Ely Sussman

Throughout the franchise's history, Marlins skippers have been constantly scapegoated and put in unreasonable situations. The Miami Marlins will likely be making another managerial change following the 2024 season. You've seen the news by now that the club voided the 2025 option in Skip Schumaker's contract. Craig Mish and Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald put out a new report Tuesday morning clarifying how this happened: "Schumaker was upset about the departure of general manager Kim Ng, who left the team last October after owner Bruce Sherman informed her she would report to a new president of baseball operations. Ng was unhappy about being stripped of her power. "Schumaker, who had a good relationship with Ng, expressed his concerns in a conversation with Sherman before Sherman hired Peter Bendix as the team’s new top baseball executive. "As a show of good faith, Sherman agreed to void the 2025 team option on the manager’s contract. This allows Schumaker to seek another job, if he wishes, next winter." The Herald notes that the Marlins still have interest in keeping Schumaker, but there is zero reason to believe that interest is mutual. Miami's major league payroll remained flat despite Sherman boasting about the franchise's 2023 success on and off the field. After deftly guiding them to a postseason berth, Schumaker was saddled with a mediocre, ill-fitting roster entering the 2024 season, made worse by Peter Bendix's Opening Day eve decision to trade utility man Jon Berti for young prospects. There is also the question of Skip's compensation. This past offseason, Craig Counsell reset the market for managerial contracts, receiving a five-year, $40M deal from the Chicago Cubs as a free agent. It isn't known what Schumaker's current salary is, but for context, his Marlins predecessor, Don Mattingly, was making around $2M per year at the end of his tenure. Counsell's previous team, the mid-market Milwaukee Brewers, balked at his price tag, and the small-market Marlins would certainly do the same if Schumaker receives comparable offers. Schumaker understandably wants to win now, whereas Marlins ownership and the revamped front office are prioritizing the long term. They are not aligned. This relationship will not go on. Which brings me to this pattern that has traversed the history of the Marlins. Mattingly was an anomaly, lasting seven total seasons with two different ownership groups, largely because of his willingness to wait out a rebuild. Aside from him, no other Marlins manager has completed four consecutive seasons on the job. Here in Year 32 of the Marlins' existence, Schumaker is the 14th manager to hold the position for at least half of a full-length regular season (81 games). That's the highest total among MLB franchises—most others are in the single digits during that span. Expect Year 33 to be led by a 15th. The table below omits Cookie Rojas (1996) and Brandon Hyde (2011), who had one-game stints as interim managers. Some of these previous managers unequivocally underperformed and deserved to be replaced. Schumaker obviously does not belong in that group. Rather, I see parallels between him and the likes of Jim Leyland and Joe Girardi, who would have stayed with the Fish much longer if not for ownership repelling them. Who is seriously going to want this job next? View full article

Marlins news roundup for 4/9/24 On Monday, I attended the Marlins vs. Yankees game with my dad, and as a die-hard Yankee fan, at least he was entertained! Nestor Cortes dominated for eight innings, Jesús Luzardo held the home team off the scoreboard through three, but Anthony Volpe and Juan Soto tagged him for three-run home runs in the bottom of the fourth to break the game open. It was the first time that Miami has been shut out in 2024. Might've been a no-hitter if not for Bryan De La Cruz's pair of singles. The Marlins lost, 7-0. Here's more Marlins news and content for you: 🔷 Eury Pérez underwent his scheduled Tommy John surgery. "I know it will be a long process, but I promise I will be back better than ever," he said in a statement. 🔷 The Marlins now have a second player on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 prospects list: LHP Thomas White. RHP Noble Meyer is 52nd on the list. Personally, I would have their rankings switched. White's control has been inconsistent so far as a pro, but the quality of his stuff is better than Meyer's at this stage. 🔷 Happy birthday to Luis Arraez. The reigning National League batting champion, Arraez is slashing .346/.389/.460 (129 wRC+) in 158 games played as a Marlin since the start of last season. He's turning 27 today. Coming up on Thursday, it's the anniversary of Arraez becoming the first player in franchise history to hit for the cycle. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Padres overcame an 8-0 deficit to stun the Cubs. Elly De La Cruz (Reds) hit a 450-foot home run and an inside-the-park homer in the same game. Tyler Anderson (Angels) followed up his seven scoreless innings in Miami with seven more against the Rays. The Astros got 8 ⅔ scoreless innings from their bullpen in a comeback win against the rival Rangers. 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter LHP A.J. Puk) visit the Yankees (LHP Carlos Rodón). Quite a bit of pressure on Puk, who likely will get squeezed out of the starting rotation next week unless he has a solid start before Braxton Garrett and/or Edward Cabrera get activated from the injured list. 🔷 Today's MiLB schedule: Triple-A Jacksonville vs. Charlotte, 7:05 p.m. ET Double-A Pensacola at Montgomery, 7:35 p.m. ET High-A Beloit at Peoria, 7:05 p.m. ET Low-A Jupiter vs. St. Lucie, 6:30 p.m. ET Marlins podcast episodes View full article

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

Beautiful sight, ain't it?!

Welcome to FOF's 11th Miami Marlins game thread of the 2024 season. The New York Yankees (8-2, +10 run differential) are the toughest opponent that the Marlins have faced thus far. Old friend Jon Berti starts the series opener at third base. SuperSubs can access exclusive game notes here. Pregame roster moves: none. Enjoy live on-site coverage via Noah Berger.

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