Kevin Barral

For the fourth time this season, the Marlins surrendered double-digit runs. MIAMI, FL—For the fourth time this season, the Miami Marlins have surrendered double-digit runs, falling to the Arizona Diamondbacks by a final score of 10-4. Starting pitcher Connor Gillispie struggled on Tuesday, going five innings, allowing eight runs off of eight hits (two home runs), walking two and striking out six. The Diamondbacks put up four runs in the top of the second inning. Corbin Carroll drove in the first run of the game on an RBI double and shortstop Geraldo Perdomo took Gillispie deep for a three-run shot to the left field second deck. Former Marlins prospect Josh Naylor hit his second home run of the season in the third inning, extending the Diamondbacks lead, 5-1. Gillispie would go on to retire nine in a row until the top of the sixth inning when he surrendered back-to-back base hits to Lourdes Gurriel and Eugenio Suárez. Catcher Gabriel Moreno drove in Gurriel on an RBI single, putting the Diamondbacks up 6-1 when Marlins manager Clayton McCullough took the righty out. "Little bit of a mixed bag," said manager Clayton McCullough. "I think he looked at probably the one mistake with Perdomo, just didn't get a cutter where he was hoping to get it with two outs. Some traffic on second and he gives up the home run. Then I thought he really settled in well and threw the ball very nicely into the sixth. He may have wanted a pitch or two back." McCullough deployed George Soriano out of the Marlins bullpen and after former Marlin Garrett Hampson reached first on a fielder's choice, Corbin Carroll took Soriano deep for his third career grand slam, essentially putting the nail in the coffin as the Diamondbacks increased their lead to 10-1. Jesús Sánchez, who made his season debut, went 1-for-4 with a walk while starting in center field. " I thought he looked great," said McCullough. "Bat speed was there, hard contact the majority of his plate appearances. I thought he tracked the ball really well. Last at-bat, he got a walk there against the lefty, which was a good sign." Veteran right-hander Merrill Kelly entered the night with.a 7.20 ERA, but enjoyed his best start of the season in Miami. He struck out nine over six innings with only one run allowed. The Marlins made some noise in the bottom of the seventh inning, scoring two runs to make it a 10-3 game, but with the bases loaded, Eric Wagaman struck out swinging. In the ninth, Griffin Conine crushed a 117.4 mph double, easily the hardest hit of his MLB career. He came around to score on a Graham Pauley sac fly. The Marlins fell to 8-8 on the season. They will look to get back over .500 on Wednesday as Max Meyer will make his fourth start of the season at 6:40 pm. View full article

Miami Marlins outfielder Jesús Sánchez speaks with the media at loanDepot park about completing his recovery from an oblique strain and returning to a team with a winning record. View full video

Alderman is tapping into his plus power more consistently so far this season with the help of mechanical changes. Prior to the Double-A season beginning, Miami Marlins outfield prospect Kemp Alderman told reporters that he wanted to have a 20/20 season (20 home runs, 20 stolen bases). That seemed to be an unlikely goal for a player who had only nine homers and nine steals over the previous two minor league seasons combined. Through nine games, Alderman is well ahead of that pace, slashing .375/.432/.750/1.182 with three home runs, 11 RBI and five stolen bases. That earned him a selection to MLB Pipeline's Prospect Team of the Week. Miami's second-round draft pick in 2023, Alderman missed nearly half of the 2024 season due to a hand injury. He reached the AA level for the first time in September, but slashed .174/.174/.348/.522 with one home run and three RBI through six games played. Fish On First spoke to Alderman about his limited experience in Pensacola and he said it "opened my eyes a lot." "As you go up in the levels, you learn that you're not just up there swinging—you have to have a plan," said Alderman. "Just having my plan, my approach, sticking to it, and if it works, it works and if it doesn't, we'll go from there." To make up for lost time, Alderman went to the Arizona Fall League. His plus power was on display during a phenomenal nine-game stretch where he slashed .306/.375/.833/1.208 with six home runs and eight RBI. "It's a great experience," said Alderman. "Just getting to play with different guys, different orgs and see what they do, see what worked for them. Just playing against some really great competition, facing good arms...It was probably the most fun I've ever had playing the game of baseball, to be honest." Alderman lost some weight entering 2025 to prove himself as "a big guy who can run," but another development has been his all-around improvement as a hitter. Carrying over from the AFL, the 22-year-old has switched to a new batting stance, holding his hands higher and his bat at a more horizontal angle. The clip below shows Alderman's September 2024 stance on the left and his current stance on the right. Kemp Alderman split screen.mp4 In these photos, you can more clearly see that his hands were previously at the letters as the pitcher began their delivery. They are now above his shoulders. Swinging down at the ball has understandably caused his groundball percentage to spike up (from 49.0% to 58.3%), but the production doesn't lie. He is hitting for average and getting on base a lot more. Alderman is a strong candidate to be added to the FOF Top 30 list following our next update. View full article

For the first time since 2013, Brantly is catching for the Miami Marlins after bouncing around the league for more than a decade. MIAMI, FL—Rob Brantly is back on the Miami Marlins active roster for the first time since September 28, 2013. Back then, Mike Redmond was a rookie manager and the late José Fernández was the NL Rookie of the Year, the Miami Heat were reigning NBA champions and Barack Obama had just begun his second presidential term. A lot has changed. On Friday, the Marlins selected Brantly from Triple-A Jacksonville when Nick Fortes was placed on the injured list due to an oblique strain. He'll be making his 2025 season debut on Sunday against the Washington Nationals. "Getting activated is always exciting," Brantly told Fish On First. "The chance to be here on the taxi squad from the get-go, we've been preparing for this. I'm excited to put in the work, or the work that I've been putting in, go out there and put it to the test. I feel prepared and ready to go." The Marlins originally acquired Brantly in 2012 as a prospect in the package that sent pitcher Aníbal Sánchez and Omar Infante to the Detroit Tigers. He made his MLB debut in Miami a few weeks later and was the team's primary catcher through the first half of the 2013 season. In 98 total games, Brantly slashed .235/.298/.325/.623 with four home runs, 26 RBI and a 71 OPS+. cv_24250149_1200K.mp4 Brantly served as Triple-A depth in 2014. Following that season, the Marlins placed Brantly on waivers and he was claimed by the Chicago White Sox. Since his time in Miami, the backstop has played in only 39 MLB games, but spent time with nine different organizations. "The evolution of what catching was back then to what it is now is vastly different," said Brantly. "It's been a fun process along the way, getting a chance to learn from so many different coaching minds and all the different organizations I've been with. It's been an exciting journey. It's really helped me grow defensively, and like I said, we're here now in 2025 ready to put in the work." There has been extreme turnover inside the Marlins organization in between Brantly's stints, but he still has some familiarity with his surroundings and colleagues. "It really has felt like home, especially being back in loanDepot park and being in this atmosphere," said Brantly. "The unique part for me especially with all the new surrounding staff and coaching staff, a lot of the guys, I've actually had a chance to work with since I've been here...I've actually played with a lot of these coaches in different organizations. It's cool to see that Miami has got the best pieces of all those organizations here under one roof." Milene Brantly (@milenebrantly) • Instagram reel WWW.INSTAGRAM.COM 189 likes, 7 comments - milenebrantly on April 8, 2025: "Wild what 12 years can do! (it was all good, but the song was just fitting) 😘". At the age of 35, Brantly's experiences are especially valuable to a Marlins team that is the youngest in baseball. "A lot of lessons learned within that time frame," said Brantly. "For me, it's really helped me grow and if I can help, lend a word to a younger teammate, to maybe help them avoid something that might not be great, or give them an edge. I'm always willing to do that." View full article

The Marlins found another way to win on Saturday despite ace Sandy Alcantara struggling to miss bats. Matt Mervis and Kyle Stowers continue to be pleasant surprises early in 2025. MIAMI, FL—Miami Marlins starting pitcher Sandy Alcantara did not look like himself in his first start since coming off the paternity list. Thankfully, his offense backed him up, scoring a season-high seven runs off of 11 hits. The Marlins defeated the Washington Nationals by a final score of 7-6 with Alcantara earning his second win of the year. Pitching for the first time since April 1, Alcantara went 5 ⅔ innings, allowing four runs off of five hits, walking four and striking out just one. The last time he made a start without recording multiple strikeouts was June 16, 2023 (also against the Nationals). "It's not what I wanted," said Alcantara postgame. "At the end of the day, we won and that's what we are really looking for. It's now about getting better." In the top of the fourth, Alcantara walked Alex Call and after two consecutive base hits, Nathaniel Lowe drew a bases-loaded walk to drive in the first run of the ballgame. Former Marlins first baseman Josh Bell, who hit a home run on Friday, drove in two more runs on a single. The Marlins ace would keep the Nationals offense at bay for the most part until the sixth inning when he surrendered a base hit to Amed Rosario, giving Washington their fourth run of the game and knocking him out. Overall, Alcantara is not working as deep into games as we are used to seeing, averaging just barely over five innings per start so far. In his last season before Tommy John surgery, he went 6.60 innings per start. "I think there were a lot of misses that were just very close," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. "He was really around the zone. There were a lot of close pitches that he just didn't get. I thought they had a pretty good approach and probably trying to see him up some, and probably giving him the bottom." Thankfully, the Marlins offense offered Alcantara plenty of support. In the bottom of the second inning, Matt Mervis hit his fourth home run of the season, giving the Marlins an early 1-0 lead. His fourth home run marks the most on the Marlins and it's just two shy of the MLB lead. In the following inning, Kyle Stowers drove in Graham Pauley with a bases-loaded sac fly and Nationals starter Trevor Williams threw a wild pitch, which brought in Miami's third run. On the first Marlins road trip of the season, Mervis slashed .353/.389/.881/1.271 with three home runs and six RBI. McCullough believes pitches that were previously foul balls are finally going Mervis' way. "Clicked a couple in Atlanta," said McCullough. "That was a big day for him. Get rewarded for good swings and a good approach and took it into New York. I think he's still getting good pitches to fire at. Right now, he's, seeing through the ball really well, he's pulled some, but I think the path is better, kind of through the middle of the field, allowing him a little bit more length and the ability to stay on some of those pitches." Eric Wagaman was hitless in his last 12 at-bats entering the bottom of the fifth inning. On the first pitch, Wagaman ripped a 106.6 mph double to left field to retake the lead, 4-3. Griffin Conine drove in two more for Miami on an RBI double, marking his second multi-hit game of the season. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Kyle Stowers laced an RBI double to center field, driving in the seventh run of the game. That marked Stowers' third multi-hit game of the season. He now has an .828 OPS this season. Quietly, former waiver claim Ronny Henriquez has been one of the Marlins' best relievers. Through five appearances, Henriquez has posted a 1.23 ERA, striking out nine against four walks. "We like his ability to spin the ball," said McCullough. "He's got a good fastball that can ride up and in the zone. He can throw multiple innings. You can use him in shorter bursts, and also feel good with him against right or left, so having that neutrality there, having that mix that can get both sides out." Like many Marlins pitchers, Henriquez recently added a sweeper to his arsenal. Thus far, he's thrown it 24.8% of the time. On Saturday, it had the highest usage rate and generated two whiffs, using it to strike out Amed Rosario swinging. "It was added during spring training by our pitching coaches," said Henriquez through translator Luis Dorante Jr. "At first, it was very difficult to maintain control/command of the of the pitch because I didn't know exactly the effect and movement it was going to have. Now I see that it's very effective and I'm not gonna stop using it." OTdXb2dfWGw0TUFRPT1fQVFjQUJWUUVWZ0VBRGxGUlZnQUhWd0pXQUFCVEFGSUFVRlFIQTFJSFZBVmNCUVJT.mp4 With the win, the Marlins are now at an even 7-7 on the season and will search for their second series win in Sunday's rubber match. Cal Quantrill will take the mound for Miami while MacKenzie Gore will try to continue his dominant start to the season. View full article

One of the few homegrown players on the current Marlins roster, Sanoja credits Nelson Prada for building up his confidence early in his career and opening the door for him to play winter ball in his native Venezuela. MIAMI, FL—The Miami Marlins signed utility man Javier Sanoja out of Venezuela for only $90,000. That small investment is already paying off. Sanoja became the youngest player in more than a decade to make the Marlins Opening Day roster. Through 24 career games in the major leagues, he has already contributed at six different positions. Fellow Venezuelan Nelson Prada has been by Sanoja's side for the majority of his professional career. "That's always really good when you see those guys make it to the big leagues," said Prada. "That is what we're here for. We want those guys to make it. We put our best effort to try to give our our thoughts, our experience, our knowledge to this group. For me, when I talk to these guys and they made it, we don't really need to wait for nothing else than to be thankful because we put our lives on the field just to try to help guys reach their dreams." Prada and Sanoja have a "really close" relationship, which goes back to when Sanoja was an 18-year-old in the Dominican Summer League. Prada also managed him at Low-A Jupiter and coached him with Cardenales de Lara of the Venezuelan Winter League. "Nelson (Prada) is someone who has been very helpful in my career," said Sanoja in Spanish. "Especially when I began my professional career, he was my manager and gave me so much confidence and I really think that loosened me up. He helped me develop and allowed me to feel more comfortable. We have great communication and chemistry and I really appreciate him for that." When Sanoja debuted with Lara in 2022, he was one of the youngest players in the league. He noted to Fish On First that his time in Venezuela really accelerated his development and "has played a fundamental part" in his career. "After my first professional season, he asked me if I was interested in playing for the Cardenales," said Sanoja. "After talking to my family, they agreed that I should go play and I was able to sign with them. They were someone else who gave me that confidence to develop more." "It's a lot of good competition," said Prada. "It's like a Triple-A/big league type of league. The environment of 10k-15k people on the stands, big stadiums. It's a really a good experience." Prada just spent his 32nd season with Lara. He served as their bench coach on the way to a 2024-25 LVBP championship and Caribbean Series berth. At the Marlins' request, Sanoja did not participate this winter, but Prada had Luis Palacios on the roster, who he now manages with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Going into Saturday, Sanoja finds himself on a three-game hit streak. Overall, he is slashing .273/.333/.273/.606. The Marlins are holding their annual Venezuelan heritage celebration as Sandy Alcantara takes the mound in game two of their series against the Washington Nationals. View full article

Two of the four affiliated won on Tuesday, but certain players stood out through all levels. Here's a summary of what happened in the Miami Marlins farm system on Tuesday, April 8. Final Scores Triple-A Jacksonville won, 3-0 | box score Double-A Pensacola won, 5-4 | box score High-A Beloit lost, 3-2 | box score Low-A Jupiter lost, 19-5 | box score Starting Pitching Lines Adam Mazur (AAA): 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 76 NP Luis Palacios (AA): 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO, 72 NP Emmett Olson (A+): 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, 24 NP Juan De La Cruz (A): 1.1 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 5 BB, 1 SO, 53 NP Pitcher Notes Adam Mazur was by far the best starter on Tuesday night. His slider, which is his best pitch, generated eight whiffs, followed by his fastball which averaged 93.7 mph, topping out at 95.9 mph. Fish On First's #11 prospect generated 12 whiffs in total and earned the win for the Jumbo Shrimp. One of the longest-tenured players in the Marlins organization, left-hander Luis Palacios continues to attack the strike zone. It was relievers Nigel Belgrave and Josh Ekness who stole the show. In one inning of work, Belgrave struck out the side, earning him the win. As for Ekness, he earned himself the save, striking four in 1 ⅔ innings pitched. Emmett Olson kept the opposition hitless, but was limited to only two innings. FOF will provide an update as soon as possible regarding why he exited so early. Will Schomberg, who the Marlins acquired from the Seattle Mariners in the JT Chargois trade, stepped in and gave the Sky Carp three innings of work, allowing one run off of one hit, walking one and striking out six. Every member of the Jupiter pitching staff had a hard time throwing strikes as they surrendered 22 walks on the night. Starter Juan De La Cruz walked five, two of the relievers both walked four and three other relievers each walked three. Position Player Notes First baseman Deyvison De Los Santos had a two-RBI game despite striking out two times. He has now struck out 18 times in nine games played thus far, tied for the highest total in the Marlins org. He's slashing .263/.317/.289/.606 with five RBI. He's yet to hit a home run. De Los Santos had the second hardest-hit ball (111.3 mph) of the night, just behind his teammate Agustín Ramírez (111.8 mph). De Los Santos and Maximo Acosta were the only players with a multi-hit game for the Jumbo Shrimp. Outfielder Jakob Marsee, who is ranked 24th on our prospect list, has ten stolen bases this season. On Tuesday, he went 1-3 with a walk, strikeout and stole second and third base. He's now slashing .172/.400/.241/.641 with three RBI through nine games. After a slow first series, Joe Mack had himself a three-hit game, with one of those as his first home run of the 2025 season. He finished the night going 3-2 with a home run, three RBI and scored two runs. He's FOF's #8 prospect. Cody Morissette and Nathan Martorella drove in runs for the Wahoos in their win over Montgomery, putting them at 4-0 on the season, the only undefeated Marlins affiliate. It was a rough day for the Beloit lineup as they struck out 11 times, but did work seven walks. The only players who recorded base hits were Wilfredo Lara, Ryan Ignoffo, Brock Vradenburg and Emaarion Boyd. Even on a night where they outhit their opponent, they lost. By far the most impressive stat line in Tuesday's slate belongs to FOF's #2 prospect Starlyn Caba who worked five walks. Caba, who well known for his plate discipline has walked nine times this season and only struck out twice. He's currently sporting a .500 on base percentage. Outfielder Dillon Head extended his hit streak to four games and is now slashing .333/.316/.556/.872 with three RBI and stolen bases this season. The only downside thus far has been he's struck out five times and has yet to work a walk. Andrés Valor and Carter Johnson both knocked in a pair of runs for the Hammerheads late in the game as they were blown out by a final score of 19-3. View full article

Juan Soto gave the New York Mets an early lead on Monday and the Marlins offense had no response. For the second time on this road trip, the Miami Marlins wasted a strong performance by their pitching staff. The Marlins offense didn't contribute any runs on a cold Monday night in Queens as the New York Mets defeated the Fish by a final score of 2-0. Earlier in the day, the Marlins placed ace Sandy Alcantara on the paternity list and recalled Valente Bellozo to make his second career start against the Mets. Bellozo entered the ballgame having pitched two innings on Friday with Triple-A Jacksonville, but gave the Marlins 3 ⅔ innings of work, allowing one run off of five hits, walking two and striking out two. In the bottom of the third inning, Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor led off with a bunt single. The Mets' $765 million man, Juan Soto, hit an RBI double to center field, driving in Lindor. That marked Soto's fourth double and RBI of the season. The Mets would never look back from there. After three relievers kept the Mets scoreless, George Soriano surrendered an RBI single to Tyrone Taylor, giving the Mets a two-run cushion in the bottom of the eighth inning. That marked the seventh earned run that Soriano has allowed this season, bumping his ERA up to 9.00 through five appearances. In his last outing against the Marlins, Mets starter Kodai Senga went five innings, allowing four runs (two earned) off of three hits (one home run), but still struck out eight. On Monday, Senga tossed five shutout innings, allowed five hits and struck out four. The Mets bullpen, comprised of Danny Young, José Buttó and former Marlin Ryne Stanek, shut down the Marlins, limiting them to two hits. The Marlins offense recorded no extra-base hits and only had runners in scoring position three separate times, in the first, third and fourth innings. Xavier Edwards was the lone Marlin with a multi-hit game and was in scoring position two of the three times. The Marlins will likely option Bellozo to AAA-Jacksonville before their weekend series against the Washington Nationals. Alcantara is expected back by then and so is injured starter Edward Cabrera, who is traveling with the team after making two rehab starts last week. With the loss, the Marlins are at an even 5-5 on the season and can potentially fall below .500 for the first time this season on Tuesday. Connor Gillispie will toe the rubber against Clay Holmes. These two faced off against each other in Miami on April 2. First pitch was originally scheduled for 7:10 pm, but has been moved up to 4:10 pm due to cold weather. View full article

Max Meyer set a career high in strikeouts on Friday night, but was overshadowed by Braves starter Spencer Schwellenbach, who carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning and did not allow a run. Max Meyer was good, but Spencer Schwellenbach was great. The Atlanta Braves are winless no more after taking a lead in the bottom of the third inning of their home opener and never looking back as they defeated the Miami Marlins by a final score of 10-0. It marked the first time that Miami has been shut out in 2025. On the bright side, Meyer was the first Marlins starter this season to complete six innings of work. Outside of a three-run third inning, Meyer settled in and would finish posting a career-high eight strikeouts, all of them swinging. Five of his eight strikeouts came on the slider, which also generated eight whiffs. Meyer's four-seam fastball averaged 95.1 mph, topping out at 96.4 mph. His slider (33%) and four-seam (25%) were his most-used pitches. Meyer's sweeper and sinker, the two new pitches added to his arsenal, had the lowest usage rates on Friday. Four of the eight hits surrendered by Meyer came in the third. Designated hitter Marcell Ozuna put the Braves on the scoreboard with a two-run double. Austin Riley knocked in the third run on an RBI single. Meyer would go on to retire eight straight before hitting Riley with a pitch (or did he?) in the bottom of the fifth inning. Meanwhile, Spencer Schwellenbach had himself a career night, throwing eight shutout innings, allowing two hits, no walks and striking out ten, one shy of a career high. The first Marlins hit off of the Braves righty came in the bottom of the fifth inning on a Liam Hicks single. Out of 99 pitches, Schwellenbach threw 73 of them for strikes. His four-seam fastball was unstoppable, generating 11 whiffs. In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Braves tacked on two more runs off of George Soriano. Marcell Ozuna and Matt Olson went back-to-back for their first home runs of the season. Luarbert Arias entered the game for the Marlins in the inning that followed, but was unable to complete the inning, recording one out and allowing five earned runs. The Marlins deployed their first position player pitcher this season, Javier Sanoja. Through their first seven games (all losses), the Braves had maxed out at five runs. They doubled that in this series opener. They also doubled their previous season high with 16 hits. With the loss, the Marlins are now 4-4 on the season. Cal Quantrill will take the mound on Saturday for Miami as he looks to rebound after a rough debut outing, in which he allowed six runs against the New York Mets. Braves prospect AJ Smith-Shawver will make his second start of the season. First pitch is at 7:15 pm. View full article

Led by their pitching staff, the Blue Wahoos are seeking their third postseason appearance since becoming a Miami Marlins affiliate. The Pensacola Blue Wahoos are back in action on Friday and they will be looking a lot different this season. Their roster to begin the 2025 season features several of the most talented pitchers in the Miami Marlins organization. Six total members of Fish On First's Top 30 prospects list will be at the Double-A level. The following article includes player quotes from the team's annual Media Day, which was held earlier in the week. Pitching Robby Snelling (FOF #6 prospect) will be the Wahoos Opening Day starter, but he didn't particularly see himself beginning the season at AA, especially after reaching Triple-A last September and earning himself an invite to big league spring training. "I thought that this year I'd potentially be starting up there with how I threw last year in that one start," said Snelling. "I also understand that there's steps that you have to take to get up there. Nothing changes for me—I'm going to come here and do my thing. There's a plan for everything, so excited to see how this year goes." In his stint with the Wahoos, Snelling made seven starts, posting a 4.00 ERA, 2.76 FIP, 10.25 K/9 and 2.75 BB/9. Overall, it was a rough season for Snelling who was with the Padres, but dealt to the Marlins as one of four prospects in the Tanner Scott/Bryan Hoeing trade. Someone who he looked up to during his Pensacola stint was pitching coach and former Phillies pitcher Jerad Eickhoff. "He's young, like he can really sympathize with the guys," Snelling said. "He's not far removed from baseball. People forget he literally played three years ago. It's like he understands the new wave the game is going towards. He understands how guys are feeling. He played on both sides of having the union and not having the union. He knows how hard it was and the difficulties in the game now." Joining Snelling on this pitching staff will be fellow left-hander Dax Fulton (FOF #14), who is returning from his second Tommy John surgery and will be repeating the AA level to kick things off. The last time Fulton threw in a regular season game was in May 2023. Fulton was also with the Marlins on the big league side this spring and in two appearances, he was perfect, striking out two. This time, it was a much better camp than what Fulton had back in 2023, just months prior to his injury. "Just went up there to continue to gain more experience from those guys," said Fulton. "Most importantly, just prove that I'm healthy, prove that I'm ready to throw the ball again and that I'm going to go out there and do my best. They were great to me. I felt like I had a really good camp, a lot better than I did the first time. I learned a lot from that first experience and the biggest thing for me is just distancing myself from the injury, getting back to the normalcy of pitching every five/six days and getting back to normal." Jacob Miller (FOF #26) enters 2025 with changes to his arsenal. He went from throwing a changeup to now throwing a splitter and going from slider to sweeper. Last season between High-A and AA, Miller posted a 3.85 ERA, 3.82 FIP, 7.30 K/9 and 2.67 BB/9 through 114 ⅔ innings pitched. This spring, it was about getting the feel of his new pitches. "Every time I pick up the ball—especially since the splitter is so new, only had it a month—I feel like I get a little bit more feel for it," said Miller. "Hopefully that'll help get a little bit more punch and if not still produce weak contact, to what it's been so far. It gets some uncomfortable takes because it's just a different look with such low spin and has a little knuckle on it. Sometimes it'll cut, sometimes it'll fade on side. Just having that, even if a pitcher is sitting on that offspeed, it's different every time. You're not going to be able to consistently square it up. Just having all that in the back of my head, just knowing I have the confidence in my stuff will be really good." Position Players The most notable position player who will suit up for the Wahoos this season is catcher Joe Mack. He's coming off a season between High-A and AA where he hit .252/.338/.468/.807 with 24 home runs, 78 RBI and posted a 137 wRC+. He was the winner of the 2024 Minor League Gold Glove as well. Although Mack could've easily started the season at AAA, the organization is having him repeat the level to get consistent playing time. "I've been seeing him with a good attitude," said first-year manager Nelson Prada. "I don't want to put anything on his mind that he already got rid of. During spring training when he came to our group, he was fine. I think he understand how the game is, having somebody like Agustín (Ramírez) in front of him, I'm sure he knows Agustín is going to make it to the big leagues at some point this year, and he's going to in AAA." Mack made a strong impression this spring on the big league side, going 6-for-19 with two RBI and two walks. He was reassigned to minor league camp on March 11. Someone else to keep in mind is infielder Jared Serna (FOF #10). After reaching the AAA level last season, Serna will be in AA to primarily receive reps at shortstop while also maintaining his defensive versatility. With the Wahoos in 2024, he slashed .266/.343/.390/.732 with two home runs 23 RBI and a 119 wRC+. Serna was one of three players acquired in the trade that sent Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the New York Yankees. Kemp Alderman climbed through two levels last season to reach AA. After a hot start with the Jupiter Hammerheads, posting a 120 wRC+, Alderman was challenged and promoted to High-A where he struggled a bit, but with how aggressive the Marlins were when it came to promotions, Alderman received one last promotion to AA where he also struggled through a six-game sample size (4-23 with 1 HR and 9 K). "As you go up in the levels, you learn that you're not just up there swinging—you have to have a plan," said Alderman. "Just having my plan, my approach, sticking to it, and if it works, it works and if it doesn't, we'll go from there." Alderman was one of the Marlins' representatives in the Arizona Fall League. He broke out, slashing .306/.375/.833/1.208 with six home runs and eight RBI. He called it "probably the most fun I've ever had playing the game of baseball." "Decrease out zone chase," said Alderman when asked about some of his goals for this year. "Just trying to hit pitches I want to hit instead of hitting pitcher's pitches. Knowing my what my plan is and just selling out to that and if it doesn't work, fine." Per an interview with Baseball America, Alderman lost 20 pounds over the offseason, going from 255 lbs to 235. He believes that he's capable of a 20/20 season. "I worked a lot this spring training in the outfield," Alderman continued, "trying to better that and then on the basepaths just trying to be more aggressive, steal some more bags. Last year, coming back from a hand injury, didn't steal as many bags as I want. This year, I want to try to add that to my game, being a big guy who can run." The Wahoos will begin their season on Friday at 7:05 pm. Robby Snelling is taking the mound against the Biloxi Shuckers. Evan Fitterer will pitch in game two and Dax Fulton will go on Sunday. View full article

The Marlins' new field coordinator attracted a huge crowd on Monday to discuss his role in designing the bats that are rapidly gaining popularity across the league. MIAMI, FL—A former physics professor has been one of the most popular names in Major League Baseball during the first week of the 2025 regular season. Miami Marlins field coordinator Aaron Leanhardt, also known as "Lenny" or "El Torpedo," isn't used to showing his face to the world, but his innovative approach to bat design has captured everybody's curiosity. "There's a lot more cameras here today than I'm used to," said Leanhardt on Monday when speaking to the media. "I'm used to walking behind all of this and someone else is standing here. It's definitely been a surreal couple of days." Leanhardt's former team, the New York Yankees, leads the majors with 15 home runs so far this season. Many of them have been hit with customized bats that have unusual proportions, and it turns out Leanhardt was heavily involved in the research and production process. "At the end of the day, it's about the batter, not the bat," said Leanhardt. "It's about the hitters and their hitting coaches, not their hitting implements, so I'm happy to always help those guys get a little bit better, but ultimately it's up to them to put good swings on good pitches and grind it out every day." The torpedo bats being used by the Yankees have a similar length and weight as "normal" bats and follow MLB rules—the different appearance just comes taking some of the wood from the end of the bat and shifting it closer to the player's sweet-spot. Former Marlin Jazz Chisholm Jr., who is off to a hot start with a .417/.500/1.167/1.667 slash line and three homers, described it in a tweet: Per Leanhardt, his conversations with major league and minor league players began leading into the 2023 season. "They were definitely asking me questions and offering design advice and demoing them," said Leanhardt. "It's a feedback group. There's many different makes and models that have gone through this process, some of which never saw the field of play and some of which are hitting a lot of home runs right now." The question that arises with this is why did it take so long for somebody to figure out that changing the traditional bat shape could benefit hitters? "All I can say is that I was one of those smart guys for so long that they grew up swinging those old, weird-looking bats as well," said Leanhardt. "It wasn't until now that maybe anyone really thought about this, myself included. You show up every day, you put the glove on you're given, swing the bat that you're given, you put the spikes on that you're given and you go about your day as best as you can, and every now and then, it takes time to question what you're doing. Couple of years ago, some of the hitters started questioning what they were doing and I just kind of responded to their questions." Leanhardt left the world of academia to begin his baseball journey in 2017, initially coaching in an independent league and at a community college. His time in Minor League Baseball started in 2018 as the New York Yankees rookie ball hitting coach. He wouldn't join their major league staff as an analyst until 2024. This is Leanhardt's first season with the Marlins as field coordinator. He can be seen picking up the phone in the dugout during games when a close play is being considered for a managerial challenge, but his job involves much more than that. "He's kind of the central point," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. "He's there with our group each day, bringing our strength and conditioning, on-field work, hitting, baserunning and what we're going to do on a daily basis. Lenny makes sure that every group is coordinated and synced up and what our work is going to look like from a schedule standpoint, during a homestand, series and then ultimately, in the dugout." rlrgzt_1.mp4 For all Marlins fans wondering if and when these bats will be used in Miami, it's already in the works. Per Leanhardt, expect to see them in action within the next several weeks. "One of the big goals here is to be as innovative and on the leading edge of things as we possibly can be. This is certainly something that we're gonna look to be on the leading edge of. It's just been a quick offseason for everyone, lot of turnover and everything like that, so we're getting ramped up right now with it." View full article