Ely Sussman

León will reportedly receive a $1.5M bonus, the largest for any international amateur that the Fish have signed this year. Annually, the vast majority of international free agent activity is concentrated around January 15, but there are occasionally exceptions. The Miami Marlins are making a very, very, very big exception for Cuban prospect Luis Manuel León. According to Beisbol FR's Francys Romero, León is expected to officially sign with the club "in the coming weeks" for a $1.5M bonus. The 18-year-old León will be the highest-paid player in Miami's 2024 signing class, accounting for approximately 23% of their $6.52M bonus pool, edging out Venezuelan OF Luis Cova ($1.4M). He'll also be the only Cuban in the class. The Marlins pursued León for more than a year, attending a showcase held in Delray Beach, Florida, way back in June 2023. Romero reports that he "posted a 6.2-second time in the 60-yard dash and showed off a 60-grade arm both at shortstop and in center field. As a hitter, he impressed with a fluid, compact swing, capable of hitting to all areas of the field, with potential to develop power." León is listed at 6'2" and 175 pounds. León intended to sign with the St. Louis Cardinals shortly after the showcase, settling for the $850k they had left to spend during the 2023 signing period rather than having to wait for the following year. "However, the deal fell through due to issues with registration and free agency eligibility," per Romero. The MLB commissioner's office finally declared him a free agent in April 2024. Romero specifies that four members of the Marlins international scouting department were thorough in their evaluation of León, including Adrian Lorenzo, who left his position as senior director of international scouting a full year ago. David Hernandez-Beayne was recently promoted to lead the department. León's older brother, Pedro, is an outfielder in the Houston Astros organization who made his major league debut earlier this season. It is typical for international amateurs to begin their affiliated ball careers in the Dominican Summer League. Due to León's drawn-out signing process, he'll be significantly older than the DSL competition in 2025 (turning 19 on July 21). He could make his minor league debut in the Florida Complex League instead to expedite his development. Romero adds that the Marlins still have $167,500 left in their 2024 bonus pool. They have until December 15 to use it or lose it. As Fish On First previously reported, the Marlins already have big plans for the 2025 signing class, featuring CF/SS Andrew Salas, 3B Juan Tomás and RHP Kevin Defrank. View full article

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. These notes apply to the third and final game of Miami's road series against the Minnesota Twins. View full article

Offishial News for 9/26/24 On Wednesday, the Marlins offense got off to a fast start, knocking Twins starter Simeon Woods Richardson out of the game in the top of the second inning. Minnesota's bullpen silenced them the rest of the way, though, striking out 14 and issuing zero walks across eight scoreless frames. The Twins scored eight unanswered runs, in large part thanks to four Miami errors. Edward Cabrera posted a 3.57 ERA with a solid (by his standards) 10.7% walk rate in 11 post-trade deadline starts. The Marlins lost, 8-3. With this result, the Marlins ensured that they will have the highest odds possible (22.45%) of winning the 2025 MLB Draft lottery. They're hoping to receive the No. 1 overall pick for the first time since 2000. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 The full delegation that the Marlins will send to the Arizona Fall League: OF Kemp Alderman, INF Jay Beshears, LHP Justin King, LHP Patrick Monteverde, OF Andrew Pintar, RHP Jun-Seok Shim, LHP Justin Storm and RHP Brandon White (plus coaches Esmerling De La Rosa and Gabe Ortiz). Shim is the second-youngest pitcher participating in the AFL, while Monteverde (last season's Futures Game selection and Marlins Minor League Pitcher of the Year) is among the oldest. They'll begin competing with the Peoria Javelinas on October 8. 🔷 Cristian Pache unsurprisingly cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Jacksonville. His tenure with the Marlins organization is likely over regardless, as he'll be able to elect minor league free agency in November. 🔷 Nicole and Michael Baumann welcomed their baby boy, Bowen, into the world on Tuesday. Baumann is expected to rejoin the Fish in Toronto on Friday. 🔷 Jesús Luzardo is the Marlins nominee for the 2024 Roberto Clemente Award. Vote for Luzardo here through Sunday. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, seven teams are still in contention for the final four playoff spots. Inclement weather has postponed two games of the crucial Mets/Braves series until Monday. If necessary to determine postseason berths, the Mets will fly back to Atlanta to play a straight doubleheader. Aaron Judge hit his 57th homer. A 2-for-24 slump from Luis Arraez has reopened the NL batting title race. Marcell Ozuna (.310) is now only four points behind Arraez (.314). 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter RHP Valente Bellozo) conclude their series against the Twins (RHP David Festa). It's another must-win for the Twins, whose playoff odds have dropped to 22.1%, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 7:40 p.m. ET. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. These notes apply to the second game of Miami's road series against the Minnesota Twins. View full article

Offishial News for 9/25/24 On Tuesday, the Marlins did that all-too-familiar thing where they put a few runs on the scoreboard early, but couldn't add on from there. Against the slumping Twins, it was enough. Jonah Bride, Nick Fortes and Xavier Edwards each drove in runs during the second inning. Dane Myers came off the bench and drew a walk in his return from the injured list. The Marlins won, 4-1. It was Ryan Weathers' first win since May 26. Here's more Marlins news and content: 🔷 Cristian Pache was designated for assignment as the corresponding move for Myers. Pache might not have become a Marlin in the first place without Myers' injury, which created a temporary need for a right-handed-hitting outfielder with center field ability. During his two months on the roster, Pache failed to capitalize on the opportunity. The former top prospect slashed .183/.234/.283 in 35 games, almost precisely aligned with his career slash line, and it isn't as if he brought much to the table as a baserunner. Pache's defense was fine, but not extraordinary. The Marlins are the fifth MLB team in the last four years to get rid of Pache. Assuming he wants to continue his playing career, his options are likely limited to international and independent leagues. 🔷 Congratulations to Nicole and Mike Baumann, who are awaiting the arrival of their first child (Baumann was placed on the paternity list prior to Tuesday's game). 🔷 Jesús Luzardo is the Marlins nominee for the 2024 Roberto Clemente Award. Vote for Luzardo here through Sunday. 🔷 On this day eight years ago, José Fernández and two other young men perished in a boating accident. It was nothing short of a franchise-altering tragedy. Just 24 years old, Fernández had already established himself as one of baseball's elite starting pitchers, always delivering a mesmerizing viewing experience with his limitless charisma and unhittable stuff. He was deeply embraced by the South Florida community in part because of his backstory, which included defecting from Cuba with his mother at age 15. JDF still owns numerous Marlins records and his dominance in home starts specifically will never be matched. Nobody on the team has worn uniform No. 16 since his passing. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Padres clinched a postseason berth, finishing off a win over the Dodgers by turning a ninth-inning triple play. The Athletics drew 30,402 fans to the Oakland Coliseum to witness a walk-off. Aaron Judge hit his 56th home run. Charlie Blackmon announced his retirement. He was actually drafted by the Marlins out of high school (28th round in 2004), but did not sign, ultimately spending his entire professionally career with the Rockies where he was a four-time All-Star who accrued 20.4 fWAR/20.8 bWAR. 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter RHP Edward Cabrera) continue their series against the Twins (RHP Simeon Woods Richardson). It's pretty much a must-win for the Twins, whose playoff odds have dropped to 27.0%, per FanGraphs. First pitch at 7:40 p.m. ET. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. These notes apply to the first game of Miami's road series against the Minnesota Twins. View full article

I've been really discouraged by Stowers. Even if he is decent defensively in CF, don't think you can enter next year forecasting him to be the main option there. I would have Dane firmly ahead of him on the depth chart.

Thank you for the correction. I did know that! I'm just more prone to errors when writing too late at night/too early in the morning.

Offishial News for 9/24/24 On Monday, Fish On First's Isaac Azout reported that Dane Myers will be reinstated from the injured list prior to the start of the Marlins/Twins series. Myers spent the previous week on a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A Jacksonville, slashing .333/.429/.833 with no strikeouts in four games. The 28-year-old is coming back from a left ankle fracture that he sustained in July during a post-ejection tantrum. 🔷 MLB Pipeline has new scouting reports on INF/OF Andrew Salas and RHP Kevin Defrank, who have deals in place to sign with the Marlins on January 15. Salas and Defrank rank fourth and 39th, respectively, on Pipeline's list of Top 50 international prospects for the 2025 signing period. 🔷 Joe Mack is Baseball America's Marlins 2024 Minor League Player of the Year. Cool tidbit from BA's Walter Villa about how Mack's Pensacola teammates dispensed advice on weight training, proper sleep and better nutrition this season. 🔷 For their flight to Minnesota, Marlins rookie players and staff dressed up in costumes, including Eury Pérez as Big Bird, Otto Lopez as Papa Smurf, Declan Cronin as a leprechaun, Adam Oller as a clown, and Valente Bellozo, Javier Sanoja and Jhonny Pereda as members of a mariachi band. 🔷 Looks like the 2024 Prediction Time contest title will go to either @Daniel Rodriguez, @Nicholas Milton, @Sean Millerick or @Alec Chao. With only two Marlins series remaining, here's an updated look at the Prediction Time leaderboard. Make series predictions with us all season long when you become a Fish On First SuperSub. 🔷 Jesús Luzardo is the Marlins nominee for the 2024 Roberto Clemente Award. Vote for Luzardo here through Sunday. 🔷 Elsewhere around baseball, the Tigers control their own destiny in the American League Wild Card race. They've made the bold decision to call up RHP Jackson Jobe, arguably baseball's top pitching prospect. The Phillies clinched the NL East title, their first since 2011. With their next loss, the White Sox will set a new modern-era, single-season MLB record. 🔷 Today's MLB game: the Marlins (probable starter LHP Ryan Weathers) begin their final 2024 road trip against the Twins (RHP Bailey Ober). It's a crucial game for the Twins, who have a 51.3% chance to make the playoffs, per FanGraphs. With a loss or an Angels win, the Marlins can clinch the best possible odds of winning the 2025 MLB Draft lottery. First pitch at 7:40 p.m. ET. 🔷 Join us for a new episode of Fish On First LIVE today from 6:30-7:30 p.m. ET on YouTube/Twitter/Facebook. Special guests: Gregg Masterson of Twins Daily and Jonathan Mayer. FOF LIVE is presented by Berger & Hicks. If you’ve been injured as a result of somebody else’s negligence, give them a call at (305) 670-7050. Marlins podcast episodes View full article

The Offishial Show—Episode #218 Expect to see a much different group of players on the field for the Miami Marlins when the 2025 season begins. Attempting to predict the return of injured players, prospect promotions, spring training position battles and offseason acquisitions, four Fish On First staffers held a six-round draft of Opening Day roster candidates and explained reach of their selections. Nate Karzmer: Jesús Sánchez, Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett, Nick Fortes, Jesús Tinoco and Matt Moore (bonus round) Isaac Azout: Connor Norby, Declan Cronin, Jonah Bride, Kyle Stowers, Javier Sanoja and Andrew Kittredge (bonus round) Kevin Barral: Xavier Edwards, Ryan Weathers, Calvin Faucher, Dane Myers, Deyvison De Los Santos and Amed Rosario (bonus round) Ely Sussman: Jesús Luzardo, Jake Burger, Otto Lopez, Andrew Nardi, Edward Cabrera and Walker Buehler (bonus round) 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. The Fish On First podcast is presented by MPT College Consulting! They pride themselves on helping clients navigate the college application process. This includes preparation for standardized testing, guidance through high school, assistance with essays and applications, and choosing the right college. Visit them today at mptcollegeconsulting.com to learn more about their services and schedule a free consultation. The following players on the current Marlins active roster entering the final week of the 2024 season were not drafted: Shaun Anderson, Lake Bachar, Mike Baumann, Valente Bellozo, Anthony Bender, Vidal Bruján, Jeff Conine, Xzavion Curry, Derek Hill, Darren McCaughan, Adam Oller, Cristian Pache, Jhonny Pereda, Michael Petersen and Anthony Veneziano. Follow Ely (@RealEly), Isaac (@IsaacAzout), Kevin (@kevin_barral), Nate (@NateKarzmer) and Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) on Twitter. Join the Marlins Discord server! Complete Miami Marlins coverage here at FishOnFirst.com. View full article

Despite facing much older competition throughout the season and being traded to a new organization midway through, De Los Santos went yard more often than any other minor leaguer. Deyvison De Los Santos led Minor League Baseball in home runs this year and it wasn't even close. The Miami Marlins first baseman went deep 40 times during the 2024 MiLB regular season, which concluded on Sunday. Ryan Ward of the Los Angeles Dodgers ranked second with 34 homers. It's the most home runs by any player in a single minor league season since MJ Melendez in 2021 and the largest gap between the MiLB leader and runner-up since Ryan Howard in 2004. DDLS joins Dallas McPherson (42 HR in 2008) as the only players to have won an MiLB home run title while playing for a Marlins affiliate. However, the vast majority of his round-trippers (28) came as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks organization—De Los Santos and fellow prospect Andrew Pintar were traded to the Marlins on July 25 in exchange for A.J. Puk. The trade that sent DDLS to the Marlins—and took him away from the ultra-hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League—only added to the degree of difficulty. The most recent example I could find of a minor league home run king who changed organizations midway through the season was Edwin Little in 1955. nnhmqr0vwdP_84gP.mp4 The correlation between minor league homers and major league success is not particularly strong. Looking back at the past decade, Kris Bryant and Pete Alonso immediately became stars in The Show, while all of the other single-season leaders during that period have been replacement-level players. MiLB HR Kings, 2014-Present 2014: Kris Bryant (Cubs), 43 2015: AJ Reed (Astros), 34 2016: Dylan Cozens (Phillies), 40 2017: AJ Reed (Astros), 34 2018: Pete Alonso (Mets) and Ibandel Isabel (Reds), 36 2019: Kevin Cron (Diamondbacks), 39 2021: MJ Melendez (Royals), 41 2022: Moisés Gómez (Cardinals), 39 2023: Yunior Severino (Twins) and Shay Whitcomb (Astros), 35 2024: Deyvison De Los Santos (Diamondbacks/Marlins), 40 Age is an important variable, though. De Los Santos, who turned 21 in June, is the youngest home run leader since Joey Gallo blasted 40 dingers as a 19-year-old in 2013. De Los Santos was Fish On First's fifth-ranked prospect following the trade deadline. Despite homering frequently with Triple-A Jacksonville, he didn't improve his prospect stock overall. In 49 games with Triple-A Reno, he slashed .289/.338/.588 with a 121 wRC+ and 22.9 K%; in a similarly sized 50-game Jumbo Shrimp sample, he slashed .240/.284/.459 with a 85 wRC+ and 28.4 K%. The main issue was a steep increase in how often he whiffed on pitches in the strike zone, particularly secondary pitches. For context, his post-trade 71.9 Z-Contact% would rank last among qualified MLB hitters this season (85.3% is the MLB average). Whether it's a matter of sharpening his pitch recognition ability or dialing down the ferocity of his swing, improving in that area is crucial to his long-term outlook. Assuming that De Los Santos is not called up during the final week of MLB regular season, the next step would be selecting him to the Marlins 40-man roster in mid-November, protecting him from the Rule 5 Draft. He'll enter spring training with an opportunity to compete for a 2025 Opening Day job. View full article

With the exception of its inaugural season, loanDepot park consistently draws fewer fans than any other stadium in the National League. The players change, the managers change, the team's performance varies, but some things about the Miami Marlins remain the same. In 2024, as has been the case during the 10 previous full-length seasons, the Marlins had the lowest attendance among National League teams. The race was particularly anti-climatic this time around. You could see it coming from the very first homestand. Sunday's home finale brought Marlins total attendance up to 1,085,055 (an average of 13,396 per game). There is a gap of more than half a million fans between them and the NL's next-lowest team, the Pittsburgh Pirates. Marlins attendance declined by an average of 960 fans per game compared to 2023. The drop-off in team success no doubt contributed to that, going from a postseason qualifier to the second-worst record in the majors. It does not help when last year's All-Stars (Luis Arraez and Jorge Soler) depart via trade and free agency and Miami's most talented and marketable starting pitchers (Sandy Alcantara, Eury Pérez and Jesús Luzardo) get derailed by injuries. The Marlins went 30-51 at loanDepot park, tying a franchise record for lousiest home performance. Renewing practices from recent seasons, the Marlins leaned heavily into heritage celebrations and theme nights. New for 2024, they rebranded "Flashback Fridays" as "Fiesta Fridays." They also experimented with all-you-can-eat seats. While those boosted social media engagement, no more than a few dozen people per game redeemed that promotion. The 33 largest crowds that the Marlins have played in front of this season were all on the road. The last time that the Fish did not draw the fewest fans in the NL? Way back in 2012, when "Marlins Park" made its debut. In 11 normal seasons since then—excluding the COVID-shortened, fan-less 2020 campaign—they've held steady in 15th place. The Oakland Athletics will rank 30th in Major League Baseball in attendance for the third consecutive season, but it isn't possible to make an apples-to-apples comparison. Their abysmal fan turnout is the byproduct of a messy relocation process. For the near future, they are scheduled to host games at Sacramento's Sutter Health Park, a Triple-A venue that ensures their streak will remain intact. The price to attend games at loanDepot park is cheaper than most MLB ballparks. However, as long as the team fails to be perennially competitive on the field, the stands will continue to be mostly empty. View full article

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. These notes apply to the third and final game of Miami's home series against the Atlanta Braves. View full article

Player status updates, insightful stats and more information to fully equip you for today's Marlins game. Here are the latest Miami Marlins game notes, produced by the Marlins communications department and relayed to our loyal SuperSubs. These notes apply to the second game of Miami's home series against the Atlanta Braves. View full article