Kevin Barral

PORT ST. LUCIE, FL—Miami Marlins baseball returned on Saturday as they faced off against the New York Mets. The teams combined for four total hits in the 2-1 Marlins exhibition game win. We were able to see Robby Snelling make his first spring training start, Christopher Morel play first base and the automated ball-strike challenge system in play. Snelling makes first spring start Fish On First's number three prospect Robby Snelling took the mound for the first inning. He threw 10 pitches, setting the top of the Mets order down in 1-2-3 fashion. That included Marcus Semien, Juan Soto and Bo Bichette. Snelling went with a fastball/curveball combo, with his fastball topping out at 96.4 mph and generating one swing with the curveball. "It's always tough getting one inning, small sample sizes, only 10 pitches through the entire inning," said Snelling. "I go back and look that I didn't get to show the entire repertoire, but being able to go out and have a scoreless inning to start the spring, that is a big confidence builder. Even happier to be in the zone, like I was against a really good starting three." Snelling, who isn't on the 40-man roster, still enters spring with a real chance at cracking the Marlins Opening Day rotation. "If you don't go into spring with that mindset, I don't want to say you don't belong there, but you got to have a little competitive fire in you," said Snelling. Early on in camp, it's been the "nine pockets," which are meant to help you target certain spots in the strike zone. "This helped me big time last year," Snelling said. "I've been doing that throughout spring and I think if you fall 2-0 to a really, really good hitter, you can't leave anything middle-middle in the danger zone. Being able to know where your stuff's going to end up is throwing it into the nine pocket. I pictured a nine pocket back there, and (Agustin Ramirez) was my nine pocket." Marlins "bullpen" After Snelling, the following pitchers each threw one inning: Ryan Gusto, Tyler Phillips, Cade Gibson, Zach Brzykcy, Jack Ralston, Josh Ekness, Nigel Belgrave and Stephen Jones. Gusto recorded the first strikeout of the spring for the Marlins, getting MJ Melendez to swing on a 95.0 mph fastball. This offseason, Gusto tweaked his sweeper and added a completely new changeup. "We were really moving the pointer finger on the sweeper, just figuring out a way for me to get to the front of the ball a little bit better, make that spin a little bit tighter and more efficient, so it can help them move and be more consistent," Gusto said following his outing. He threw the sweeper twice, generating one whiff with it. After attempting many different changeup grips, Gusto has finally settled on one that "will be able to work with the way that I leverage the ball individually for me." Before using it in game action, he was able to throw is in his most recent live and hitters told him it was "moving a lot, just wasn't locating it well enough." On Saturday, he threw it three times, generating three whiffs. "He got a little bit everything too," McCullough said. "It was nice that first one, he had a deep at-bat, was able to finish that off. To get some working out of the stretch and probably most importantly, he felt healthy. He came into camp feeling good and then to have this first one go that way, it's a good start." Phillips struck out Marcus Semien swinging with his splitter. His fastball topped out at 97.8 mph, which was faster than any pitch of his MLB career. The Marlins expect to stretch Phillips out given his prior experience as a starting pitcher and extensive pitch mix. "We talked last year on even the potential of him starting," McCullough said. "I think he has those capabilities and we'll see how that plays out. I think we'll just want to continuously increase him, whether that's giving us really good length out of the ‘pen and you can certainly pitch him in short bursts, and as crazy as things can get during the season, also the ability to even go through the lineup a couple of times." Plan at first base On Saturday, free agent signing Christopher Morel started at first base with Griffin Conine playing right field, both for five innings. That will be the plan until the Marlins feel comfortable with Conine playing first base in a game. Morel will move around the field as well, per McCullough. Morel looked comfortable in his first ever start at first base, making a couple of nice plays, specifically in the bottom of the first inning to get the final out. He finished the day hitless, but was able to drive in the Marlins’ second run of the game on a sac fly in the top of the sixth inning, scoring Jakob Marsee. "Probably in a lot of ways couldn't have been any better for Christopher (Morel)," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. "Not only making the plays, but some of them were not just your garden variety, leaving the first, the high chopper that takes him kind of going into foul territory, get himself under control and make a nice read. He attacks some other ones very well and gave himself some good hops to play with. He's looked great on the backfields, and certainly knew that he was going to prepare himself as best he could coming into camp for this and I'm glad he got a lot of chances, and hope he just continues to get more of those in spring training." ABS challenge system strategy New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza told his players to "be aggressive" with the ABS challenge system this spring—that way they can create a strategy for the regular season based on who’s getting calls overturned. McCullough plans on using it in a similar way, at least with the position players. "I've told our position players that they have the ability to challenge in spring training," McCullough said pregame. "You need to meet a percentage threshold that you feel pretty certain that this is. If you get it wrong, there'll be a tax you have to pay me and if you get it right, then you don't get anything from me, other than you get to build some equity and trust in myself and the staff. “If a guy goes 5-for-5 in spring training, what does that mean for the season? I think everyone will look at the samples in their own way. We're talking through actively some more team philosophy and some team things that we'll be thinking about rolling out for the season." On Saturday, each team challenged once and both were unsuccessful. Brian Navarreto, who entered the game in place of Agustín Ramírez, challenged for Miami. Mets catching prospect Kevin Parada challenged while batting in the bottom of the ninth inning. What's next? The Marlins begin a stretch of four straight games at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, located in Jupiter, Florida. Sandy Alcantara will take the mound for the Marlins on Sunday, as they welcome the Washington Nationals. First pitch is slated for 1:10 pm. The game will not be televised, but you can listen to it on MLB.com. View full article

Following his Marlins spring training debut on Saturday, first baseman Christopher Morel speaks with the media about his comfort level at his new position and where he can still improve before the regular season begins. View full video

Following Saturday's scoreless start against the New York Mets, Marlins left-hander Robby Snelling speaks with the media about his main takeaways from the outing and competing for a big league job. View full video

Beginning with the 2026 season, the Miami Marlins are making a major change by leaving the regional sports network model behind and partnering with Major League Baseball to produce their television game broadcasts. A source told Fish On First that all of the team's on-air talent will remain employed for the upcoming year, but with changes to some of their roles. While we await a formal announcement from the Marlins, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald broke down many of the specifics Friday morning in this column. Marlins.TV Kyle Sielaff will be back as the Marlins play-by-play announcer. Sielaff called the vast majority of games on FanDuel Sports Network Florida in 2025 and his workload will increase even more moving forward, slated to do 154 of the 157 Marlins.TV games, according to Jackson. Craig Minervini will fill in for the other three. Former pitcher Jeff Nelson previously served as an analyst for both the Marlins and New York Yankees. Focused fully on the Fish in 2026, there are 69 games on his schedule (most among Marlins.TV analysts). Longtime analyst Tommy Hutton is doing 60 games, all of them at loanDepot park. The other 28 games will go to former Marlin Gaby Sanchez. Rod Allen, who was part of the game analyst rotation for the past four seasons, will no longer be in the booth. He'll work the pregame and postgame shows, alternating with Nelson and former Marlins closer AJ Ramos. However, the length of those shows is being reduced as part of this transition. There was previously 30 minutes of coverage before and after games, but that's going down to 15 minutes for home games, and on the road, there will be no pregame show and only a five-minute postgame show. Minervini and Marlins insider Craig Mish are each hosting half of the home games, and sometimes, Mish will be paired with Minervini and function as the analyst. Kelly Saco and Jeremy Taché will still serve as in-game reporters, but Mish and Minervini are in the fold for that as well. Saco will get the most amount of games, followed by Taché, then Minervini and finally Mish. Marlins Radio Network The Marlins are "close to finalizing an agreement" that would move their radio broadcasts from WINZ (940 AM) to WQAM (560 AM and 104.3 FM), per Jackson. WQAM was home to the inaugural Marlins season, but this would be the club's first time back with them since 2007. Due to those ongoing negotiations, fans trying to access the Marlins Radio Network during spring training should use MLB.com or the MLB app. Rod Allen and AJ Ramos will be the primary analysts alongside second-year play-by-play man Jack McMullen. Nelson, Saco and Marlins Radio pregame host Stephen Strom will handle the leftover games. Combining his assignments across both mediums, Ramos will have a much bigger role than he did last season. View full article

Miami Marlins spring training has been underway for more than a week at this point. With every player now reported to Jupiter and Grapefruit League competition approaching on Saturday, we're beginning to get a clearer idea of what the 2026 team will look like. Here are the most important updates from the past couple days of Marlins camp activities. Injuries Right-handed pitcher Janson Junk rolled his ankle during dynamic warmups on Tuesday, per MLB.com's Christina De Nicola. The setback has already forced him to miss a pitch design session that was previously scheduled for Wednesday and he will undergo imaging in Miami. Junk, who made 21 appearances (16 starts) last season, posting a 4.17 ERA and 3.14 FIP in 110 innings pitched, is currently fighting for a starting rotation spot. Based on his 2025 performance and the fact that he's out of minor league options, he'll make the Opening Day roster as long as he's healthy in time. Even if tests do not reveal a significant injury, this break in his throwing program will slow down the process of getting him built up as a starter. Right-hander Anthony Bender is a bit behind as his shin had a flare-up, but he threw a bullpen on Tuesday and was fine. He isn't facing hitters yet, but the expectation is that he will get into games soon. Bender posted a 2.16 ERA in 51 appearances (50.0 IP) in 2025. Left-hander Andrew Nardi, who missed all of 2025 with a back injury, is dealing with a blood blister. Like Bender, he threw on Tuesday, but is a few days behind the other Marlins pitchers. The last time Nardi appeared in a game was in August 2024. He finished that season posting a 5.07 ERA in 49 ⅔ innings pitched. Snelling starts against Mets Marlins manager Clayton McCullough announced that left-handed pitcher and Fish On First number three prospect Robby Snelling will make the club's first start of the spring against the New York Mets in Port St. Lucie. The Mets will counter with fellow lefty Brandon Waddell. Last spring, Snelling made just two appearances (1.2 IP) before getting reassigned to the minors. From there, he was excellent, posting a 2.51 ERA, 2.77 FIP, 10.99 K/9 and 2.58 BB/9 in 136 innings pitched at the Double-A and Triple-A levels. He should be a significant piece of the Marlins major league staff as the 2026 season progresses. Expect the 22-year-old to work only one inning in this outing, then get built up from there in one-inning increments, similar to what we saw last spring. Fairbanks on MLBPA shake-up New Marlins reliever Pete Fairbanks happens to be part of the Major League Baseball Players Association's eight-player executive subcommittee. In the aftermath of MLBPA executive director Tony Clark resigning, Fairbanks had this to say on Wednesday (via Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald): "The players remain focused on their ongoing preparations for collective bargaining this year. The strength of this union is—and will always be—the solidarity of our membership. We have a long history of fighting for the rights of every player, and we’re committed to making sure we can continue that fight successfully.” View full article

JUPITER, FL—Kyle Stowers drew attention during his first spring training in the Miami Marlins organization, but for the wrong reasons. In Grapefruit League games, he went 7-for-40 with a .540 OPS and looked like a candidate to be optioned to the minor leagues. It was a continuation of the 2024 season in terms of being unable to unlock the raw power that the Marlins desperately needed to add to their lineup. One year later, as Marlins position players reported to camp for Monday's first full-squad workout, Stowers was surrounded by reporters at his clubhouse locker and by fans once the workout began. That's what happens when you slash .288/.368/.544/.912 with 25 home runs, 73 RBI and a 149 wRC+ in what was an All-Star-worthy 2025 season. "I think the good news is, if I played poorly in spring, everyone would be like, 'Oh, he's right on pace with last year,'" Stowers said jokingly. "Kyle just went out there and continually made adjustments," said manager Clayton McCullough. "And he's gonna have to make adjustments again this year...If you don't adjust in the major leagues, you won't last long." Stowers and the Marlins were engaged in contract extension talks this offseason. The Athletic reported that the sides were far apart, with Stowers' camp asking for about $100M and the Marlins valuing him closer to $50M. The 28-year-old outfielder confirmed that no formal offer was made and disputed the $100M figure. "I'm just so focused on this year," said Stowers. "I got four years of control left. I understand it and you have every right to play my control out. I'm just so excited to be here, so grateful to be in this organization. Was bummed we didn't get something figured out. Would love to someday, but at the same time, let's take care of this year and we'll go from there." Stowers missed the final quarter of the season due to an oblique strain, but comes into camp 100% healthy. He will not let himself "lose the competitive side of things" just because his roster spot is more secure entering 2026. Marlins principal owner Bruce Sherman applied some extra pressure during his Monday morning press conference, saying that "our expectations are really high for him." Becoming a father for the first time earlier this month gives him even more motivation to avoid complacency. "I've gone into every single spring training my entire career to compete for a job...It's not a passive process. I don't want to lose that edge." Stowers expects his teammates to adopt a similar mentality despite the Marlins' 17-win improvement from the year before. "The reality of it is all 30 teams are trying to get better. From the Dodgers to the last-place team, every single team at the end of the season looks to improve," said Stowers. "The notion that because we won however many games one year, then that many the next, there's not going to be that same guarantee of increase, and we know that. You got to have hunger to go earn it and continue to get as much as we can out of each day." Quick Notes - Miami Marlins chairman and principle owner Bruce Sherman and president of baseball operations Peter Bendix addressed the media. - All 72 players who were invited to Marlins camp have reported on time, per Clayton McCullough. - The following pitchers threw on Monday: Braxton Garrett, Eury Pérez, Pete Fairbanks, Garrett Acton, Michael Petersen, Bradley Blalock, Patrick Monteverde, Thomas White, Josh White, Dale Stanavich and Karson Milbrandt. - Monday was also our first opportunity to see Griffin Conine and Christopher Morel participating in defensive drills as first basemen. Neither of them have any prior professional experience at the position. View full article

Marlins manager Clayton McCullough speaks to the media about his philosophy of living in the moment and how he could improve from his rookie season in Miami. View full video

Marlins principal owner Bruce Sherman and president of baseball operations Peter Bendix speak to the media about the franchise's spending, player development infrastructure and goals for 2026. View full video

Marlins outfielder Kyle Stowers speaks to the media on the morning of the club's first full-squad workout, analyzing his 2025 breakout, reacting to rumors of a potential contract extension and more. View full video

JUPITER, FL—Last spring, Graham Pauley was easy to overlook in Miami Marlins camp. Although he posted a solid slash line of .286/.355/.429/.784 in exhibition games and ultimately made the Opening Day roster, Pauley wasn't thought of as a key piece of the team's long-term plan. That perception change towards the end of the 2025 season. In his final 34 games, Pauley slashed .238/.358/.450/.808 with four home runs and six RBI. Throughout the season overall, he posted plus-six outs above average and plus-three defensive runs saved in 52 games at third base. "I think the defense took a big step from where I've been in the past," Pauley told Fish On First in an exclusive interview. "I think going into this spring, I was able to build up to some stuff in the offseason and continue to work at that. I think the defense is in a great spot and then offensively, I felt like I did a lot of good things to my swing. Just looking back at the second half of last year, I think I've worked on a lot of stuff and then continue to build on that and hopefully have success." Following the season, Pauley trained at Movement Performance and Sports Medicine in Atlanta and made plenty of changes, including in his setup where he is "starting the hands a bit lower." That leads to a more vertical swing, "allowing me to create more space and stay more towards the pitcher with all my force, instead of just turning off balls and being late." "Also just how my bat's going to the zone," said Pauley. "I feel like my bat is starting in the zone and also going a lot further, allowing me to get to more pitches and stay on pitches for longer. I think those are gonna help with time. I took some at-bats before coming here, and then we'll get a bunch here, so it'll be good to work on that kind of approach in spring training." Pitchers and catchers reported to the Jupiter Academy on Wednesday. Pauley is at camp early along with them as he has to compete for the third base job, but comes into camp with "a little more confidence." "Coming in this year, I feel a lot more ready to just compete early on in spring and really focusing in on those games, treating them just like a real game as much as possible and put good at-bats together and play good defense." Pauley received an extended opportunity at the major league level because Connor Norby was sidelined by various injuries. He will be fighting for the starting third base job as well. Pauley's attention is only on controlling what he can control. "Just come in here and work on the stuff I've been working on the offseason," Pauley said. "Did the work with some of the new hitting and infield coaches, so decided to work with those guys and not put too much pressure or anything on anything. Just go out there, compete, have fun, and continue to work on that stuff." Towards the end of the 2025 season, the Marlins experimented with Pauley by playing him at first base for five games (three starts). "I think I'm athletic enough that I can do that without focusing on those other positions," Pauley said. "I think I can just go over there in a pinch, but I think the goal right now is to just focus at third and to get better there." The Marlins' full-squad report date is set for Monday. Principal owner Bruce Sherman and president of baseball operations Peter Bendix will address the local media that morning. View full article

JUPITER, FL—Day two of Miami Marlins spring training from the Jupiter Academy featured Sandy Alcantara and Thomas White taking the mound and facing hitters. Alcantara, who is entering his ninth season with the organization, debuted his new sweeper in a pitch design session. He threw it about nine times. Why such an emphasis on the sweeper when he already has a deep arsenal to work with? "Because I throw hard, and everything I throw is hard," Alcantara said. "So me and (pitching coach Daniel) Moskos had a conversation last year about that. We needed a big break more and more slow, and finally we got it, so hopefully we do a good job throwing it." Following the pitch design, Alcantara went to hitters for feedback and they said the pitch looked "great." Likely to be named the Opening Day starter for the Marlins, Alcantara will first make his way back down to loanDepot park and represent the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic. WBC participants have helped each other ramp up for the tournament by reporting to the Academy early. That includes Venezuela's Javier Sanoja, who faced Alcantara. "Before I took the mound today, I asked Moskos, 'Hey, is Sanoja here?' He said, 'No, but I can get him for you.' So okay, just put him out there. I know he's very aggressive. Maybe he can get an at-bat in the WBC, so let's see what happens." Midway through the at-bat, Moskos yelled "DR 1-0," and Alcantara threw his sweeper, which landed in for a strike. White is the consensus top prospect in the organization and a first-time non-roster invitee to big league camp at age 21. He faced four hitters. The goal for the talented left-hander is to put himself out there and talk to as many guys as he can and soak up information. "Any pitcher," said White when asked if there was anyone specifically he wanted to spend time with. "I also want to talk to some hitters about approach stuff. I threw some live BP's this offseason and Sal Frelick was one of the hitters, and I loved talking to him because he know the zone so well, and his approach is so good that it's good as a pitcher to know what hitters are taking, see if you can outsmart them or use them." White is spring training roommates with Robby Snelling, Fish On First's number three prospect. White describes him as a cheat sheet for his development because the 22-year-old Snelling has "done pretty much everything that I've done a year ahead of me." Making 21 starts across three minor league levels, White had an outstanding 2025 season overall, posting a 2.31 ERA and 2.27 FIP. However, battling through a back issue, his walk rate spiked to 17.6% over his final six starts (compared to 11.6% in all of his previous outings combined). "I just think I wasn't pitching like myself," White said. "My mechanics weren't really where I wanted them to be, not staying through the ball. It made the sweeper really good, but everything else—and especially the command—was affected a little bit." During the offseason, White made mechanical adjustments, increasing his stride length. In limited Triple-A action last September, he averaged only six feet of extension, but currently, he is around 6.8 feet and has maxed out at 7.1 feet. The key now for White in that aspect is consistency. Additional Notes - Manager Clayton McCullough said that Braxton Garrett touched 95 mph in his live BP session on Wednesday. "Yesterday was to try to mimic a little bit more of the first time of getting loose, sitting down and then go out there and kind of simulate what it would feel like to start a game," McCullough said. - On Monday, Andrew Nardi threw a pitch design, two sets of 15 pitches. "Sat 91 mph which is great for me, especially in a bullpen," said Nardi. "I sat down for five minutes and came back out. Was a little stiff, but kind of what everybody was expecting. Haven't done that in over a year." The next step for Nardi is to throw live BP at some point next week. - In addition to Alcantara and White, the following players threw pitch designs on Thursday: Janson Junk, Ryan Gusto, Robby Snelling, Lake Bachar, Tyler Zuber, Josh Simpson, Adam Mazur, Justin King, Karson Milbrandt and Garrett Acton. - Still no word from McCullough regarding which pitcher will start the spring opener on February 21. View full article

Top-ranked Marlins prospect left-hander Thomas White speaks with the media about learning from big leaguers in camp and the mechanical adjustments he's made entering 2026. View full video

Fish On First shows you the dramatic transformation to the Marlins' side of the Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium complex entering the 2026 season. View full video