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Today's news roundup also includes the end of the Sixto Sánchez era. On Monday out in the desert, OF Andrew Pintar went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and UTIL Dalvy Rosario went 0-for-2 with a walk. The Peoria Javelinas won for change, 3-2. However, it's mathematically impossible for them to get back to the .500 mark by season's end. The Arizona Fall League announced its eight home run derby participants. OF Kemp Alderman is tied for second in the league in homers, but he was not included after having missed two full weeks and counting for his wedding and honeymoon. In the Dominican Winter League, OF Jesús Sánchez went 2-for-3 with 1 RBI and UTIL Vidal Bruján went 1-for-4 with 2 RBI. Troy Johnston's 13-game hit streak was snapped. I put together a brief highlight package of the streak. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 Sixto Sánchez's Marlins tenure is over. Rated as the organization's top pitching prospect as recently as 2021, his career has collapsed due to chronic shoulder issues. Rather than reinstate him from the 60-day injured list, the Marlins passed him through waivers and he elected free agency on Monday. 🔷 Marlins relievers John McMillon, Anthony Maldonado and Michael Petersen were claimed off waivers by the Phillies, Athletics and Blue Jays, respectively. McMillon and Maldonado were on the short list of most dominant relievers in the minor leagues in 2023, but the former finished this season with an elbow injury, and the latter is very reliant on his slider and had shaky results in his first taste of the majors. I still would've held onto Maldonado in order to evaluate him further in spring training rather than to essentially lose him for nothing. 🔷 Lefty Josh Simpson passed through waivers without being claimed. As a 2019 draft pick, he has to remain with the Fish for another year before qualifying for minor league free agency. Simpson missed the first half of 2024 while recovering from left elbow ulnar neuritis and upon returning to action, the life and command of his fastball just wasn't there, contributing to a 6.19 ERA in 16 innings against MiLB competition. He owns a terrific 34.9% strikeout rate over the course of his minor league career and figures to be at spring training as a non-roster invitee. 🔷 With Luarbert Arias eligible for minor league free agency himself, the Marlins held onto the right-hander by selecting him to the 40-man roster. Acquired three years ago via the Rule 5 Draft, Arias has a 2.78 ERA, 3.75 FIP and .198 BAA in 184.2 IP since then while climbing from Low-A to Triple-A. He's got a prototypical four-seamer/slider pitch mix with occasional changeups. He turns 24 next month. I don't mind the decision, but would've personally prioritized fellow pending free agent Elvis Alvarado instead. cmUwZVZfV0ZRVkV3dEdEUT09X1ZRWUZCZ0VNQUFJQVhWTlFBZ0FBQTFkVUFGa0JBVllBVVZSV1V3UlhCUVlHQ0FjQQ==.mp4 🔷 MLB Trade Rumors published their annual Top 50 free agents list, including contract and team predictions. Only No. 36 Kyle Higashioka and No. 49 Harrison Bader were mocked to the Marlins, and those were guesses by individual writers, not staff consensus predictions. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Silver Slugger award finalists were announced, including Marlins 1B/3B Jake Burger. He qualified in the "utility" category along with Luis Arraez, Mookie Betts and Bryan Reynolds. Award winners will be announced on November 12. View full article

After being outrighted to the minors, the former top prospect elected free agency to officially end his disappointing Marlins tenure. The Miami Marlins officially reinstated five players from the 60-day injured list on Monday: Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett, Jesús Luzardo, Andrew Nardi and Eury Pérez. Right-hander Sixto Sánchez also ended the season on the 60-day IL, but the Marlins have deemed him unfit for a 40-man roster spot. As first reported by Fish On First's Isaac Azout, Sánchez passed through waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Jacksonville. He is now a free agent. Right-handers Anthony Maldonado, John McMillon and Michael Petersen were also waived in corresponding moves to make room for the injured pitchers; Maldonado was claimed by the Athletics, McMillon by the Phillies and Petersen by the Blue Jays. So was left-hander Josh Simpson. He cleared waivers, but still has one year of club control remaining. Right-hander Luarbert Arias, who had been a pending minor league free agent, got selected to one of the vacant 40-man spots. Sánchez spent six seasons in the Marlins organization after being acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies as the centerpiece of the February 2019 J.T. Realmuto trade. His tenure was uniquely frustrating. Through the first two years, the deal seemed as though it could wind up as a win-win. Realmuto continued to be an excellent all-around catcher for his new club, while Sánchez reached the majors as a 22-year-old and played a critical role in snapping the Marlins' 17-year postseason drought. He then started and went five scoreless innings in Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series, which Miami ultimately won to sweep the favored Chicago Cubs. Sánchez showed triple-digit fastball velocity, a nasty changeup for putting batters away and good command of his pitches. With his rookie eligibility still intact entering 2021, he was widely ranked in the top tier of MLB pitching prospects. Sánchez was supposed to be a lock for the 2021 Marlins Opening Day rotation, but his preseason prep fell behind schedule due to visa issues and a false positive COVID test. The Marlins assigned him to their alternate training site in Jacksonville to finish stretching out as a starter in intrasquad games. He suffered a right shoulder injury when pitching on March 31. After initial rehab efforts were unsuccessful, he underwent season-ending surgery on July 20 of that year. The expectation was that we'd see Sixto resurface at some point in 2022, but he never even sniffed a rehab assignment. Seemingly every team-provided injury update that summer reiterated that he was throwing from a distance of 45 feet, stalled at an early stage of his throwing progression. After a lost year, he underwent a second procedure in October 2022, a right shoulder arthroscopic bursectomy. Pudgy by baseball standards throughout his early 20s, Sánchez's physique was noticeably improved when he arrived to spring training in 2023. However, the quality of his stuff had deteriorated. It was another season filled with vague and discouraging reports. A Marlins team that was surprisingly in postseason contention desperately needed starting rotation depth at various points, but Sánchez wasn't ready to contribute. He finally made his return to official game action with Double-A Pensacola in September, pitching one uninspiring inning, then vanishing again. Entering 2024, Sánchez had exhausted all of his minor league options and regained much of the bad weight he had previously carried. It looked like he was at the end of the line. To his credit, he earned his place on the Marlins pitching staff. A handful of spring training injuries worked in his favor, but he also legitimately performed well in Grapefruit League competition (9.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 8 K) and his fastball velocity gradually climbed, peaking at 98.8 mph. Once the real games began, though, it became clear that Sánchez was a shell of his former self. He could not locate with the precision he previously had, his secondary pitches lacked late movement to induce swinging strikes and his fastball velo was highly erratic. He didn't record more than three strikeouts in any outing this season. The Marlins sidelined him from June onward due to right shoulder inflammation. In 21 total MLB appearances (14 starts), Sánchez has posted a 4.70 ERA, 4.09 FIP and .276 BAA in 74 ⅔ innings pitched. He is still just 26 years old. Perhaps another team will be enticed enough by his youth and prospect pedigree to bring him to camp as a non-roster invitee. Meanwhile in Philly, Realmuto leads MLB catchers by a wide margin with 23.2 fWAR accumulated since the trade. The Phillies have reached the postseason in three straight years and he has been their starting catcher in all 34 of those postseason games. Miami's updated 40-man roster is at 38 as of Monday evening: View full article

Top highlights of Joe Mack's Gold Glove-quality defense with Double-A Pensacola this season. View full video

Today's news roundup also includes a preview of imminent Marlins transactions. On Sunday in the Dominican Winter League, RF Jesús Sánchez went 1-for-5. 1B Troy Johnston singled to extend his hit streak to 13 games. DH Deyvison De Los Santos has now recorded multiple hits in four straight starts (9-for-17 overall during that span). RF Vidal Bruján went 1-for-4. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 More transactions are coming today! It is the deadline for players on the 60-day injured list to be reinstated. For the Marlins, that means Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett, Jesús Luzardo, Andrew Nardi, Eury Pérez and Sixto Sánchez. Miami's 40-man roster is current at 36, so some corresponding moves are required. Also, at 5:00 p.m. ET, eligible minor leaguers will officially become free agents. Unless they get their own last-minute 40-man spots, notable Marlins who fall into that category include C Will Banfield, RHP Elvis Alvarado and RHP Luarbert Arias. 🔷 The photo of Peter Bendix used above was taken during the 2023 GM Meetings in Scottsdale, Arizona. It was Bendix's first public appearance after being hired as Marlins president of baseball operations. This year, the event is in San Antonio, Texas, beginning tonight. Bendix's club is the only one with an ongoing managerial vacancy. After plans to hire Craig Albernaz fell through, Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough is the likeliest candidate. McCullough still has not done an in-person interview with Marlins decision-makers, according to the Miami Herald's Barry Jackson. That might have to wait until the end of the week when Bendix returns from San Antonio. 🔷 Kevin Barral added veteran swingman Jakob Junis to our series on free agent targets. 🔷 Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors explains why Jesús Luzardo ranks sixth on MLBTR's list of top offseason trade candidates: "Trading him after missing three months with a back injury certainly isn’t selling at peak value, but the Marlins can still command a good return for the left-hander." 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Gold Glove awards were announced. There were 14 first-time winners. The Royals and Michael Wacha agreed on a three-year, $51M contract extension that includes a 2028 club option (Wacha would have otherwise declined his player option and elected free agency). Decisions are due today on all MLB players who have 2025 contract options. RHP Roki Sasaki, who is regarded as Japan's most-talented pitcher, declined a contract offer from his current team, the Chiba Lotte Marines, Francys Romero reports. It's possible that Sasaki could be posted for MLB teams as soon as this offseason. If so, he would be subject to international amateur free agent restrictions due to his age, much like Shohei Ohtani was seven years earlier. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Five players who contributed to the 2024 Marlins have been waived so far, including Roddery Muñoz, who landed with the St. Louis Cardinals. For most of the MLB offseason, the injured list is not a thing. Players who finished the previous season on the IL (even if they are expected to begin the upcoming season on the IL as well) either need to be rostered or made available to other teams. As the Miami Marlins prepare to officially reinstate everybody from the 60-day IL, they placed a handful of their most expendable players on waivers this week to create space on their 40-man roster. On Friday, they also scooped up right-hander Christian Roa, who had been waived by his former club after finishing 2024 on the IL himself. Cincinnati's second-round draft pick in 2020, Roa has posted a 4.46 ERA and 1.49 WHIP with 386 strikeouts in 318 ⅔ innings as a minor leaguer (86 G/62 GS). He had been developed as a starter throughout his pro career until transitioning to the bullpen in 2024 with Triple-A Louisville. A new role did not improve his results (5.55 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and 47 K in 48.2 IP). The 25-year-old last pitched on August 10, then was sidelined for the rest of the season due to a right shoulder sprain. Although the Reds transferred Roa to the major league injured list, he has no MLB regular season experience. Roa's fastball averaged 95 mph this season. He complements it with a slider, which generates almost all of his whiffs, and an occasional changeup. He had massive platoon splits, holding right-handed batters to a respectable .699 OPS, but surrendering a 1.079 OPS to lefties with more walks than strikeouts. Five players who contributed to the 2024 Marlins have been waived so far. RHP Roddery Muñoz—The others listed below cleared waivers, but Muñoz was claimed by the St. Louis Cardinals. He spent half of his rookie season in the Marlins rotation, posting a 6.53 ERA, 7.27 FIP and .268 BAA in 82.2 IP. Despite those struggles, it is mildly surprising that he was cut so early in the offseason considering he's still only 24 years old and could fare much better moving forward if utilized as a right-on-right reliever. RHP Adam Oller—Oller made eight late-season starts for the Fish (5.31 ERA, 5.32 FIP and .261 BAA in 42.1 IP). Similar to Muñoz, he possesses a nasty breaking ball that could play up in a relief role. Instead, KPRC 2's Ari Alexander reports that he's expected to "explore a move to Asia," presumably where he will have a rotation gig. RHP Darren McCaughan—The soft-tossing McCaughan had two separate stints with the Marlins organization this year (pitched for the Cleveland Guardians in between). UTIL David Hensley—Claimed right before the trade deadline, Hensley slashed .212/.293/.288 (65 wRC+) in 58 plate appearances. RHP Shaun Anderson—The Broward county native spent most of his summer with the Jumbo Shrimp. He made spot starts for the Fish on June 14 and June 22. As of late Friday afternoon, the Marlins 40-man roster is at 36. There are at least two more transactions coming soon to make room for all of the IL reinstatements. View full article

Recommending a series of hypothetical roster moves and transactions for the Miami Marlins to make this winter (and providing the rationale behind them). For the second consecutive year, I'm imagining how the Miami Marlins' offseason would go if I were in charge of baseball operations. So much has changed in a 12-month span. Last year's blueprint operated under this premise: "The Marlins have alienated their fans in the past by taking a significant step back following every postseason appearance. There needs to be some urgency about snapping that cycle in 2024, while also stopping short of depleting an already-weak farm system and accepting that [Bruce] Sherman's budget will be lower than that of most other MLB teams." Instead, Peter Bendix was practically idle throughout the offseason, then as soon as adversity struck in the spring, he raced to the bottom, compiling as many long-term assets as possible. At 62-100, the Marlins finished with MLB's third-worst winning percentage. We could have an extensive debate about whether Bendix's approach was right or wrong, but those actions are irreversible now. I'm not chasing the fantasy of 2025 playoff contention—sneaking into October would require numerous lucky breaks and the freedom to spend far more than Sherman has permitted in any of his previous seasons as principal owner. I will be striving for significant improvements at the major league level while recognizing that the Marlins could use additional minor league reinforcements in anticipation of really going for it a couple years down the road. The blueprint below basically goes in chronological order from November through pre-Opening Day extension talks, concluding with an overview of what my version of the 2025 Marlins would look like. Post-World Series roster crunch Down the stretch of the 2024 season, in the aftermath of trades and injuries, the Marlins were just trying to make it to the finish line. They promoted fringy minor leaguers and plucked whoever was available off the waiver wire. Some of these placeholders have already been squeezed off the 40-man roster. Others are about to face the same fate to make room for more impactful players. As of this writing, the 40-man roster is full, including a lot of names who frankly have no future in Miami. I'm adding the following players to the 40-man (each of these transactions would happen during the month of November): Reinstate RHP Sandy Alcantara, LHP Braxton Garrett, LHP Jesús Luzardo, LHP Andrew Nardi and RHP Eury Pérez from the 60-day injured list Select pending minor league free agent RHP Elvis Alvarado Select 1B Deyvison De Los Santos and INF Jared Serna to protect from the Rule 5 Draft The IL reinstatements should be self-explanatory. Each of those five pitchers could have a significant positive impact on the 2025 Marlins, although Pérez is expected to miss the first few months of the season while completing his Tommy John surgery rehab. In 2024, Alvarado was the hardest thrower in the Marlins organization. He performed great for Triple-A Jacksonville as a high-leverage reliever (2.79 ERA, 3.84 FIP and .195 BAA in 48.1 IP). Poor control will probably preclude him from MLB success, but what if a full spring training under the tutelage of a new pitching coach leads to a mechanical breakthrough that allows him to find the zone more consistently? Worth a shot. 7HOMOkv1DZksiKOX.mp4 De Los Santos and Serna are ranked No. 3 and No. 6, respectively, on the Fish On First Top 30. I also seriously contemplated protecting Dax Fulton (FOF #15 prospect) from the Rule 5. The tall left-hander missed most of 2023 and all of 2024 following elbow surgery, but he isn't that far removed from looking like a long-term starting rotation piece. There is some precedent for pitchers in his precise situation being Rule 5'd. All factors considered, I'm willing to bet that the other teams will pass on him. To accommodate the aforementioned players on the 40-man, here's who I would place on waivers: RHP Shaun Anderson RHP Lake Bachar RHP Mike Baumann UTIL David Hensley RHP Darren McCaughan C Jhonny Pereda RHP Michael Petersen RHP Sixto Sánchez LHP Josh Simpson Sixto Sánchez helped the Marlins to a 2020 postseason berth with 39 impressive innings. Derailed by shoulder issues, he has pitched a combined 37 ⅔ professional innings in the four seasons since then with severely diminished stuff. Despite his top prospect pedigree, it is irrational to expect anything from him moving forward. Simpson is the toughest cut from this group. He has posted great strikeout numbers throughout his minor league career and would have certainly debuted out of the Marlins bullpen this season if not for an elbow injury. However, the quality and command of his fastball was lousy coming back from the injury. While there is still hope for the lefty reliever, he doesn't currently merit a 40-man spot. As a 2019 draft pick, Simpson still has a year of organizational control remaining if he clears waivers, so he wouldn't be able to elect minor league free agency (all of the other players in this group can). Bachar was another close call. He made 10 appearances for the Marlins in September and only allowed earned runs in one of them. It was ultimately a decision between him and George Soriano, both right-handed relievers with four-seamer/slider/changeup arsenals. Soriano is four years younger and I like his upside more. We enter the meat of the offseason with this as the 40-man roster: Free agency RHP Spencer Turnbull (1 YR/$6M, 2026 club option) $5M in 2025 and $10M club option for 2026 ($1M buyout) LHP Matt Moore (1 YR/$2.5M) up to $2.5M in performance bonuses for games pitched OF Derek Hill (MiLB deal) 1B José Abreu (MiLB deal) LHP Patrick Corbin (MiLB deal) RHP Shintaro Fujinami (MiLB deal) C Will Banfield (MiLB deal) 491bf5c8-414397d6-b01818b2-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4 In an alternate universe, the Los Angeles Dodgers get knocked out in the NLDS and Walker Buehler is amenable to signing a one-year, incentive-laden contract. However, in our reality, he thrived in the later rounds of the postseason to propel himself out of my price range. So I'm pivoting to Turnbull with the intent of using him as Miami's No. 5 starter. He was an April sensation for the 2024 Philadelphia Phillies before getting squeezed out of their veteran-laden rotation. Albeit in a tiny sample, his new sweeper was fantastic. Turnbull did not make another MLB appearance after suffering a right lat strain in late June, but he was fully recovered from the injury by season's end. He'll be 32 years old next season. The Marlins bullpen quietly performed well even after numerous trade deadline subtractions. Talented arms could still benefit from veteran guidance. Moore has pitched more MLB innings (1,142.2 IP) than every other member of Miami's projected 2025 bullpen combined, and he's only a year removed from pitching well as a high-leverage guy. He'd be an obvious July trade candidate. I'm going to reluctantly designate Derek Hill for assignment to make room for one of these free agents, but I anticipate him clearing waivers. Once he does, I will outbid the competition to bring him back by giving him the inside track to crack the Opening Day roster and a $900k salary if he does (significantly above the MLB minimum). If Abreu and Corbin actually have something left in the tank, awesome. Starting roles would be farfetched, but potentially they could contribute as a pinch-hitter and lefty relief specialist, respectively. If not, it will be valuable to have them in Jupiter anyway. Both come highly regarded as clubhouse leaders. Fujinami is another Alvarado type who lights up the radar gun. Merely throwing 60% of his pitches for strikes would be a win. As I feared, Banfield's offensive "breakout" in 2023 was an anomaly. His production with Triple-A Jacksonville this past season (73 wRC+) was much more aligned with his disappointing MiLB career norms. However, I believe in his defense and intangibles behind the plate. He's well-suited to be No. 3 on the 2025 catching depth chart. Trades Trade RHP Edward Cabrera to the New York Mets for INF Ronny Mauricio and a player to be named later Trade C Nick Fortes, OF Jacob Berry and LHP Anthony Veneziano to the Minnesota Twins for C Christian Vázquez and LHP Dasan Hill It is not reflected in his overall numbers (4.95 ERA, 4.68 FIP and .227 BAA in 96.1 IP), but Edward Cabrera took a baby step forward in 2024. The lone constant in Miami's starting rotation during the months of July, August and September, he "gave his team a chance to win" in 12 of those 15 starts. Cabrera threw more first-pitch strikes than ever before and gradually boosted his fastball usage (an adjustment I've spent several years clamoring for). That being said, I don't see a future where Cabrera becomes a consistent, impactful starter. He perennially misses significant chunks of the season due to injury. His high walk rate is exacerbated by bad individual defense. A potential conversion to relief work is intriguing, but I would rather part ways while there are other teams still dreaming on him "putting it all together" as a starter and willing to send back the appropriate compensation. The Mets and Marlins have been frequent trade partners in recent years despite occupying the same division. Each of New York's three most-used starters from this season just became free agents, which makes rotation depth the club's primary concern. Turning 24 in April, the switch-hitting Mauricio got his first taste of the majors in September 2023, slashing .248/.296/.347 with a 79 wRC+ in 108 plate appearances. He impressed with his power and throwing arm, but there is the risk that he'll chase outside the strike zone too often to reach base at a respectable clip. His durability is a concern—11 months removed from ACL surgery, Mauricio still has not resumed baseball activities. Originally developed as a shortstop, he gained some familiarity with second base, third base and left field when he was last healthy. 32202e88-f062a080-d53602a5-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4 The quality of the player to be named later is contingent on whether Cabrera is on the Mets Opening Day active roster. If he makes it, the Marlins get one of New York's selections from Day 3 of the 2024 MLB Draft; if another injury sidelines him, they get a Dominican Summer League lottery ticket. On the Marlins' side, Vidal Bruján is my Ronny Mauricio insurance. If Mauricio wows in spring training as both a hitter and versatile fielder, then Bruján—who is out of minor league options—would be a DFA candidate. Before arriving at the Mauricio idea, I tossed around a possible framework involving Jeff McNeil, prospects and cash. The intention would've been to use McNeil as Miami's primary designated hitter, occasional second baseman and main pinch-hitter on days when he isn't in the lineup. In the end, I don't think the Mets are desperate enough to unload the homegrown former All-Star who could still contribute to a playoff contender in a part-time capacity even as he declines. On the other hand, the Minnesota Twins are desperate to move money around. They finished fourth in the AL Central standings despite being arguably the most talented team in the division and their payroll is restricted during an ownership transition. My largest expenditure of the 2024-25 offseason will be absorbing the $10M owed to Vázquez in the final year of his contract. He and Fortes have been eerily similar players over the past two seasons. Fortes is under club control through 2028, but I'm fine forfeiting that for the more accomplished 34-year-old whose expiring contract allows for a smooth transition to Agustín Ramírez and Joe Mack as Miami's catchers of the future. The most precious asset involved in this five-player deal is LHP Dasan Hill. The 6'5" teenage Texan was selected with the 69th overall pick in the MLB Draft. Ranked as Minnesota's No. 18 prospect according to Twins Daily, Hill oozes projectability, though we've yet to see him pitch in a professional setting. Former Marlins first-rounder Jacob Berry recovered from a horrifying April/May slump and reached Triple-A. He's a skilled hitter, but I don't think that his other tools are good enough to sustain anything more than a replacement-level career. Let's assume the Twins are more bullish on him. Through 14 MLB appearances (all in relief), Veneziano has a 2.87 ERA, 3.24 FIP and .290 BAA. His left-handedness would help balance out the Twins' righty-heavy pitching staff. Contract extensions RHP Calvin Faucher (5 YR/$14.5M, 2030 club option) $1M in 2025, $2M in 2026, $3M in 2027, $4M in 2028, $4M in 2029 and $6M club option for 2030 ($500k buyout) It's challenging to identify extension candidates on this Marlins roster when so many of the players just began their major league careers or recently suffered injuries (or both). I am generally opposed to making long-term commitments to relievers, but Faucher is an exception. In 53 ⅔ innings at the big league level this season, Faucher did not allow a single home run. Prior to his September shoulder impingement, he was impressing in his audition to be Miami's closer. Atypical for a reliever, he uses four distinct pitches and recorded at least 10 strikeouts with each of them. Offering a $14.5M guarantee would be extremely tempting for somebody who was an afterthought at the time of his acquisition. The contract structure buys out all of his pre-arb and arbitration years and include an option for what would've been his first free agent year. From the team's perspective, I believe the timing is appropriate because Faucher could be Super Two-eligible in 2026. He'll get expensive quickly if he proves to be closer material; even if he falls short of that bar, it doesn't take much production to justify this pay day. How the pieces fit together Players that I acquired during the offseason are underlined and italicized. This group (plus the dead money owed to Avisaíl García) would combine for a payroll in the $85M range, significantly less than 2024's season-opening total. The projected starting rotation would be Alcantara, Luzardo, Weathers, Garrett and Turnbull, with Pérez and Robby Snelling vying for spots by July. Expect at least one of those veterans to be traded by the deadline. Come August, the Marlins could have a top-five farm system in baseball. I'm skeptical of the defensive alignment with Edwards at shortstop and Norby at third base, but they should have long leashes to get acclimated. There would be a lot of platooning in the outfield with Jesús Sánchez coming closest to everyday at-bats between left field and DH starts. Sánchez is another likely trade deadline departure. Even with a heavy reliance on young, inexperienced players late in the season, I think the Marlins would eclipse 70 wins. View full article

The Marlins are trying to pivot to Clayton McCullough to fill their vacancy after Albernaz suddenly withdrew his name from consideration, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. The search for the 17th manager in Marlins franchise history continues. With the Chicago White Sox officially announcing Will Venable's hire on Thursday morning, it was expected that the Fish would soon follow suit with Craig Albernaz. However, Albernaz has opted to remain as Cleveland Guardians bench coach for the 2025 season, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports. And now Miami has to scramble for an alternative. Albernaz, who turned 42 on Wednesday, began coaching in 2015 after a nine-year playing career as a minor league catcher, eight of which were spent in the Tampa Bay Rays organization. Once retired as a player, Albernaz coached the Princeton Rays in the Appalachian League in 2015 and the Hudson Valley Renegades in the New York-Penn League in '16. His first taste as manager came in 2017 when he took over the Short-Season A Hudson Valley squad. The following season, he managed the Bowling Green Hot Rods in the Midwest League, where he earned the 2018 Midwest League Manager of the Year award. Following the 2019 season, he was hired by the San Francisco Giants as their bullpen and catching coach, where he served under now-Marlins assistant GM Gabe Kapler. Albernaz interviewed for managerial vacancies with the Giants and the Guardians following the 2023 season. Stephen Vogt beat Albernaz out for the Guardians job, but hired him onto his major league coaching staff. Albernaz was originally tabbed as Cleveland's field coordinator. He was elevated to bench coach in November when DeMarlo Hale departed to join the Toronto Blue Jays. The Guardians won the AL Central title this year and advanced to the ALCS. Throughout the search process, due to his pre-existing connections to Kapler and Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix, Albernaz appeared to be the most likely pick to replace outgoing manager Skip Schumaker. Craig Mish had reported on Monday that he and Venable were the two finalists for the job, though he backtracked on that to acknowledge the possibility of additional candidates. Clayton McCullough, fresh off winning a World Series title as first base coach of the Los Angeles Dodgers, looks to be Miami's initial fallback plan, per Passan. McCullough interviewed with the Marlins last week. Stay tuned for more updates... View full article

Today's news roundup also includes two Marlins top prospects with extreme swing-decision data. Slightly different Offishial News format than usual in recognition of the Los Angeles Dodgers, who pulled off a five-run comeback on Wednesday to defeat the New York Yankees and clinch the World Series title. It's the eighth championship in the franchise's history, but their first in a full-length season since 1988. Plenty of old friends were involved. This is the second WS title for former Marlins prospect Austin Barnes and for Enrique Hernández, who was traded to LA along with Barnes 10 years ago. In his second stint as a Dodger, longtime Marlins shortstop Miguel Rojas is a first-time champ. Rojas had a career-high 2.8 fWAR in 2024, though his involvement in the postseason run was limited due to injury (only one game played in the NLCS and WS combined). Alex Vesia capped off the best year of his career by throwing up zeroes out of the bullpen in four out of five Fall Classic games. Don't forget the little guys! A 2020 Marlins draft pick, Kyle Hurt pitched in three regular season games. Elieser Hernández made five appearances and Michael Petersen made 11 before getting claimed by Miami off waivers. For the moment, Petersen is still on the club's 40-man roster. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 On Wednesday out in the desert, LHP Patrick Monteverde (3.0 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, 68 pitches/42 strikes) still has not had a satisfying outing in the Arizona Fall League. It was an uncharacteristically quiet day at the office for OF Andrew Pintar, who went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. A midseason addition to the AFL, UTIL Dalvy Rosario went 1-for-3 with a walk in his debut. The Peoria Javelinas lost, 6-5. 🔷 In the Dominican Winter League, RF Troy Johnston went 2-for-3 with 2 RBI and a walk. He ranks third in LIDOM with a .896 OPS and tied for second with 9 RBI. RF Vidal Bruján went 1-for-3 with 3 RBI. 1B Deyvison De Los Santos had his first three-hit game of the season. 🔷 Fascinating data and visuals from Dylan White of Baseball America regarding the swing decisions made by minor leaguers in 2024. De Los Santos is the epitome of a "free-swinger," chasing 44% of the pitches he sees out of the zone while also swinging at 82% of in-zone pitches. On the other hand, OF Luis Cova made excellent decisions in his first season as a professional, chasing at barely a 17% rate. 🔷 Per Christina De Nicola of MLB.com, the Marlins hired Joe Migliaccio to be their new director of hitting. Migliaccio will oversee all levels of the organization, including the majors, though there will still be a conventional hitting coach on the 2025 major league staff. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, Dodgers right-hander Daniel Hudson announced his retirement. Hudson pitched in parts of 15 MLB seasons, the last 11 as a reliever. This was the second World Series title of his career (also won with the 2019 Nationals). Congrats to Hudson on going out on top! 🔷 The White Sox are expected to announce Will Venable as their new manager later today, and it wouldn't be surprising if the Marlins did the same with Craig Albernaz. Standby for plenty of coverage on that. View full article

Today's news roundup also includes a pending name change for an MLB stadium. On Sunday in winter ball competition, UTIL Vidal Bruján went 0-for-4. UTIL Ronny Simon went 0-for-3 with a walk. 1B Troy Johnston went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI. INF Johnny Olmstead went 0-for-3 with a walk. Olmstead has reached base safely in all six games he's played. 1B Deyvison De Los Santos concluded his participation with Gigantes del Cibao. In 17 games, De Los Santos slashed .260/.296/.320. The same fearsome slugger who led Minor League Baseball with 40 home runs in 2024 did not hit any over the past month, but as those who avidly watch LIDOM could tell you, the league heavily suppresses homers. More Marlins news and content below: 🔷 Ronny Simon's signing has not yet been announced, but in case you missed it over the weekend, the Marlins have a minor league deal in place with the 24-year-old switch-hitter that includes an invite to spring training. 🔷 Clayton McCullough gave his first interview since being selected as the new Marlins manager. He spoke about the importance of coaches "putting the player first" and running a team that is as "prepared" as possible at all times. The full conversation with Kyle Sielaff of Marlins Radio is embedded below. 🔷 McCullough will be holding his introductory press conference at loanDepot park today at 3:00 p.m., with principal owner Bruce Sherman and president of baseball operations Peter Bendix also in attendance. Fish On First's Isaac Azout and Kevin Barral are covering it in person. Check back here for full reaction! 🔷 Happy 25th birthday to C Will Banfield. A 2018 Marlins draft pick, Banfield played 517 career MiLB games before becoming a minor league free agent earlier this month. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the name of the Astros' ballpark is changing to Daikin Park. It had been Minute Maid Park for the previous 23 seasons. During the Minute Maid era, Houston had MLB's sixth-highest home winning percentage and won two World Series titles. The winners of the annual BBWAA awards are being announced this week, starting off with AL Rookie of the Year and NL Rookie of the Year tonight. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Today's news roundup also includes a lengthy blog post about how the Marlins have approached their rebuild differently under Peter Bendix. On Tuesday out in the desert, OF Andrew Pintar went 1-for-3 with a walk and stolen base, extending his hit streak to 12 games. The Peoria Javelinas lost, 9-7. In the Dominican Winter League, 1B Troy Johnston went 1-for-4 with an RBI. Vidal Bruján went 0-for-4 and continues to play exclusively in right field. Coming off the bench, Deyvison De Los Santos saw his first action at third base (he has otherwise been playing first base). RHP Elvis Alvarado threw a scoreless inning and topped out at 100 mph. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 Will Venable, who was a finalist for the Marlins managerial job according to the Miami Herald, has been hired by the White Sox instead. An announcement could be coming as soon as Thursday. The expectation is that the Marlins will reach a deal with Craig Albernaz, who had a leg up throughout the process given his history working with Peter Bendix and Gabe Kapler. I discussed the track records of both Venable and Albernaz and explained why I would've preferred Venable on a new episode of The Offishial Show. 🔷 Today happens to be Albernaz's birthday! He's turning 42, coincidentally the same age that Skip Schumaker was when he became Marlins skipper two years ago. 🔷 At the end of September, Walker Buehler was my favorite potential Marlins free agent target. However, after back-to-back scoreless starts in the NLCS and World Series, I concluded that he's now out of their price range. 🔷 Reice Stark detailed why he believes the current Marlins rebuild should be more successful than the last one. Any of you can publish blogs directly on the Fish On First website too after setting up a free FOF account. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Yankees lived to fight another day. In their highest-scoring game of the 2024 postseason, they won 11-4 on a Dodgers bullpen day. There has not been a World Series sweep since 2012. The run differential between the teams is now even for the series even though the Dodgers remain in firm control, needing just one more victory to clinch the championship. 🔷 Today's MLB postseason schedule: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. New York Yankees, 8:08 p.m. ET (World Series Game 5) Marlins podcast episodes View full article

The Offishial Show—Episode #220 He was the most-likely candidate entering the managerial search process, and one month later, Craig Albernaz is poised to be the next manager of the Miami Marlins. Ely Sussman reacts to Tuesday's news that the Chicago White Sox have selected Will Venable to fill their vacancy, which seemingly paves the way for Albernaz to reunite with some old friends in Miami. 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, Swimming Upstream, Big Fish Small Pod and more. Compared to most other years, there was a lot of continuity among MLB managers during this hiring cycle. Only the Marlins, White Sox and Cincinnati Reds had vacancies following the end of the regular season, and the Reds quickly struck a deal with future Hall of Famer Terry Francona. Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Marlins and White Sox both landed on Albernaz and Venable as finalists in their searches with the Sox also seriously considering Phil Nevin. As first reported Tuesday night by MLB.com's Scott Merkin, Chicago has hired Venable. Here is a glance at the résumés of Albernaz and Venable as featured in the 2024 media guides of the Cleveland Guardians and Texas Rangers, respectively: They have had somewhat comparable journeys as coaches, but I would've preferred Venable over Albernaz. The former spent four full seasons handling MLB bench coach duties whereas the latter had only one. Venable has had opportunities to work intimately with Joe Maddon, Alex Cora and Bruce Bochy, each of them World Series-winning skippers with their own distinct styles. Those experiences must've been invaluable. Neither managerial hire can be announced until Thursday at the earliest (Major League Baseball instructs its clubs not to steal the thunder from the World Series on gamedays). Read more about Albernaz's candidacy here. 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

On The Offishial Show, Ely Sussman vets Cleveland Guardians bench coach Craig Albernaz, who is poised to become the new Miami Marlins manager. View full video

Prior to his last two starts, Buehler looked like the ideal 2025 reclamation project for a team like the Marlins. Unfortunately for them, he has recaptured his old form just in time to boost his earning power. Three weeks ago, pitching Game 3 of the NLDS against the San Diego Padres, Walker Buehler still looked broken. Appearing in the playoffs for the first time since 2021, the outing was a continuation of Buehler's frustrating regular season. He allowed the Padres to plate six runs in the bottom of the second inning—that remains the highest-scoring half-inning by any team during the 2024 postseason. Buehler gutted through five frames to take some of the burden off his fatigued teammates in the Los Angeles bullpen, but he struck out zero batters in the process. The Dodgers lost, 6-5, and were set to face elimination. If the Padres had finished the job by winning either of the next two games, Buehler would have entered free agency with zero momentum. Combining his 2024 regular season with his NLDS clunker, the fallen star had a 5.71 ERA in 80 ⅓ innings pitched. Buehler would've been widely coveted due to his pre-Tommy John surgery track record—career 3.02 ERA, 3.26 FIP and .212 BAA from 2017-2022—but only as a buy-low candidate on a one-year "pillow contract" that practically any team could afford. Yes, even the Miami Marlins. I had composed an elaborate "Marlins offseason blueprint" which included taking a $14M flier on Buehler for 2025. That article will still be published by Fish On First shortly, but with a major revision because it's no longer realistic to expect the 30-year-old to be attainable for such a modest guarantee. Buehler has made two more starts since the Padres let LA to wiggle off the hook, showing legitimate flashes of his former self. Even in a microscopic sample, that changes the math surrounding his free agency. The short-handed Dodgers reluctantly started Buehler in NLCS Game 3 and World Series Game 3 against the New York Mets and New York Yankees, respectively. Both starts came on the road in hostile environments...well, environments that would have been hostile if his opponents did anything to get their fans feeling hopeful. Buehler silenced them. After having authored just one scoreless game all year, he held the Mets and Yankees off the scoreboard when it mattered most. Four total trips through their lineups, zero runs allowed. If not for an Alex Verdugo garbage-time home run, both games would've been shutouts for the Dodgers pitching staff. These results alone do not get a player paid. MLB front offices are smart enough to recognize when somebody is benefitting from lucky breaks. In Buehler's case, the quality of his stuff has meaningfully ticked up. He leaned heavily on his breaking balls to halt the Mets' momentum. At Yankee Stadium, he turned to his four-seam fastball for whiffs in key situations. The resilient Dodgers bought Buehler just enough time to make crucial adjustments before hitting free agency. Whether he ultimately re-signs with the team that drafted and developed him or finds a better offer elsewhere, the terms of that offer will be a lot more player-friendly than they would've been following an NLDS elimination. My aforementioned $14M estimate was based on the contract Luis Severino signed with the Mets last offseason. Severino secured performance bonuses based on games started, but had no security beyond that single season. Thanks to his final nine brilliant innings (and the underlying pitch data from those outings), Buehler is assured of getting a larger guarantee. If he settles for his own one-year prove-it deal with no strings attached, I expect it to be in the $20M range. More likely, he'll get a backloaded multi-year commitment that includes an opt out after the 2025 campaign. At the start of October, I genuinely thought Buehler was an affordable and appropriate fit for the Marlins. The risk/reward equation was just right for a last-place team with payroll flexibility that dreamt of riding his bounce-back season to a much-improved record or (more realistically) flipping him at the trade deadline for prospects who could propel the quality of their farm system from solid to great. However, he's now poised to enter negotiations with a lot more leverage than previously thought. The Marlins will inevitably get outbid (if they even bother to make a formal offer at all). View full article