Ely Sussman

NEW YORK—I have already seen enough from Jakob Marsee to buy out all of his pre-arb and arbitration years, as detailed for Fish On First SuperSubs earlier in the week. While it's premature to label him an MLB star, the rookie outfielder does so many things well, he arguably has the highest floor of any player in the Miami Marlins organization moving forward. Ironically, Marsee's marvelous August was a disappointing stretch for the Marlins as a whole—they posted a 13-17 record to fall out of the National League postseason picture. It's a reminder that the impact of any individual baseball player is very limited, even when they perform at an MVP level. Without exaggeration, that is what Marsee did during his first month in the big leagues. Marsee entered Sunday with 1.9 fWAR, tied for the second-best mark among MLB players in August. That total inched up following yet another awesome game, which included a single, a double, two walks and two runs scored. Marsee has been an everyday player for the Marlins since debuting on August 1. He's slashing .352/.430/.629 with four home runs and nine stolen bases, producing nearly twice as well at the plate as the average major leaguer (189 wRC+). On top of all that, he is contributing good defense in center field. There is zero suspense regarding the upcoming NL Rookie of the Month announcement: that award is going to Marsee. But what about succeeding fellow Marlin Kyle Stowers as NL Player on the Month? Marsee has made a compelling case for himself. I predict that Brice Turang of the Milwaukee Brewers or Jurickson Profar of the Atlanta Braves will edge him out, solely on the strength of their gaudy home run totals. More notable numbers about Marsee's first 30 games: The only Marlin who has ever surpassed his 66 total bases during any month of their rookie season was Chris Coghlan (the 2009 NL ROY). He chased only 15.7% of pitches outside the strike zone, according to Statcast. Among full-season MLB qualifiers in 2025, only Juan Soto has been more disciplined than that. Despite exhibiting big platoon splits as a prospect, Marsee raked especially well against fellow lefties (1.292 OPS in 30 PA). He's second to Stowers among Marlins hitters with 1.67 win probability added this season. That's right—on a club with a handful of pleasant surprises on the position player side, it took Marsee a single month to leapfrog all of the others. On the other end of the experience spectrum, Sandy Alcantara wrapped up an encouraging August of his own. The hot-hitting New York Mets had racked up 31 runs on the strength of 11 homers during the previous three games of the series, but they manufactured just one run off Alcantara. The veteran right-hander leaned more heavily on his fastballs than usual—56.7% of his total pitches were either four-seamers or sinkers. It was Alcantara's fourth quality start in a row. He has had at least six strikeouts in each of those outings. Even outside of his Cy Young-winning campaign, Alcantara has distinguished himself from the typical starter with his determination to eat as many innings as possible. Nearly two full years removed from Tommy John surgery, it looks like he's got his full appetite back. Alcantara led the NL this month with 39 innings pitched. The Marlins will play a Labor Day matinee on Monday, opening up a three-game series at Nationals Park. It would have been Ryan Gusto's turn to start, but he's been sidelined with a right shoulder impingement. Expect a bullpen game, with Tyler Phillips, George Soriano and Seth Martinez as options capable of covering multiple innings apiece. Thanks to September roster expansion, the Marlins could also call up one additional pitcher from the minor leagues. That's what the Nats are doing by promoting left-hander Andrew Alvarez, who'll be making his MLB debut. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET. View full article

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the fourth and final game of Miami's road series against the New York Mets. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) CF Jakob Marsee (L) C Agustín Ramírez SS Otto Lopez 1B Liam Hicks (L) LF Heriberto Hernández DH Troy Johnston (L) RF Joey Wiemer 3B Javier Sanoja P Sandy Alcantara Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

The 2023 Miami Marlins postseason run was an anomaly in so many ways. That applies to the team's offensive production when facing left-handed pitching. For much of the past half-decade, the Marlins have been impotent against southpaws. Dating back to 2021, here is where they rank annually among the 30 MLB teams in wRC+ under those circumstances: 2021: 30th 2022: 30th 2023: 14th 2024: 29th 2025: 27th But even the '23 Fish never pulverized a great lefty starter as thoroughly as the current club did on Saturday. Miami's all-right-handed lineup scored eight runs off of New York Mets All-Star David Peterson, who couldn't even record an out in the third inning. The timing of that onslaught was convenient because the Marlins pitching staff had plenty of issues themselves in an 11-8 victory. It was apparent immediately that Peterson "didn't have it." Five of the first six Marlins batters reached base safely, including a Heriberto Hernández RBI double that was mere inches from clearing the right field wall and an Eric Wagaman two-run double. The inning was prolonged by a Brandon Nimmo misplay that turned a catchable line drive into a Joey Wiemer two-run double, but Peterson was partially culpable, falling behind in the count 3-0. Wiemer, who hadn't collected any extra-base hits since being called up two weeks ago, pounced on a mediocre fastball over the heart of the plate. Peterson took a brief hiatus from struggling when he breezed through the second inning, but he failed to retire another batter after that. He allowed a leadoff double to Hernández, followed by back-to-back walks. Replacing an injured Dane Myers (right side discomfort), Jakob Marsee ripped an RBI single to right that made it a 6-2 advantage. Wiemer sent Peterson to the showers with an RBI single of his own. One of the runners inherited by Chris Devenski also came around to score. Since 2021, Peterson is the only fully stretched-out left-handed starter to get knocked out by the Marlins due to sheer ineffectiveness within two-plus innings. Seriously, take a look (via Stathead). Everybody else who matched that criteria was an opener, with the exception of Madison Bumgarner, who got himself ejected from his start after one inning. The Marlins totaled eight hard-hit balls off of Peterson and only struck out once. "We just continue to maintain confidence in the players that we have on our roster, that this is what they're very capable of doing," Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said postgame. "Guys put together some really good at-bats and we were able to get some early runs." The Marlins' win probability peaked at 96% during the Peterson portion of the game. However, the lead completely evaporated a few innings later. Edward Cabrera (4.0 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 79 pitches/55 strikes) yielded home runs to Francisco Lindor, Mark Vientos and Juan Soto. No previous opponent this season had homered more than once against him. It was an 8-6 ballgame when McCullough turned to his bullpen. Soto tied things up with a two-run shot off of Cade Gibson in the bottom of the sixth. Both of his homers landed in practically the same spot in right-center. 8813ee9c-4948e428-bb5b178b-csvm-diamondgcp-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4 Connor Norby carried the Marlins to the finish line from there. Playing in just his second game since being reinstated from the injured list, Norby lined out deep to right for a go-ahead sacrifice fly in the seventh. He added crucial insurance in the ninth with a two-run double against Edwin Díaz, the menacing Mets closer who entering Saturday had held right-handed batters to a .133 batting average this season. "Just get him up in the zone, something out over [the plate] and stay through the big part of the field," Norby said postgame. This goes on the short list of Norby's most impactful games of 2025, as he also drew walks in each of his two plate appearances against Peterson. The third baseman's overall production has been only slightly better than replacement level, with a .246/.297/.373 slash line and 84 wRC+ through 74 games. He insists that he isn't concerned with those numbers: "When I focus on winning and focus on the team, it takes a lot of the individual performance out of the way. I think I was putting so much pressure on myself to be someone that I'm not necessarily, and who I was before was pretty good. It's just believing in myself again, having that confidence. A lot of different conversations, a lot of hard work, but there's no numbers I'm looking at. I don't care about what the scoreboard says when my stat sheet comes up. I care about the wins. I do." Calvin Faucher, Ronny Henriquez and Tyler Phillips combined for 3 ⅓ scoreless frames to secure the win. The Marlins had lost seven straight series dating back to August 4, but they're ensured at least a split of this four-game set. Sandy Alcantara will start Sunday's series finale, his final time taking the mound as a 29-year-old. He'll try to build upon back-to-back-to-back quality starts. Alcantara has allowed just four earned runs in 20 innings pitched during that span while compiling 23 strikeouts. Kodai Senga takes the mound for the Mets. Senga and Alcantara previously matched up on April 1, which was a 4-2 Fish victory. First pitch is scheduled for 1:40 p.m. ET. View full article

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the third game of Miami's road series against the New York Mets. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) SS Otto Lopez C Agustín Ramírez DH Heriberto Hernández 1B Eric Wagaman 3B Connor Norby RF Dane Myers LF Joey Wiemer CF Derek Hill P Edward Cabrera Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the second game of Miami's road series against the New York Mets. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) CF Jakob Marsee (L) DH Agustín Ramírez SS Otto Lopez C Liam Hicks (L) 3B Connor Norby LF Troy Johnston (L) 1B Eric Wagaman RF Joey Wiemer P Eury Pérez Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the first game of Miami's road series against the New York Mets. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) CF Jakob Marsee (L) 1B Liam Hicks (L) C Agustín Ramírez LF Troy Johnston (L) SS Otto Lopez DH Heriberto Hernández 3B Maximo Acosta RF Dane Myers P Adam Mazur Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

Please keep in mind, this is a four-game series instead of the usual three!

The player that the Marlins selected at the very end of the 2023 MLB Draft has been thriving in pro ball. Catcher Ryan Ignoffo slashed .265/.328/.451 with nine home runs, 13 stolen bases and a 124 wRC+ with High-A Beloit and Double-A Pensacola during the 2025 season. At the time of his season-ending hamstring injury, Ignoffo was leading all Marlins minor leaguers with 59 RBI in just 74 games played. View full video

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the third and final game of Miami's home series against the Atlanta Braves. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) SS Otto Lopez LF Jakob Marsee (L) DH Heriberto Hernández 1B Eric Wagaman RF Dane Myers C Liam Hicks (L) CF Derek Hill 3B Maximo Acosta P Ryan Gusto Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

For most of April and May, Miami Marlins fans dreaded watching Sandy Alcantara's starts. The former ace was a liability to his own team, hindered by inconsistent control and the lack of finish on his pitches needed to generate whiffs. He had the worst results of any qualified MLB starting pitcher during that stretch. It hurt to see him consistently getting embarrassed. Beginning in June, there were reasons to be hopeful about Alcantara, but still not confident. He beat up on some soft opponents, only to get shelled by more experienced lineups. At least he got the green light to work deeper into his outings. Over these last three starts, including Tuesday's seven strong innings against the Atlanta Braves, there has been a meaningful shift. Alcantara looks like a complete pitcher again. He's been experimenting with his mechanics and pitch usage to great effect. His changeup is back to being a deadly putaway pitch. He isn't letting occasional mistakes or unlucky breaks snowball into big rallies. You now tune in expecting a quality performance rather than being surprised when it happens. It was widely reported that the Marlins had discussions with other teams about the possibility of trading Alcantara last month, but they weren't going to part with him easily. It was always just a matter of time until he got comfortable in his own skin again. Imagine what it would've felt like to "sell low" on him and experience this from afar. Less than a month after the trade deadline has passed, Miami's decision to stand pat with Alcantara has been validated. Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville lost. 8-5. In his latest rehab game, Connor Norby went 1-for-3 with a walk. Joe Mack hit his 15th home run. Double-A Pensacola lost, 4-3. Kemp Alderman homered for the 14th time. High-A Beloit lost, 2-0. Karson Milbrandt has had back-to-back 10-strikeout games. Low-A Jupiter won, 7-6. Great slide by Andrew Salas to score the decisive run in extra innings. M3l5Z1FfV0ZRVkV3dEdEUT09X1ZRTUVWRkFNQTFBQVdsb0ZWZ0FIQ1FVSEFBQlJBQWNBQ2xBQ0JnWlhVd3BUQXdvRg==.mp4 More Marlins news and content below: 🔷 The complete 2026 Major League Baseball regular season schedule has been released. The Marlins kick it off with consecutive series hosting the two worst teams from the 2025 season, the Colorado Rockies and Chicago White Sox. 🔷 Sean McCormack explained how he would he construct the Marlins lineup once Kyle Stowers, Connor Norby, Griffin Conine and Graham Pauley return from their respective injuries. 🔷 On this day in 2005, Mike Lowell hit his first career walk-off home run. 🔷 Troy Johnston has agreed to play winter ball in the Dominican Republic for the third year in a row. On the strength of an excellent homestand, Johnston has boosted his overall offensive production to a league-average level (99 wRC+). 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the New York Mets announced that their top pitching prospect, Jonah Tong, will be making his major league debut on Friday against the Fish. Yordan Alvarez returned to the Houston Astros lineup after nearly four months on the injured list. Nathan Eovaldi suffered a rotator cuff strain that will likely end his season. The Athletics have emerged as MLB's most dangerous spoiler with an American League-best 20-10 record over their last 30 games. 🔷 Today's MLB game: it's the 13th and final head-to-head meeting of the season between the Marlins and Atlanta Braves (probable starters RHP Ryan Gusto and LHP Joey Wentz). Wentz has generally pitched his best on the road (3.32 ERA), though he limited Miami to one run in 5 ⅓ innings earlier this month at Truist Park. The Marlins have a 44.4% chance to win, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 1:10 p.m. ET. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the second game of Miami's home series against the Atlanta Braves. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) RF Jakob Marsee (L) C Agustín Ramírez SS Otto Lopez DH Liam Hicks (L) LF Heriberto Hernández 1B Troy Johnston (L) CF Derek Hill 3B Javier Sanoja P Sandy Alcantara Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

Next year, the Miami Marlins will start their regular season earlier than ever. It's still seven full months away, but I would also expect them to be favored to win more heavily than they've been on any previous Opening Day. As announced on Tuesday, the Marlins will host the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series beginning on March 26, 2026. The Rockies are on pace to lose 116 games in 2025. On paper, they'll be the weakest opponent that the Marlins have ever opened up against—based on the previous season's record, that distinction currently belongs to the 2009 Washington Nationals, who went 59-102 in 2008. After the Rockies leave town, the Chicago White Sox will fly in for three games. The Sox are likely to finish with MLB's second-worst record this season (59-103 pace). Of course, the Marlins will eventually face each of the 29 other MLB teams over the course of the season, but a franchise that has historically gotten off to slow starts has been gifted the softest possible opening week. Various other details that I found interesting about the '26 schedule: Fourth consecutive season that the Marlins will open at loanDepot park 33 of the first 54 games are at home First-ever visit to Sacramento from July 3-5 (temporary home of the Athletics) Intimidating stretch coming out of the All-Star break—five series in a row against probable 2025 postseason teams, then a visit to Truist Park, which has always been a house of horrors for the Fish In New York to face the Mets from July 30-August 2, the period leading up to and following the trade deadline Longest road trip occurs near the very end of the season from September 14-24 The Marlins incorporated Xavier Edwards, Agustín Ramírez, Kyle Stowers and Otto Lopez into their schedule graphic. They posted a video on their social media accounts that includes highlights of them, as well as Sandy Alcantara, Edward Cabrera, Eury Pérez, Jakob Marsee, Dane Myers and Heriberto Hernández. It should go without saying, but the marketing department does not influence baseball operations decisions, so there's no guarantee that all of those players will actually play for the Fish in 2026. The video was voiced by Marlins alumni and World Series champions Jeff Conine, Luis Castillo, Charles Johnson and Juan Pierre. View full article

All Fish On First podcasts are brought to you by Jet Ski Rentals of South Florida—offering Miami’s best jet ski and boat adventures. With six jet ski locations and over 120 boats, there’s something for every style and every budget. With Christmas and New Year’s around the corner, boats fill up fast—everyone wants that view of the fireworks from the water. They’re reservation-based only. To inquire, call 305-990-2192, or check them out online at SFJetskiRentals.com. Recorded immediately after learning the results of the MLB Draft Lottery, Ely Sussman, Isaac Azout, Kevin Barral, Nate Karzmer, Hector Rodriguez and special guest Marcel Sparks discuss where things stands with the Miami Marlins in the midst of the Winter Meetings. Topics include the consequences of falling to 14th in the draft order, missing out on veteran relievers in free agency, mutual interest between the Marlins and Jakob Marsee regarding a contract extension, 2026 Opening Day being rescheduled and a preview of Wednesday's Rule 5 draft. You can find Fish On First LIVE on the Fish On First YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever else you get your pods. Our audio programming also includes The Offishial Show, Fish Unfiltered, Swimming Upstream and more. The Marlins received the 14th overall pick in the 2026 draft. The San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals both leapfrogged the Fish and won top-six lottery picks despite finishing last season with better records. Follow Ely (@RealEly), Marcel (@MarcelSparks04), Isaac (@IsaacAzout), Kevin (@kevin_barral), Nate (@NateKarzmer), Hector (@Hector_Baseball) and Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) on Twitter. Join the Marlins Discord server! Complete Miami Marlins coverage here at FishOnFirst.com. View full article

Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal readers. These notes apply to the first game of Miami's home series against the Atlanta Braves. Starting Lineup 2B Xavier Edwards (S) CF Jakob Marsee (L) C Agustín Ramírez 1B Liam Hicks (L) SS Otto Lopez DH Eric Wagaman LF Troy Johnston (L) RF Joey Wiemer 3B Maximo Acosta P Edward Cabrera Click HERE to download the full game notes (preview below)

I find it funny that Kyle EMBRACES his lack of pop culture knowledge haha. In a sense, it is part of his personality that he so openly rejects the stuff other people like. Tommy rants are the most memorable parts of the broadcast, for sure.

You cannot refer to Tyler Phillips as another brilliant waiver-wire pickup. He was technically a trade acquisition. After being designated for assignment by the Philadelphia Phillies at the end of spring training, there were multiple teams interested, so the Miami Marlins had to send back cash considerations to complete the deal. But yeah, Phillips has shattered preseason expectations to stick with the Marlins throughout 2025. Initially thought to be among the weakest links on the active roster, it's now hard to envision next year's club without him. Phillips recorded his second save of the season on Sunday, retiring the side in order without allowing a ball to leave the infield. In 43 appearances, the right-hander has posted a 3.27 ERA, 4.46 FIP and .244 BAA in 63 ⅓ innings pitched. Most notably, his ground ball rate ranks in the 91st percentile among MLB qualifiers, per Baseball Savant, and that has continued to climb as the year progresses. Coincidence or not, his performance has peaked when the stakes are highest, as reflected in his pitching staff-leading win probability added. Working against Phillips, he rarely records strikeouts and doesn't have any minor league options left. However, outside of Ronny Henriquez and Anthony Bender, who else is clearly above him on the Marlins bullpen depth chart? Things are pretty unsettled with the prolonged absence of Andrew Nardi and concerns that both Declan Cronin and Jesús Tinoco could miss a portion of the 2026 season. Get used to Phillips' hijinks because he is poised to stick around for a while. Down on the farm, Triple-A Jacksonville lost, 8-3. Playing in his third and probably final rehab game, Connor Norby went 2-for-4 with a home run. Zach McCambley pitched an immaculate inning in the bottom of the third. Double-A Pensacola lost, 8-1. Emaarion Boyd was hitless (0-for-15) during his first week with the Blue Wahoos. High-A Beloit won, 5-4. The Sky Carp rallied from a 4-0 deficit, capped off by Wilfredo Lara's walk-off homer. More Marlins news and content below: 🔷 I wrote about Javier Sanoja's unique and productive rookie season. Exclusively for Fish On First SuperSubs, I did the math on a hypothetical Jakob Marsee contract extension. 🔷 Luis Castillo became the fourth and final member of the inaugural Marlins Legends Hall of Fame class to be inducted. Here is his plaque. 🔷 Later today, we are expecting an update on Janson Junk's right forearm injury. Junk has not spent any time on the major league or minor league IL since 2019. 🔷 With five weeks to go in the MLB regular season, Xavier Edwards (.291) has dipped to sixth place in the National League batting title race. 🔷 The Marlins were 28th in Awful Announcing's crowdsourced rankings of local MLB television broadcasts. As somebody who has sampled every team's local broadcast at various points this season, I would've expected Kyle Sielaff, Tommy Hutton and Co. to place slightly higher. 🔷 Marlins pitching coach Daniel Moskos spoke with David Laurila of FanGraphs about the process of outfitting Ryan Gusto with a kick change. 🔷 The Prediction Time leaderboard has been updated through the first 42 series. Become a SuperSub and we'll keep track of your predictions all season long! 🔷 Cal Raleigh blasted his 48th and 49th home runs of the year, establishing a new all-time single-season record for MLB catchers. The Colorado Rockies are the first team to be mathematically eliminated from postseason contention. For the sixth time in his last 10 tries, Paul Skenes had a scoreless start. Vinnie Pasquantino has homered in six of his last seven games. Zack Wheeler will be undergoing thoracic outlet decompression surgery. Not only will it end his 2025 season, but it jeopardizes his readiness for next year. 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins and Atlanta Braves begin their final head-to-head series of 2025 (probable starters RHP Edward Cabrera and RHP Spencer Strider). Strider has struggled in back-to-back-to-back outings, allowing 20 earned runs on seven homers in his last 11 ⅔ innings pitched. The Marlins have a 44.3% chance to win, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 6:40 p.m. ET. 🔷 Prior to the series opener, Fish On First LIVE will preview it all beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET. FOF LIVE is presented by About The Fans. Check out our new merchandise collection (coupon code fof10 for 10% off). Marlins podcast episodes View full article