Ely Sussman

Today's Marlins news roundup also ponders the future of Jorge Soler.Sunday's Games/game-coverage/marlins-rangers-shutout-sweep-8-6-23/https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-08/06/520308ae-cc19a0a2-b3726af4-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Marlins Podcast Episodes Sunday's Marlins MiLB Notes: Recently optioned Edward Cabrera (Jacksonville) had a quality start on an efficient 74 pitches (6.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 2 HR). INF/OF Xavier Edwards homered for the second straight game and raised his batting average to .373. 1B Jacob Berry (Pensacola) stuffed the box score by going 2-for-3 with a triple, a home run, two walks, a stolen base and four RBIs. C Joe Mack (Beloit) provided the Sky Carp's only offense with two solo home runs. RHP Anthony Maldonado (Jupiter) threw a scoreless inning with three strikeouts in the first game of his rehab assignment. He's coming back from a hip injury. 1B Brock Vradenburg, who went 2-for-5 in his professional debut with the Hammerheads, is just 2-for-26 since then.The Marlins have lost 13 of their last 14 road games. Sandy Alcantara now has more losses (10) and more home runs allowed (17) than he did during the entire 2022 season.Craig Mish of SportsGrid made a special guest appearance on our weekly State of the Fish Twitter Space. Listen to it here or via the Fish On First podcast channel.Elsewhere around the majors, the Cubs leapfrogged the Marlins in the NL Wild Card race. They've won 13 of their last 16 games overall. Carlos Rodón's nightmare season with the Yankees continues. His ERA ballooned to 7.33 as he left his start in the third inning with left hamstring tightness. In his first major league start of the season, Minnesota's Dallas Keuchel took pitch-to-contact to an extreme. Keuchel did not strike out any of the 23 Diamondbacks batters he faced, though he did limit them to only one run in five innings pitched.FOF staffer Grant Kiefer made perfect picks for the Marlins vs. Rangers series. He's now tied with Daniel Rodriguez atop the Prediction Time leaderboard. You can participate in Prediction Time too while supporting what we do by becoming a Super Subscriber./fish-on-first-updates/super-subscriber-details/We’ve got a new episode of Fish On First LIVE streaming tonight at 5:30 p.m. ET on /Twitch/Twitter. Super Subscribers, submit your series predictions before first pitch. 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! The Marlins enter this new week with 32.0% playoff odds, per FanGraphs. They are a half-game back of the third NL Wild Card spot entering play today. Weather permitting, they have a 58.3% chance to win their series opener against the Reds as Eury Pérez will make his return to the majors. FCL Marlins (12:00 p.m. ET) and DSL Marlins (11:00 a.m. ET) are at home, while DSL Miami (11:00 a.m. ET) is on the road.I have brought the Fish Stripes concept of FanPosts to FOF. Submit your own Marlins articles and we'll share them with the rest of our community. Details below./fish-on-first-updates/marlins-fanposts/As valuable as Jorge Soler has been this season, it seems clear that the Marlins will let him walk in free agency (assuming he exercises his opt out). I explain why./analysis/jorge-soler-marlins-qualifying-offer/Kevin Barral and Alex Carver were on site in Jupiter to witness the professional debut of top Marlins prospect Noble Meyer. They got a postgame interview with him, too./game-coverage/at-the-ballpark/noble-meyer-interview-professional-debut/According to Héctor Gómez of Z101 Digital, Major League Baseball has launched an investigation following reports that Marlins executives at their baseball academy in the Dominican Republic are fining players for minor rules violations and pocketing the money for themselves.Super Subscriber Paolo Torres is running a fantasy football league this NFL season and encourages Marlins fans to join him.Secret Base did a of the 2003 Marlins season, setting the scene for how they spoiled what was supposed to be the final act of Roger Clemens' legendary career.Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Imaget

Soler has been among Miami's most important players in 2023, but it's difficult to see how he fits with the franchise moving forward.It took until year two, but Jorge Soler is one of the few examples in recent memory of a Marlins free agent signing living up to his contract. Acquired by the Fish coming off a starring role in the 2021 World Series, he has become the imposing power threat that their offense sorely needed. Soler leads the 2023 Marlins—by wide margins—in home runs, walks and runs scored. "Cubano Gigante" has been especially productive in high-leverage situations. Across Major League Baseball, only Chas McCormick tops him in FanGraphs' Clutch stat. Combining his timely hitting with his everyday availability, Soler ranks 12th among MLB hitters in win probability added (2.83), residing in the same neighborhood as the likes of Yordan Álvarez (3.16), Aaron Judge (2.75) and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (2.50). https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-05/27/2b6af449-6728cb05-966c4844-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-08/02/dacea2cc-b6964fda-b0348a49-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Soler's contract is not up yet—2024 is the final guaranteed season on what was originally a three-year, $36 million deal. However, he negotiated the ability to opt out early and dive back into the free agency this coming winter. It ought to be a fairly easy decision for him under the current circumstances. Shohei Ohtani is far and away the best bat available in the 2023-24 MLB free agent class, occupying a tier all his own. Cody Bellinger, assuming he declines his mutual option with the Chicago Cubs, is in tier two largely because of his youth and MVP upside. But Soler would be firmly in the third tier. His production at the plate is comparable to the likes of Matt Chapman, Jeimer Candelario, J.D. Martinez and Justin Turner (player option). Soler's Marlins deal calls for a 2024 base salary of $9 million, plus up to $4 million of performance bonuses for 2023 plate appearances. Soler has already achieved $2 million of those incentives by reaching 350 PA ($500k), 400 PA ($500k) and 450 PA ($1M). He will get $2 million more for reaching 550 PA. Starting about half of the Marlins' remaining regular season games will get him there, so barring a significant injury down the stretch, he'll have 13 million reasons to stick around. I doubt that will be enough. Entering his age-32 season with a lifetime 111 wRC+ and still having the flexibility to roam the corner outfield spots when necessary, Soler should once again receive lucrative multi-year proposals. The more fascinating hypothetical is this: What would Soler do if the Marlins presented him with a qualifying offer upon exercising his opt out? The QO's value is the average of MLB's 125 highest-paid players. Last offseason, it was worth $19.65 million. Let's conservatively say it rises to $20 million. Would that be enough? The Marlins' trade deadline activity suggests they will probably let Soler walk without finding out. For the moment, new acquisitions Josh Bell and Jake Burger are primarily being used at first base and third base, respectively. However, they're both below-average fielders at those positions, just like Soler is in the outfield. While the power potential of this trio is alluring, keeping them in the lineup together would come at the expense of the team's defense...and the expense of principal owner Bruce Sherman. As much as Sherman has increased the Marlins payroll from where it used to be, efficiency is still a priority. Soler has All-Star upside, but he hasn't consistently performed at that level—just look at 2022, when a back injury limited him to 72 mediocre games. Would a low-revenue team that's already on the hook to pay $16.5 million to Bell next season commit $20 million more to Soler given the need to make major upgrades at several other positions, most obviously catcher and shortstop? Unlikely. Here's the best-case scenario for the Marlins: Soler dominates for the rest of this season, guiding them to a playoff berth and boosting his market value to such an extent that the club can extend a qualifying offer knowing he'll reject it to sign elsewhere. As compensation, the Marlins would get an extra 2024 MLB Draft pick (and the bonus pool money associated with it). The draft pick would be wedged between the first round and Competitive Balance Round A if Soler signs for $50 million or more; it'd come after Competitive Balance Round B if his contract guarantees less than $50 million. Either way, that's a notable asset considering the weakened state of Miami's farm system. Sherman has gotten a lousy return on the majority of his multi-year free agent investments, most recently Jean Segura. But hopefully Soler's impact emboldens him to continue shopping for proven veterans who suit the Marlins' roster needs. Photo courtesy of Miami Marlins

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A fifth-inning rally against Miami's newest pitcher flipped Saturday's game upside down.The Miami Marlins reportedly shopped for veteran starting pitching reinforcements prior to the MLB trade deadline. However, they didn't find any priced to their liking. It left a void in their rotation, temporarily filled by George Soriano, who made the first start of his major league career on Saturday against the Texas Rangers. He wasn't stretched out for a regular starter's workload, though, leaving the rest of the pitching staff responsible for preserving an early lead. In his Marlins debut, Ryan Weathers wasn't up for the task in the 9-8 loss. The Marlins needed a pair of fresh arms prior to the game, replacing Devin Smeltzer (designated for assignment after pitching each of the previous two days) and JT Chargois (placed on the 15-day injured list with a right rib cage strain). Weathers and Huascar Brazoban were recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville as the corresponding moves. Soriano kept the explosive Rangers lineup off the scoreboard through three innings, locating his signature slider well to both sides of the plate. https://darkroom-clips.mlb.com/7a52abb5-80d0-4789-8521-c46007206dad.mp4Meanwhile, the Marlins had a lot of success against Jon Gray. They plated three runs in the top of third, the last of those coming on a Jazz Chisholm Jr. infield single. Unfortunately, his right hamstring cramped up on a subsequent stolen base attempt, forcing him to exit the game. The Jazz-less Marlins stretched their lead to 5-0 in the next inning, punctuated by a two-out Luis Arraez RBI double. "Skip (Schumaker) told me to take it easy—we were up by five (runs) at the time. No need to go out there and try to be Superman like I always try to do," Chisholm said postgame. He hopes to play on Sunday. Soriano got ahead in the count 0-2 against Adolis García in the fourth inning. That's when things collapsed. García drew a 10-pitch walk, Josh Jung singled and Robbie Grossman clobbered a poorly placed slider for a three-run home run. https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-08/05/9653c9b5-94722f9f-19103ad5-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Unflattering final line for the rookie right-hander: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 1 HR (59 pitches/36 strikes). Steven Okert temporarily halted the Rangers' momentum, holding the score at 5-3 with a scoreless inning of relief. Weathers may physically resemble him, but he predictably struggled in this situation. The former San Diego Padre hadn't pitched since July 26 and was previously expected to work as a starter in Jacksonville before the major league team's needs took precedent over his development. In the fifth inning, four of the five batters atop the Texas lineup reached base safely against Weathers. Corey Seager went yard to tie it up and Josh Jung followed suit to make it 7-5, homering against a changeup and a slider, respectively. With the Marlins now trailing, Weathers was left out there to wear it. The hope was he'd be able to finish the game himself, but at 95 pitches, Skip Schumaker mercifully let him hit the showers with two outs in the bottom of the eighth. The Marlins have now lost 12 of their last 13 road games. For the first time since June 4, they're only four games over the .500 mark. Additional InfoThe Marlins dropped to 24-10 in one-run games.In his fourth game since the trade, Jake Burger hit his first Marlins home run, a two-run shot against Will Smith that made the ninth inning slightly more interesting. Burger has more homers (26) than singles (24) this season.Joey Wendle singled to snap out of a 0-for-28 slump.Probable starters for the series finale are Sandy Alcantara and Andrew Heaney. That will leave the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros as the only non-Marlins teams Alcantara hasn't faced during his career.The Marlins need another "fresh arm" to replace Weathers for the rest of this road trip, and they're reportedly going with their very best internal option, per Craig Mish of SportsGrid. Eury Pérez will be Monday's probable starter against the Cincinnati Reds, returning one month after being optioned to Double-A Pensacola./news/marlins-roster-moves-eury-perez-call-up/Photo by Tim Heitman/Getty Images

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Today's Marlins news roundup also invites you to submit FanPosts.Thursday's Games/game-coverage/marlins-phillies-michael-lorenzen-8-3-23/https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-08/03/31d2cc6b-f9fc0583-3bce6902-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Marlins Podcast Episodes Thursday's Marlins MiLB Notes: LHP Patrick Monteverde (Jacksonville) had the worst outing of his professional career (3.0 IP, 11 H, 13 ER, 4 BB, 2 K, 3 HR). That throws a wrench into his Marlins Minor League Pitcher of the Year candidacy. OF Victor Mesa Jr. (Pensacola) had his first career multi-home run game. His 11 dingers this season equals his total from the 2019-2022 seasons combined. OF Osiris Johnson (Beloit) enjoyed a 3-for-5 night, continuing what's been his best season as a Marlins prospect. OF Kemp Alderman (Jupiter) is off to a slow start with the bat since turning pro, now 2-for-24 with seven strikeouts. RHP Albert Polanco (DSL Marlins) tossed five scoreless innings against DSL Miami.Dating back to July 22, Joey Wendle is hitless in his last 28 at-bats. Maybe he just needs a breather? Wendle has quietly played in 42 consecutive Marlins games (albeit some of those off the bench).The Marlins are now 0-5 in games that Johnny Cueto has pitched this season. Truthfully, he did well against the Phillies (two inherited runners scored after he left the game).Craig Mish and Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald report that the Marlins attempted to acquire Lance Lynn from the White Sox before ultimately swinging a deal for Jake Burger instead. Fellow pitching prospects Max Meyer and Dax Fulton were discussed during the negotiations (the Sox settled on Jake Eder). Lynn went to the Dodgers. Eury Pérez could possibly return to the Marlins roster during the Yankees series (Aug. 11-13). That implies Pérez will make one final minor league start on either Sunday or Tuesday.Another trade deadline what-if: the Marlins "felt they were close" to getting Justin Turner from the Red Sox, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. That would've been a bold move for both sides considering that Boston is still very alive for an American League playoff spot and Turner is a pending free agent (2024 player option doubtful to be exercised). The 38-year-old has had a better all-around season at the plate (126 wRC+ in 102 G) than the players that Miami added. The Marlins reportedly made Turner a competitive offer last winter when he was a free agent.Elsewhere around the majors, Liam Hendriks underwent Tommy John surgery. The cancer survivor and three-time All-Star pitched just five innings for the White Sox this season. The Cubs have won 11 of their last 13 games to reach three games over .500 for the first time since April. The Mets were swept by the lowly Royals and finished Thursday's game with a position player on the mound. The Yankees have attributed the worst slump of Anthony Rizzo's career to post-concussion syndrome. He's been placed on the injured list.We’ve got a new episode of Fish On First LIVE streaming tonight at 7:00 p.m. ET on /Twitch/Twitter. Super Subscribers, submit your series predictions before first pitch. 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! The Marlins have a 43.8% chance to win their series opener against the Rangers, per FanGraphs. They are a half-game back of the third NL Wild Card spot entering play today. Double-A Pensacola (7:35 p.m. ET) and DSL Miami (11:00 a.m. ET) are at home, while Triple-A Jacksonville (8:05 p.m. ET), High-A Beloit (7:05 p.m. ET), Low-A Jupiter (6:30 p.m. ET) and DSL Marlins (11:00 a.m. ET) are on the road.Luis Arraez was the 2023 Marlins selection for the MLBPAA's Heart and Hustle Award. The award honors active players who demonstrate a passion for the game of baseball and best embody the values, spirit and traditions of the game. Arraez also won it with the Twins in 2022. Jon Berti won it for the Marlins last year. I'm bringing the Fish Stripes concept of FanPosts to FOF! Submit your own Marlins articles and we'll share them with the rest of our community. Details below./fish-on-first-updates/marlins-fanposts/Kevin Barral mentions the solid production coming from members of the Marlins' rookie-level affiliates (FCL Marlins, DSL Marlins and DSL Miami)./farm/marlins-prospects-rookie-ball-updates-2023-midseason/Christina De Nicola of MLB.com does a roundup of the week's worth of community impact events coordinated by the Marlins on this past homestand. She also explains that two of the mascots in the Marlins' new mid-game Rooster Race have names derived from Charlie Hough and Bobby Maduro. Photo courtesy of Danis Sosa/Fish On First

Throughout my Fish Stripes tenure, we opened the door to FanPosts, allowing anybody in our audience to share their detailed thoughts about the Miami Marlins in article form. Submit them whenever you want, however long you want to make them, just keep it Marlins-related. I'm implementing a similar setup here at Fish On First! Comment at the bottom of this article if you are interested in authoring FanPosts. I'll then invite you to be a "contributor" to FOF (I have already done so for several former FS FanPosters). FanPost submissions will be proofread before publication to ensure that articles are free of blatant lies, misspellings/statistical errors, ethnic/racial/gender discrimination, etc. They'll also be clearly marked as FanPosts to avoid any confusion with FOF staff articles. But otherwise, your words will go online here just as you originally intended. Photo courtesy of Miami Marlins

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Today's Marlins news roundup also wonders whether the rumored Salvador Perez trade talks could pick up again in the not-too-distant future.Wednesday's Games/game-coverage/marlins-phillies-josh-bell-jake-burger-walk-off-8-2-23/https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-08/02/639f3541-2b943069-dcd2bcb1-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4Marlins Podcast Episodes Wednesday's Marlins MiLB Notes: Newly acquired LHP Ryan Weathers was optioned to Jacksonville. INF José Devers (Pensacola) set a new Blue Wahoos team record for most career triples. Two more stolen bases for OF Jake DeLeo (Jupiter). He's now 7-for-7 in that department through his first nine minor league games. RHP Jacob Miller (FCL Marlins) continues to get stretched out for starting duty on his rehab assignment (2.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K). C/INF Carmine Lane recorded a season-high three hits, bumping his OPS above 1.000. INF Yoffry Solano (DSL Miami) returned to minor league action after missing nearly two months. Solano received the largest bonus in the 2022 Marlins international signing class.Trade acquisitions Josh Bell and Jake Burger combined to go 6-for-11 with two walks in their debuts with the Marlins. Bell reached base safely five times, joining fellow deadline pick-up Nick Johnson (2009) as the only players ever to do so in their first Marlins game.Jesús Sánchez blooped a single to left field to deliver the walk-off winner. He already has more than twice as many opposite-field hits in 2023 as he had all of last season! It was the 24th one-run win for the Marlins, matching their total from 2022.Jorge Soler had the most important individual hit, a game-tying solo home run off of Gregory Soto in the bottom of the ninth inning. He ranks 14th in win probability added among all MLB hitters this season, sandwiched in between Aaron Judge and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.Our Twitter followers voted the Burger/Jake Eder exchange as the best Marlins deadline day deal, though the Bell/Jean Segura/Kahlil Watson one also received 40.6% of the support.Check out Kevin Barral's with Burger about his excitement of being shipped into a playoff race. Elsewhere around the majors, the Cubs have racked up 36 runs against the Reds over the last two days, though they just lost Marcus Stroman to the injured list with right hip inflammation. Fernando Tatis Jr. reached 100 career home runs in the fourth-fewest games of any player in MLB history. Austin Riley stays sizzling hot, homering for the ninth time in 17 games since the All-Star break. Teammate Matt Olson blasted his 37th of the year, putting him only two behind Shohei Ohtani's MLB lead.The Marlins have a 45.7% chance to win their series finale against the Phillies, per FanGraphs. They are tied for the third NL Wild Card spot entering play today. Double-A Pensacola (7:35 p.m. ET) is at home, while Triple-A Jacksonville (8:05 p.m. ET), High-A Beloit (7:05 p.m. ET), Low-A Jupiter (6:30 p.m. ET) and FCL Marlins (12:00 p.m. ET) are on the road. The two DSL teams face each other at 11:00 a.m. ET.The Marlins revisited Salvador Perez trade talks with the Royals on Tuesday, per multiple reports. I could definitely see those negotiations picking up again in the offseason.Ben Clemens explains that although he likes how the Marlins upgraded their present-day roster in several areas prior to the deadline, they paid a steep long-term cost for players who might not actually move the needle for them.MLB Pipeline wants to see Xavier Edwards called up by the Marlins before season's end. Edwards ranks second in the Triple-A International League batting race behind only veteran retread Miguel Andújar.The Caliente Red team defeated Miami Blue in the Marlins Media Softball Game, 13-9. Shoutout to Noah Berger and Kevin Barral for proudly repping Fish On First at the silly event.Happy 22nd birthday to Marlins LHP Kevin Vaupel. Drafted by the team in the 16th round of last month's MLB Draft, Vaupel has pitched one scoreless inning for the FCL Marlins so far. Photo courtesy of Miami Marlins