Ely Sussman

Marlins news roundup for 4/8/24 On Sunday, Max Meyer had the best start of his young MLB career (6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 35 CSW%) while the Marlins offense ambushed Cardinals right-hander Kyle Gibson for six runs in the first inning. Luis Arraez recorded a season-high four hits (he previously had only one multi-hit game in 2024). Jazz Chisholm Jr. was dealing with right shoulder discomfort after attempting a home run robbery. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets a precautionary day off. The Marlins won, 10-3, finally registering their first win of the year. Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville won, 4-2. 2B José Devers and SS Otto López recorded three hits apiece (Devers was a home run shy of the cycle). Braxton Garrett (clip embedded below) stretched out to 66 pitches in his first rehab start (4.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 HR). Probably just one more of those for him before he rejoins Miami's major league rotation. Double-A Pensacola won, 9-1. RHP Paul Campbell (5.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K) pitched in a competitive game for the first time in two years. Low-A Jupiter won, 4-3. Excellent season debut for RHP Jake Brooks (5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K). The Hammerheads scored the go-ahead run in the ninth inning on a balk. bG5MTVZfV0ZRVkV3dEdEUT09X0JWQlNVZ1ZXQlFRQUR3QUVWd0FBQ0ZWWEFGaFhWUU1BQjFZTUFsWlVWRlZRVkF0WA==.mp4 Here's more Marlins news and content for you: 🔷 Skip Schumaker's 2025 club option has been voided. He will be a free agent following this season. Further reporting is needed to get a more coherent story, but my speculation is that a mutual decision was made last winter to part ways once the executive who hired him, Kim Ng, was replaced by Peter Bendix. Schumaker has immediately shown himself to be a well-rounded and effective manager and it would be extremely unfortunate if his tenure with the organization does indeed end after only two years. 🔷 Through the first three series, @Alec Chao and @Daniel Rodriguez are tied atop the Prediction Time leaderboard. Make series predictions with us all season long when you become a Fish On First SuperSub. 🔷 Every Monday (until they are firmly out of contention), I will update the Marlins' playoff odds. Per FanGraphs, those have been cut in half over the last week, from 14.4% to 6.3%. 🔷 Kevin Barral wrote the first of our 2024 weekly Marlins minor league recaps, featuring Tristan Gray and more than a dozen other players who stood out. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, Stephen Strasburg reached a settlement with the Washington Nationals and officially retired. Former AL Cy Young award winner Shane Bieber will undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his 2024 season. Spencer Strider (right UCL sprain) and Trevor Story (left shoulder dislocation) are looking at extended absences as well. Tyler O'Neill, who I liked as a trade target for the Marlins this past offseason, leads the majors with a 1.407 OPS. 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter LHP Jesús Luzardo) visit the Yankees (LHP Nestor Cortes). It will be Cortes' first time pitching against his hometown team (he was raised in Hialeah). Less than two weeks after trading him away, the Fish will face longtime utility guy Jon Berti. Expect Berti to start at least once during the series considering that all of Miami's scheduled starters are lefties. 🔷 Join us for a new episode of Fish On First LIVE tonight from 5:00-6:00 p.m. ET on YouTube/Twitter/Facebook. I actually will not be producing the show this time as I'll be in attendance at Yankee Stadium. SuperSubs are encouraged to make series predictions. FOF LIVE is presented by Berger & Hicks. If you’ve been injured as a result of somebody else’s negligence, give them a call at (305) 670-7050. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Throughout the franchise's entire history, they have not valued continuity whatsoever. Could've forged their own identity by retaining Ng. Instead, Sherman is chasing the fantasy of mimicking the Rays, and even if he "succeeds" in that, the roster churn will be aggravating.

Starting rotation updates. Meyer will get one more start for sure after today, then there could be interesting decisions to make with Cabrera and Braxton Garrett (starting today in Triple-A) nearing full strength.

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. Got thoughts about this matchup? Head over to Fish On First's Marlins game thread. View full article

Welcome to FOF's 10th Miami Marlins game thread of the 2024 season. Max Meyer makes his fourth career MLB start as the Marlins are in jeopardy of being swept for the third consecutive series. SuperSubs can access exclusive game notes here. Pregame roster moves: none. Louis Addeo-Weiss will be writing the game recap.

The Mexican right-hander comes to the Marlins after having spent his entire minor league career in the Houston Astros organization. So the Miami Marlins did get something in return after curiously designating shortstop Jacob Amaya for assignment: 24-year-old right-handed pitcher Valente Bellozo and cash considerations. Can Bellozo eventually contribute for them in the majors? The odds of that seem relatively low at first glance, but he does have a fascinating background. The short righty signed with the Astros in 2017 as a 17-year-old international amateur free agent out of Mexico. Listed at 5'10", 170 pounds at the time, Bellozo more recently tipped the scales at 208 pounds. Initially, Bellozo's MiLB performance was excellent. He posted a 1.74 ERA and 0.87 WHIP in the 2018 Dominican Summer League, then followed that up with comparable Short Season A/Low-A results (1.70 ERA and 0.81 WHIP). In a larger sample of Low-A action in 2022, he had less luck on balls in play, but a near-identical 1.73 ERA. Through 158 ⅔ innings pitched across those three seasons, he yielded only one home run. The 2023 season was a new challenge for Bellozo in terms of both quality of competition and workload, and he struggled. In 13 appearances from April through June, he carried a 7.71 ERA at High-A, largely because opponents slugged .568 against him. However, he settled in nicely during the latter half of the season (3.31 ERA and .399 SLG) while also getting his feet wet at Double-A. This winter, Bellozo was a reliever for his hometown winter ball team, Águilas de Mexicali. Overall, he pitched 134 innings in 2023. Bellozo has a deep arsenal that includes a sinker, four-seam fastball, slider, curveball and changeup. He just lacks a true plus pitch and has to make do with below-average velocity and extension. b25kb1dfWGw0TUFRPT1fQmdaVFhGTUhVZ1FBQ0ZJS1VBQUVBUU5WQUZFRlV3SUFWRlVOVTFjRUFBUUJCd0lI.mp4 b25kb1dfWGw0TUFRPT1fQmdaVFhGTUhVZ1FBQ0ZJTFVBQUVBUVZWQUZFRlV3SUFWRlVOVTFjRUFBUUJCd0lI.mp4 There appears to be minimal upside in this trade from the Marlins' perspective when you also account for the fact that Bellozo is due to become a minor league free agent after the 2024 season unless selected to the 40-man roster. Bellozo has been assigned to Double-A Pensacola. He isn't ranked on our Fish On First Top 30 prospects list. View full article

At least the "trashy" Tristan Gray is putting on a fireworks show in AAA this week.

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. Got thoughts about this matchup? Head over to Fish On First's Marlins game thread. View full article

Welcome to FOF's ninth Miami Marlins game thread of the 2024 season. Emmanuel Rivera is making his Marlins debut—maybe that'll be the spark they need to eradicate this agonizing losing streak? SuperSubs can access exclusive game notes here. Pregame roster moves: none. Nick Turok will be writing the game recap.

He was going to need one more start anyway to continue stretching out. Interesting decision to make if that outing has more of the same issues.

Watch every pitch that Miami Marlins prospect Thomas White threw in his 2024 minor league season debut. The left-hander made a scoreless start for the Low-A Jupiter Hammerheads on Friday. View full video

Better get SOMETHING in return for Amaya, otherwise I don't get it.

Let me know what your account name (handle) is over there and I'll follow you! Particularly during games, it's a place littered with unhinged overreactions.

Last season, the Marlins also struggled through an eight-game losing streak, but here's why the 2024 team is not as well positioned to withstand it. View full video

Marlins news roundup for 4/5/24 On Thursday, the Marlins' terrible defense and underachieving bullpen struck again. Jake Burger (2-for-2, 2 HR, 2 BB) had an outstanding day, but it wasn't enough. Sixto Sánchez and Andrew Nardi allowed five runs during the Cardinals' seventh-inning rally. The Marlins lost, 8-5. Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville won, 4-3. For the third consecutive game, Tristan Gray hit a home run. Troy Johnston stole his first two bases of the season. Here's more Marlins news and content for you: 🔷 Eury Pérez's efforts to rehab from elbow inflammation were unsuccessful. He experienced elbow tightness during a bullpen session on Tuesday and will undergo Tommy John surgery on Monday. The ultra-talented 20-year-old right-hander won't see a major league mound again until he's 22, as TJ rehab almost always takes more than a calendar year for starting pitchers. Frustrating setback, to say the least. Fish On First wishes Pérez a complete recovery. 🔷 The Marlins moved quickly to scoop up utility man Otto Lopez off the waiver wire, with Lopez sliding into Pérez's 40-man roster spot. Signed and developed by the Blue Jays, the 25-year-old Dominican has appeared in nine MLB games. He has posted a career 113 wRC+ in the minors, but only a 65 wRC+ at Triple-A last season. His skill set is a lot like Vidal Bruján's except Lopez only hits from the right side. 🔷 Miami's eight-game losing streak is tied for the eighth-longest in franchise history. Opponents have outscored them 59-29. On a new episode of The Offishial Show (embedded below), I ask whether this is the "worst" losing streak the team has ever had in terms of completely changing the trajectory of their season. 🔷 Jacob Amaya, Kent Emanuel and Vladimir Gutierrez are in DFA limbo. 🔷 My daily player spotlight shines on Burger. He owns a 155 wRC+ while no other Marlin is above 92! Only two strikeouts against right-handed pitching so far this season. Christina De Nicola of MLB.com details his upbringing as a Cardinals fan in the St. Louis suburbs. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Oakland Athletics will play home games in Sacramento from 2025-2027 with an option for 2028 (if their Las Vegas ballpark isn't ready by then). They'll share Sutter Health Park with the Giants' Triple-A Sacramento affiliate. Yes, life as an A's fan is even sadder than being a Marlins fan. 🔷 Minor League Baseball is all the way back! Every full-season affiliate is scheduled to play today. Check out our new Marlins minor league affiliate guide. MLB Pipeline has a roundup of where the organization's top-rated prospects have been assigned. Today's games Triple-A Jacksonville at Durham, 6:35 p.m. ET Double-A Pensacola vs. Mississippi, 7:05 p.m. ET High-A Beloit vs. Cedar Rapids, 7:35 p.m. ET Low-A Jupiter at Palm Beach, 6:30 p.m. ET Marlins podcast episodes View full article

The Offishial Show—Episode #216 Only 5% into the 2024 Miami Marlins season, the perception of the team has changed dramatically...and not in a good way. Ely Sussman makes the case that there has never been such a costly streak of consecutive losses in the franchise's existence. Find The Offishial Show on the Fish On First YouTube channel, our new-look Apple Podcasts channel and wherever else you get your pods. FOF's audio programming also includes Fish Unfiltered, Big Fish Small Pod, Swimming Upstream and more. The Fish On First podcast is now being presented by MPT College Consulting! They pride themselves on helping clients navigate the college application process. This includes preparation for standardized testing, guidance through high school, assistance with essays and applications, and choosing the right college. Visit them today at mptcollegeconsulting.com to learn more about their services and schedule a free consultation. Although this is not yet the longest losing streak in Marlins history, the timing of it and the warts that it has revealed have made it extremely detrimental. The Marlins unequivocally have one of Major League Baseball's worst defenses. Their relief pitchers don't throw strikes, their starting pitchers don't work deep into games and Eury Pérez (Tommy John surgery) has been ruled out for the entire season. At the plate, Jake Burger has been Miami's only above-average performer. On the eve of Opening Day, the Marlins had 28.8% odds of a postseason berth, according to FanGraphs. Those odds have plummeted to 6.8% as of Friday morning. The Marlins could match their franchise record for longest losing streak on Monday against the New York Yankees if their first win of the season remains elusive. Follow Ely (@RealEly) and Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) on Twitter. Join the Marlins Discord server! Complete Miami Marlins coverage here at FishOnFirst.com. View full article

I saw your matching tweet haha. Don't fully believe you can resist, but wouldn't blame you one bit. They 100% did it to themselves.