlins must find creative ways to get their best possible position player talent on the field together without sabotaging their run prevention. The team was outscored by 223 runs through their first 156 games, in large part due to pitching injuries, but defensive miscues no doubt exacerbated the issue. While welcoming back Sandy Alcantara and others to the mound would raise the team's floor, aspirations of being genuinely competitive should be reserved until we see some evidence of Norby, Edwards and Lopez effectively co-existing on the diamond (and a larger sample of Sanoja's body of work).

So, did we answer the question of "who" or "what" is on second for the Marlins in 2025? 

In keeping with the classic Abbott and Costello bit, that is for you to discover for yourself.