Ely Sussman

Tuesday's GamesMarlins Podcast Episodes Here is our updated Fish On First Top 30 prospects list. Isaac Azout, Kevin Barral and I ranked the top talent in the Marlins farm system entering the 2023-24 offseason, with RHP Noble Meyer in the No. 1 spot.In postseason news, the Diamondbacks pulled off the upset! They defeated the Phillies on the road in NLCS Game 7 to clinch the National League pennant, only their second in franchise history. NLCS MVP Ketel Marte set an MLB record by recording a hit in his 16th straight postseason game to begin his career. After shining brightly in the NLDS, Nick Castellanos went 1-for-24 at the plate during this series with strikeouts in all seven games.Elsewhere around baseball, Craig Breslow is reportedly the new chief baseball officer of the Boston Red Sox. That resolution should allow the Marlins to kick their own job search into high gear. The Giants' official hiring of manager Bob Melvin could happen as soon as today. Melvin's replacement in San Diego is expected to come internally.Join us tonight at 7:00 p.m. ET for a new edition of Fish On First LIVE on YouTube/Twitter/Twitch that will include our World Series predictions. With chiropractic care and functional health, La Pop takes a preventative approach that optimizes wellness and quality of life for all ages. Find out more here!https://fishonfirst.com/la-pop/Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.Kevin Barral spoke to Paul McIntosh (#25 on the FOF Top 30) about his Arizona Fall League experience.Glenn Geffner's View from the Bleachers concludes that the Marlins' payroll must continue to rise in order to give the new baseball operations head a chance of assembling a competitive team in 2024.Marlins players Nick Fortes, Jesús Luzardo, Braxton Garrett and Anthony Bender(!) checked out Tuesday's Florida Panthers game. Garrett had the honors of banging the drum. Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald notes that today is the one-year anniversary of Skip Schumaker's hiring as Marlins manager. In the words of Luis Arraez, "he's the best."On this day 20 years ago, Josh Beckett's shutout of the Yankees in Game 6 clinched the Marlins' second World Series title.For Palm Beach Stories, Joe Capozzi details what made Beckett's final out so unique. The ball from that series-clinching play remains in the right-hander's home, still being held inside the glove he was using on that historic night.Photo by Victor Baldizon/Getty Images

Monday's GamesMarlins Podcast Episodes Monday's fall/winter ball notes: SS Nasim Nuñez (AFL) went 1-for-4 with a walk. CF Dane Myers went 0-for-1 with a HBP.In postseason news, congratulations to the Rangers on defeating the Astros to advance to the World Series. Road teams won all seven games of the ALCS. Adolis García slugged his way to MVP honors. Dusty Baker is believed to have managed his final game, The Athletic reports. "Baker wants to remain in the game in some capacity," but understandably might prefer a lightened work schedule at the age of 74. For the first time this postseason, the Phillies lost at Citizens Bank Park, scoring one measly run against Merrill Kelly and the Diamondbacks.Elsewhere around baseball, a new professional league serving the Middle East and South Asia, Baseball United, held its inaugural draft. There are two former Marlins among the draftees: RHP André Rienzo and OF Alejandro De Aza. They were both selected by the Abu Dhabi Falcons, who are managed by another ex-Marlin, Dennis Cook (reliever from the World Series-winning 1997 team).After trading zeroes during a Game 3 pitcher's duel, Brandon Pfaadt and Ranger Suárez match up once again in tonight's winner-take-all NLCS finale.Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. The latest installment covers Garrett Cooper. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.The Miami Marlins Radio Network announced that they have new content on the way next month. The Marlins Hot Stove Show will be live on Tuesdays starting November 7 and "Marlins Rerun" episodes will be posted on Thursdays starting November 9.Maybe something, maybe nothing: Skip Schumaker's Twitter account has blocked several Marlins fans and multiple FOF staffers. At least a few of these blocks were put in place during the week-plus since Kim Ng left the organization. Schumaker rarely addresses Marlins fans/media in public tweets, but he's known to use the app on a near-daily basis.Photo courtesy of MLB

Relive all of the ups and downs of the 2023 Miami Marlins with our Fish On First Season Review, containing detailed articles about a wide variety of players. The FOF staff analyzes the individual impact that each of them had and what it means for their future with the organization. This installment focuses on first baseman/designated hitter Garrett Cooper. 2023 TimelineMay 3—placed on 10-day injured list (inner ear infection)May 12—sent on minor league rehab assignment to Jacksonville Jumbo ShrimpMay 14—activated from 10-day injured list —traded along with RHP Sean Reynolds to the San Diego Padres for LHP Ryan WeathersOverall season stats: 123 G, .251/.304/.419, 96 wRC+, 17 HR, 0 SB, 0.3 fWAR (age-32 season) Marlins stats: 82 G, .256/.296/.426, 93 wRC+, 13 HR, 0 SB, 0.2 fWAR There weren't a whole lot of spicy "position battles" to monitor during 2023 Marlins spring training, but the role of backup first baseman was still yet to be decided. Although Garrett Cooper had been a good hitter throughout the past half-decade and earned a National League All-Star selection the year before, he had repeatedly failed to stay on the field. However much you want to attribute that to fragility vs. simple bad luck, the Marlins needed to account for his perennial lack of availability. The club wanted newcomer Luis Arraez to focus entirely on second base, though at least he could cover first in emergencies. Catcher Nick Fortes got some spring reps at the position. So did Jordan Groshans and Jerar Encarnación—like Fortes, that wasn't their natural position. None of these internal options distinguished themselves, so with less than three weeks until Opening Day, the Marlins inked free agent Yuli Gurriel to a minor league deal. He showed enough during that brief trial (particularly defensively) to secure the final roster spot. Gurriel's presence allowed the Marlins to manage Cooper's workload, resting him about once per week and occasionally sliding him over to the designated hitter spot. Overall, it was the most durable season of his major league career. However, Coop's effectiveness at the plate was below his usual standards. He lacked discipline and struck out in nearly 30% of his Marlins plate appearances while walking only 5.3% of the time; from 2018-2022, those rates were 25.9% and 9.0%, respectively. He was mashing left-handed pitching (138 wRC+), but every other aspect of his offensive profile was underwhelming. Coming out of the All-Star break, it was unsurprising to see rumors swirl about the slumping Marlins pursuing lineup upgrades, but they wouldn't mess with the Cooper/Gurriel duo...right? The possibility of shaking up the first base situation began feeling very real the week before the trade deadline when Miami was reported to be one of the bidders for Carlos Santana, who was ultimately dealt from Pittsburgh to Milwaukee. Mere hours before the Aug. 1 deadline arrived, Kim Ng and her front office shook up the Marlins offense in a series of moves. They acquired Josh Bell from the Cleveland Guardians to be their primary first baseman down the stretch. Cooper and minor league reliever Sean Reynolds departed for the San Diego Padres in exchange for Ryan Weathers. As a pending free agent in the midst of an unremarkable season, Coop understandably carried very minimal surplus value. At the time, Bell's numbers were not clearly better than Cooper's, but the Marlins were richly rewarded for betting on his underlying batted ball data: Later that month, Cooper faced his former teammates when the Fish visited Petco Park. He reached base safely five times during the series (3-for-8, 2 BB). He started about half of the Padres' post-deadline games. His platoon splits were even more pronounced and he was a net-negative in terms of win probability added. The Padres finished two games back of the final NL Wild Card spot. This wasn't the kind of walk year that Cooper hoped for. That being said, he avoided significant injuries and set new personal bests for home runs, RBIs, total bases and games played. Highlights/Lowlightshttps://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-04/27/25bacd68-dd42eebf-831bd2e2-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Cooper's game-winning double completes comeback vs. Braves (4/27/23)https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-06/22/4ea363c6-703f684b-1a3adf48-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Cooper's go-ahead home run vs. Pirates (6/22/23)https://sporty-clips.mlb.com/39c144cb-44e4-47ee-8bd8-6e4690365355.mp4Cooper completes "golden sombrero" vs. Cardinals with strikeout on non-competitive pitch (7/18/23)Future with the MarlinsIt's not like Cooper and the Marlins ended things on bad terms, so there is at least a longshot scenario that involves them reuniting. For that to happen this offseason, Bell would have to opt out of his contract and sign elsewhere—there's too much redundancy in their skillsets to justify paying market rate for both. Cooper's highest bidder should be willing to go slightly above his 2023 salary of $3.9 million. Given his injury history and recent issues performing against same-handed pitching, perhaps there'd be performance bonuses in the deal based on plate appearances. Photo by Noah Berger/Fish On First

Enjoy top plays from Miami Marlins outfielder Victor Mesa Jr.! Mesa spent his age-21 season with the Double-A Pensacola Blue Wahoos. In 123 games played, he slashed .242/.308/.412 (91 wRC+) with 18 HR and 16 SB. He also had 11 outfield assists. In October 2018, the Marlins signed Mesa along with older brother, Victor Victor Mesa. Although Victor Victor received the much larger signing bonus at the time, Victor Jr. has clearly established himself as the better player. He's likely to earn a 40-man roster spot in November and advance to the Triple-A level next year. Where would you rank Mesa among the top prospects in the Marlins organization?

The Miami Marlins have had a chance to catch their breath during the week since they parted ways with general manager Kim Ng, but the Major League Baseball transaction calendar will soon require them to get back to business. Interim GM Brian Chattin and principal owner Bruce Sherman have moves to make between now and early November. Entering Monday, the Marlins 40-man roster is at 39 players. Several of them are goners following the World Series as the team makes room to reinstate members of the 60-day injured list. Yuli Gurriel, David Robertson and Joey Wendle are pending free agents. Although there is an exclusive five-day negotiating window between free agents and their former clubs, it's doubtful that new deals will be consummated so soon in these cases. Gurriel and Wendle are low-priority bench players. Robertson surely will want to test the open market after a rocky experience in Miami. Johnny Cueto and Matt Barnes will join them in free agency after their 2024 club options are declined. Due to injuries and illness, Cueto was limited to 13 sub-replacement-level appearances in 2023. As much as the Marlins need a veteran innings-eater next season, Cueto ain't that guy. They'll pay him a $2.5 million buyout to go away rather than pick up his $10.5 million option. Barnes is coming off a slightly better season than Cueto and has a slightly cheaper option ($9 million), but he's also a middle reliever coming off hip surgery. No reason to overthink this. Barnes will take home a $2.75 million buyout. Barnes wasn't counting against the 40-man, but Gurriel, Robertson, Wendle and Cueto were. Their subtractions take the roster count from 39 to 35. Anthony Bender (Tommy John surgery), Jonathan Davis (right meniscus surgery), Max Meyer (Tommy John surgery) and Trevor Rogers (right lat strain) will each be reinstated from the 60-day IL. Barring setbacks, all four are expected to be ready for spring training and hold positive trade value. It's an easy call to re-add them to the 40-man, bringing the Marlins back up to 39 players. Tommy Nance's campaign began with a shoulder strain, ended with an oblique strain, and in between, he never threw a pitch for the Marlins (though he was effective on minor league rehab assignments). I don't have a feel for what the Marlins will do with him. They temporarily have room for him on the roster and he'll be cheap in 2024 (pre-arb), so no urgency to get rid of him during "Phase I" of offseason transactions. All-Star Jorge Soler is opting out of his contract, forgoing the $13 million salary he's currently in line for, knowing there will be more money out there for him. I recommend that the Marlins extend a qualifying offer to Soler, retaining him for approximately $20.5 million if he accepts and making themselves eligible to receive draft-pick compensation if he declines and signs elsewhere. Will they? Likely not. No outcome would surprise me in the case of Josh Bell. Like Soler, he can opt out and test the market as one of the most talented run producers in the 2023-24 free agent class. Unlike Soler, he would not be bogged down by draft-pick compensation because he's ineligible for a qualifying offer. However, his existing contract already calls for a $16.5 million salary and his 2023 production was below average by first base/designated hitter standards, although he finished on a very high note. Bell's agent, Scott Boras, has historically encouraged his clients to enter free agency when they're on the fence. My best guess is he'll opt out. Lastly, there is Jon Berti's situation. In February, he signed a contract that included a club option for 2024. The option's value has increased from $3.5 million to $3.625 million based on his total plate appearances from this past season, and it comes with a $25k buyout. I mention Berti last because he'll be on the 40-man either way and remain under the Marlins' control. If they decline the option, it just means they feel he would settle for less than $3.6 million to avoid arbitration. After posting a shiny .294 batting average and setting career highs in most counting stats (other than stolen bases), I predict that the Marlins will pick up the option. Previewing "Phase II"Coming up in mid-November, MLB teams have to determine which Rule 5 Draft-eligible prospects to protect on their 40-man roster and which pre-arb and arbitration-eligible major leaguers they want to tender 2024 contracts to. It's unclear whether the Marlins' new baseball operations chief will be in place by then. Regardless of who's calling the shots, expect outfielder Victor Mesa Jr. to be protected and Jacob Stallings to be non-tendered. I'll have another article out explaining why in greater detail after Phase I is complete. Photo by Jasen Vinlove/Miami Marlins

Sunday's GamesThe Dominican Winter League season has just begun, while the Arizona Fall League is entering its third-to-last week. Check our Marlins fall/winter ball tracker regularly for updates.In postseason news, Nathan Eovaldi (Rangers) improved to 4-0 this month, completing at least six innings in each of those starts. Adolis García's grand slam secured Sunday's victory, setting up a winner-take-all ALCS Game 7.Elsewhere around the majors, Padres manager Bob Melvin is interviewing for the same position with the Giants and considered the "leading candidate" to get it. Melvin's imminent departure from San Diego reportedly stems from a rift between he and general manager A.J. Preller.The Phillies attempt to remain undefeated at Citizens Bank Park this postseason. A win tonight punches their ticket to the World Series. Max Scherzer and Cristian Javier are the probable starters in Houston with the American League pennant hanging in the balance.I prepare you for what the first phase of Marlins offseason roster moves will look like. It remains hard to gauge whether or not Josh Bell will exercise his opt-out, but I lean yes.Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. The latest installments cover Jesús Sánchez and Johnny Cueto. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.Former Marlins reliever AJ Ramos debuted his new show, " ," taking us inside the mind of a professional athlete and finding a balance between life on and off the field. Outfielder Noah Williamson was the Marlins' 19th-round pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. He was cut this past summer before advancing beyond the Low-A level due to severe swing-and-miss issues. I only bring this up because he's made an unconventional career move, signing with the Hyogo Bravers of Japan's Sawakami Kansai Independent League. Good luck to Williamson! On this day 20 years ago, the Marlins beat the Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series. The Marlins haven't played a postseason home game since then.Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

Someday, the Miami Marlins will likely have to compete against their ex-general manager Kim Ng once she lands a gig with another MLB team's front office. That day might not be coming this offseason, though. Ng was "thought to be of strong interest" to the Boston Red Sox, Chris Cotillo and Sean McAdam of MassLive report, the only other franchise actively searching for a new baseball operations department leader. But on Friday, she declined to interview with them. While "the reasons for Ng’s refusal are unknown," there are plenty of other prominent executives who have done the same during the month-plus since Boston's chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom was fired: Traditionally, working for the Red Sox came with the flexibility of a top-five MLB payroll, but ownership tightened the purse strings during Bloom's tenure. The expectation to win World Series titles is still there, contributing to the frequent turnover that the Sox have had since Theo Epstein's tenure ended. The New York Mets could be in the market for a GM to replace Billy Eppler, who resigned earlier this month. However, David Stearns just took over as their president of baseball operations. Ng reportedly parted with the Marlins largely due to Bruce Sherman's plan to hire a POBO to oversee her, so it's difficult to imagine her going there (unless ultra-wealthy Mets owner Steve Cohen overwhelms her with a massive salary and long-term job security). It's possible that other teams who currently have a GM as their top decision-maker could target Ng to be their POBO, reacting to her sudden availability rather than conducting broad searches like the Red Sox and Marlins. If not, perhaps she'll bide her time in an advisory role until the 2024-25 hiring cycle begins.

Thursday's GamesMarlins Podcast Episodes Thursday's fall/winter ball notes: It was Opening Day for LIDOM in the Dominican Republic. The only Marlin on an active roster was CF Dane Myers (Gigantes del Cibao), who went 0-for-2 with a run scored. In the AFL, C Paul McIntosh and SS Nasim Nuñez each recorded a hit. LHP Evan Taylor pitched a scoreless inning of relief.Listen back to Thursday's State of the Fish, our first Twitter Space of the Marlins offseason.In postseason news, NLCS Game 3 starters Ranger Suárez and Brandon Pfaadt threw up zeroes into the sixth inning. The Phillies took a 1-0 lead on a wild pitch in the seventh, but the Diamondbacks immediately answered back and then walked off to victory on Ketel Marte's RBI single. The Phillies are still up 2-1 in the series. Both ALCS Game 4 starters had lousy outings, but the Astros bullpen was exponentially better than the Rangers. Another big night at the plate for Yordan Alvarez (2-for-4, 3 RBI) helped even up the series.Elsewhere around the majors, Jim Leyland is among eight nominees to be considered by the Baseball Hall of Fame's Contemporary Baseball Era Committee for the Class of 2024. The 1997 World Series champion needs to receive votes from at least 75% of the committee members to be elected. Veteran right-hander Michael Fulmer underwent UCL revision surgery that's expected to cost him the entire 2024 season. He pitched for the Cubs this past year.Both League Championship Series matchups resume tonight. Road teams are undefeated so far in the ALCS and the same goes for home teams in the NLCS.Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. The latest installments cover Luis Arraez and David Robertson. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.It isn't hard to find national media columns roasting the Marlins, including Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic, Jay Jaffe of FanGraphs, Marc Normandin of Baseball Prospectus and Jon Heyman of the New York Post. I have found that many of these articles overlook key facts to push a neat narrative, though at least in Heyman's case, there is interesting reporting about how Kim Ng overruled the majority of the club's decision-makers to select Skip Schumaker as manager over Matt Quatraro.Nasim Nuñez tells Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald why it's so important to disconnect from baseball when away from the field.Barely a week post-surgery, Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s right foot is tough to look at, though his recovery appears to be going as planned.Photo by Sporting News via Getty Images

Wednesday's GamesMarlins Podcast Episodes Wednesday's AFL/winter ball notes: Solid start for RHP Ike Buxton (5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), matching the highest strikeout total of his pro career. LHP Dale Stanavich followed with a scoreless inning of relief. 3B Jacob Berry went 3-for-5 with his first home run of the fall league. 2B Nasim Nunez went 1-for-5 with a double.Subscribe to Fish On First wherever you get your podcasts to check out our extended conversation with Marlins insider Craig Mish! He explains why ownership had concerns about the organization's sustainability and why Kim Ng wasn't willing to go along Bruce Sherman's vision. The pod references reporting from Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald and Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic.Jesús Luzardo is a finalist for the NL Gold Glove award along with pitchers Taijuan Walker and Zack Wheeler, Rawlings Baseball announced on Wednesday. Eight Marlins players have previously won Gold Gloves, but only one pitcher (Mark Buehrle in 2012). Aside from Luzardo, no other Marlins were finalists at their respective positions this year. The award winners will be announced on November 5. Elsewhere around baseball, the Astros spoiled Max Scherzer's return from injury to win ALCS Game 3. Jose Altuve now has 25 career postseason homers (for context, Luis Arraez has 24 career regular season homers). The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced the implementation of an automatic ball-strike system for the 2024 season. The KBO is generally considered the world's third-most competitive baseball league behind only MLB and Japan's NPB. MLB officials will surely be monitoring this situation closely.The latest included our final thoughts on Ng, what the Marlins should be prioritizing in the search for her replacement and observations about the MLB postseason. With chiropractic care and functional health, La Pop takes a preventative approach that optimizes wellness and quality of life for all ages. Find out more here! https://fishonfirst.com/la-pop/Tonight brings us an LCS doubleheader. Ranger Suárez takes the mound for the Phillies, having allowed just one total run in his previous two postseason starts.Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.Just Baseball updated their Top 100 MLB prospects list. The lone Marlin on there, RHP Noble Meyer, ranks 59th.Glenn Geffner's View from the Bleachers endorses Michael Hill for a second stint as Marlins president of baseball operations. "From what I’ve heard over the years, Hill’s 2020 departure from the Marlins was orchestrated by the departed (Derek) Jeter," Geffner writes. "There’s some question as to whether or not Sherman was even informed in advance that Hill would be leaving the club he served for nearly 20 years."Christina De Nicola of MLB.com mentions teenagers SS Fabian López and OF Andrés Valor as possible breakout prospects for the Marlins in 2024.Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

Monday's GamesMarlins Podcast Episodes https://open.spotify.com/episode/0eTvvh6tylPRBRdejsNgcY?si=TZg544A4Sju3cV69Q80qUQMonday's AFL/winter ball updates: IF Nasim Nuñez went 1-for-3 with a walk and two stolen bases and IF Jacob Berry went 0-for-3 with a walk. Nuñez has gone 8-for-8 on steal attempts in his nine games played. RHP Zach McCambley pitched a scoreless inning. The Peoria Javelinas have lost four of their last five games.Kim Ng is not coming back to the Marlins. Bruce Sherman reportedly offered her a contract extension to continue as general manager, but under the condition that he would pursue a new top executive to serve as president of baseball operations. I have many thoughts about this messy situation as expressed in the podcast episodes embedded above. To be concise, it's disappointing to see the Marlins hemorrhaging leadership and brainpower, and I wish Ng immense success when she inevitably lands with another MLB front office. While Sherman may have been uncomfortable elevating Ng to president of baseball ops given her mixed track record as GM, wouldn't that be preferable to starting from scratch? Doesn't it send a horrible message to job candidates that their predecessor wasn't appreciated by ownership on the heels of such a successful season? Brian Chattin is serving as the club's interim GM.https://fishonfirst.com/news/kim-ng-marlins-part-ways/Elsewhere around the majors, the Rangers are still undefeated in postseason competition after holding on to win their second straight ALCS road game. José Leclerc has pitched in all seven of those contests. The Phillies led wire to wire in their Game 1 victory over the Diamondbacks. Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper (who was celebrating his 31st birthday) and Nick Castellanos each homered off of Zac Gallen in their first plate appearances.A raucous Citizens Bank Park will be hosting NLCS Game 2 tonight.Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reminds us that just a few weeks ago, Sherman said Ng was doing a "fabulous" job. But Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic describes Sherman as "a huge proponent of analytics" who has "different ideas regarding personnel decisions and where some of the team’s resources should be allotted." Glenn Geffner's View from the Bleachers explains why Sherman's handling of her should not come as a surprise.Kevin Barral reports on Jacob Berry's fall league performance, including Berry's reflections on the 2023 regular season.https://fishonfirst.com/farm/jacob-berry-arizona-fall-league-quotes/Our 2023 Marlins Season Review series keeps expanding. Check back daily for more articles from the FOF staff.Photo by Jasen Vinlove/Miami Marlins