Kevin Barral

Fish Unfiltered—Episode #69 As he prepares to pack up his life and drive down to South Florida, new Miami Marlins radio play-by-play announcer Jack McMullen sits down with Kevin Barral and Isaac Azout to discuss his new position and all of the experiences that led up to it. "Lot of people say, 'a dream come true' about things that they really wanted, but may not have been an actual dream," McMullen says. "For this dream opportunity to come true with the Miami Marlins at this stage is actually a dream come true, so I couldn't be more excited." Find Fish Unfiltered 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 The Offishial Show, Swimming Upstream, Big Fish Small Pod and more. McMullen will have a wide variety of broadcast partners in 2025, including Rod Allen, Craig Minervini, Jeff Nelson, AJ Ramos, Kelly Saco and Gaby Sanchez. As announced by the Marlins on Thursday, FOX Sports 940 AM Miami will broadcast audio from 15 of their 30 spring training games, while an additional 12 games, including Spring Breakout, can be found exclusively on the MLB app. McMullen tells Fish On First that he expects to arrive in Jupiter on Monday. Follow Jack (@jack_mcmullen11), Kevin (@kevin_barral), Isaac (@IsaacAzout) and Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) on Twitter. Join the Marlins Discord server! Complete Miami Marlins coverage here at FishOnFirst.com. View full article

During Thursday's spring training press briefing, Miami Marlins manager Clayton McCullough made it official: Sandy Alcantara will be his Opening Day starter. It's the fifth time in Alcantara's career that he has been on the mound for the club's season opener, which is an all-time Marlins record. View full video

As expected, the Miami Marlins will have their ace take the mound on March 27 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. JUPITER, FL—After missing all of 2024 while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, Sandy Alcantara is back in a familiar role. The Miami Marlins named him their Opening Day starter on Thursday. It will be the fifth time that Alcantara has started a Marlins season opener, which extends his franchise record. "Sandy was excited," said manager Clayton McCullough after sharing the news with the media. "Its been a long journey after coming back last year. He was really excited with a smile on his face and to get that news. Organizationally, we are very excited and the fanbase of Miami will be excited to see Sandy take the hill for us Opening Day." One of McCullough's first managerial decisions could be the easiest one he will ever have to make. Alcantara was unanimously voted the 2022 National League Cy Young Award winner. Despite an inconsistent 2023 season, he was still on pace to surpass 200 innings for the third straight year. The veteran right-hander previously made four consecutive Opening Day starts from 2020-2023 (the Marlins had a 1-3 record in those games). With Eury Pérez continuing to rehab from his own Tommy John, Jesús Luzardo traded to the Philadelphia Phillies during the offseason and newly signed starter Cal Quantrill still needing to re-establish himself as a reliable arm, there weren't other strong alternatives. "It wasn't that tough," said McCullough. "I think Sandy was an easy one for us. Very happy for him for all the hard work he's put in and now be able to get himself back in position for that." The Marlins will host the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday, March 27 at 4:10 p.m. Although the Pirates have yet to announce their Opening Day starter, the decision for manager Derek Shelton should be obvious: reigning National League Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes. "That's a nice potential Opening Day matchup," McCullough said. "We'll bet on our guy, but for baseball, you would like to have your better players, your star players back out there, which is good for the game and certainly good for our fans." View full article

The day after signing with the Miami Marlins, right-hander Cal Quantrill addresses the media about how the deal came together and what he's looking to accomplish in 2025. View full video

Marlins outfield prospect Dillon Head suffered a season-ending hip injury almost immediately after being traded to Miami in 2024. Now fully healthy entering spring training, Head speaks to Fish On First about the transition. View full video

It took until mid-February, but the Miami Marlins finally made a major league free agent signing, bringing in right-hander Cal Quantrill (1 YR/$3.5M). President of baseball operations Peter Bendix addressed the media about it in Jupiter and took additional questions on Sandy Alcantara, Ronny Henriquez and Xzavion Curry. View full video

It took until the very end of the offseason, but Marlins have officially signed their first free agent to a major league deal. JUPITER, FL—Starting rotation depth was a big question mark for the Miami Marlins entering 2025 spring training. Just as their first pitchers and catchers workout wrapped up on Wednesday, ESPN's Alden Gonzalez broke the news that they have signed veteran pitcher Cal Quantrill. SportsGrid's Craig Mish reports that it is a one-year deal worth $3.5 million and Quantrill will be reporting to Jupiter on Thursday. Incentives could boost the value to $4 million, according to FanSided's Robert Murray. "We've had discussions with a lot of players over the entire winter," said Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix. "We were able to make this come together now in a way that works for us and for Cal and we are very excited to add him to the team." Quantrill, 30, was most recently with the Colorado Rockies where he posted a 4.98 ERA, 5.32 FIP, 6.7 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 through 148 ⅓ innings pitched. His best month came in May when he posted a 1.71 ERA through five starts, but Quantrill fell off after that. He also missed a few weeks due to right triceps inflammation. The Marlins needed an innings-eater and they certainly got one. Quantrill has averaged 146 innings per season since 2021, including a career-high 186 ⅓ innings in 2022 with the Cleveland Guardians. "I think that he's demonstrated that he can do that," said Bendix. "That's a rare skill. It's hard to find, especially these days, and it's something that's gonna be really helpful for us." The Rockies non-tendered Quantrill in November rather than pay him a projected $9 million in what would have been his final year of arbitration eligibility. The Marlins wind up getting the Canadian righty for a fraction of that amount, though he's still the second-highest paid pitcher on their roster behind only Sandy Alcantara. Quantrill is also second to Alcantara in terms of MLB service time (five years and 132 days). "He brings a lot of just proven ability to go out there and pitch every fifth day and get good results," added Bendix. "He's been very successful in his career, and he's somebody that we think is going to really slide well into our rotation." Even when Quantrill has been successful in the past, he has pitched to contact (career 17.5 K%). The Marlins will have to play solid defense to get the best out of him in 2025. He'll be looking to improve his sinker, which posted a minus-16 run value last season, per Baseball Savant. Like Griffin Conine and Ryan Weathers, Quantrill is the son of a former Marlin. At the end of a 14-year MLB career, his dad, Paul Quantrill, pitched six games for the 2005 team. Conine and Weathers have adopted their dads' old numbers this season, but Cal will wear No. 40 (Paul wore No. 48). Quantrill should be a lock for the Marlins season-opening rotation along with Alcantara, Weathers and Edward Cabrera. That leaves Max Meyer and Valente Bellozo as the primary candidates for the final spot with minor leaguers Adam Mazur and Robby Snelling also in the mix if injuries occur. As the corresponding move to make Quantrill's signing official, the Marlins placed Braxton Garrett (left elbow UCL surgery) on the 60-day IL. Garrett is expected to miss the entire 2025 season. View full article

Clayton McCullough explains his club's new approach to preparing pitchers for the season, plus more observations from day one of 2025 Marlins camp. JUPITER, FL—First-year Miami Marlins manager Clayton McCullough and his ballclub got it going on Wednesday with pitchers and catchers officially reporting to Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. "The energy and the vibes around here for those who have been coming to the complex and working out the last few weeks has been great," McCullough said. "There's a ton of optimism within that clubhouse." One difference this first day was that bullpens weren't in the usual spot. Instead, McCullough and his staff threw the pitchers into the fire to face live hitters. The decision was made with the input of Marlins player development. "It's the same practice as they would've gotten in the bullpen," McCullough said. "Like they have their focus on what they're trying to accomplish in that setting, just in a different environment with some hitters in the box. You hope that makes it a little bit more game like, more representative of the environment they'll be in the game...It just provides a better opportunity for both our pitchers and hitters to train. The pitchers are going to have a set directive of what they're trying to accomplish in that setting, no different than they would if they were throwing a normal bullpen. It's just going to be just constructed in a slightly different manner." "I think that was a great idea," Sandy Alcantara told the media. "It came from our pitching coach (Daniel Moskos) and we are doing something different this year to be more aggressive with our command." Alcantara threw 21 pitches on Wednesday. Having spent the past year rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, staying healthy is understandably Alcantara's goal. "Just go out there, give my 100% and go deep into games." One message that Moskos gave Alcantara was to "go easy." For someone like Alcantara, a competitor, that's hard for him to do. "When you have a batter in there your adrenaline goes up and everybody changes, so today was only half of me because I am trying to control it." Valente Bellozo, Adam Mazur, Robby Snelling and Lake Bachar also threw live BP on Wednesday. Another name that stood out despite not throwing was Max Meyer who is coming off a season where he posted a 5.68 ERA and 5.90 FIP through 57 innings. Meyer added a sweeper and sinker to his arsenal, which already included a fastball, slider and changeup. "Very excited for Max," said McCullough. "He's won our pitching staff over throughout this offseason. As they began their communication with him and laid out some areas of development for Max, they were very excited about how open he was to that, and not only being open to it, but also the way he showed some real signs and improvements. I think we're all confident that we'll see a better version of Max Meyer than what we saw last year." All pitchers and catchers except for recently claimed Ronny Henriquez have reported to Jupiter, Florida. He is expected to arrive on Thursday along with the Marlins' brand new free agent signing, Cal Quantrill. “He brings a lot of just proven ability to go out there and pitch every fifth day and get good results,” said Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix about Quantrill. “He's been very successful in his career, and he's somebody that we think is going to really slide well into our rotation.” Injury-wise, the only player that is a bit behind is left-handed reliever Andrew Nardi, who is dealing with lower back inflammation. "He's just going to be behind the rest of the group right now," McCullough told the media. Position players already present in camp include Deyvison De Los Santos, Derek Hill, Griffin Conine and Connor Norby. Andrew Salas, who is 16, is in early minor league camp. Many other minor leaguers, including PJ Morlando, Dillon Head and Starlyn Caba, are also here early. The Marlins hired former reliever Chi Chi González to be a bullpen catcher. González made three appearances for the team in 2023. FULL 2025 SPRING TRAINING JOURNAL View full article

New Miami Marlins manager Clayton McCullough addresses the media prior to the club's first official pitchers & catchers workout of spring training. View full video

Reporting early to spring training, Marlins outfield prospect Victor Mesa Jr. speaks to Fish On First about his recovery from a 2024 injury and his determination to be a big piece of the team's future. View full video

After spending a few weeks in the major leagues last season, Eric Wagaman hopes to have a larger role with his new organization. MIAMI, FL—As the MLB offseason wraps up, the Miami Marlins are one of three teams who have yet to sign a free agent to a major league deal. That doesn't mean there aren't new players in the organization. On December 20, the Miami Marlins signed infielder Eric Wagaman to a split contract—he is on the 40-man roster, but still needs to fight for an active roster spot. If Wagaman makes the big league team, he will earn a salary of $770k, which is slightly above the standard MLB minimum of $760k. If optioned to the minors, his salary will be $200k. Wagaman, 27, was selected by the New York Yankees in the 13th round of the 2017 MLB Draft. After spending six seasons with the Yankees organization, he was picked by the Los Angeles Angels in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 Draft. Between Double-A and Triple-A, he slashed .274/.339/.469/.808 with 17 home runs, 60 RBI and a 129 wRC+. That led to a brief taste of the majors where he slashed .250/.270/.403/.673 with two home runs, 10 RBI and an 86 wRC+ through 18 games played. After his stint in Anaheim, Wagaman was DFA'd and signed by the Marlins in free agency. "Hopefully there is some opportunity here," said Wagaman about Miami. "That's not really my call. All I can do is go out there and perform, whether it's here or just be ready to come up here and help this team win. I am definitely looking forward to getting to know the coaching staff a little more and all the players. It should be an exciting time." Wagaman made changes to his swing this offseason in order to find more consistency at the plate. "It was kinda hard during the middle of the season," Wagaman said. "I was having success, but then the Angels definitely mentioned it, but it was something already in my head. It was nothing really major, just kind of not getting stuck and stuff." Defensively, the California native has played primarily first base in the minors, but when called up to the majors, he made all 17 of his starts at third base. He began feeling "a lot more comfortable" at the hot corner during the last two games of the season. He's also able to play the corner outfield spots if necessary. Wagaman could be valuable to the Marlins because of his ability to hit left-handed pitching well. In the minor leagues, he had a 1.036 OPS in 114 plate appearances. In a much smaller sample with the big league club, he only had 18 plate appearances, posting a .222 OPS. Aside from the Chicago White Sox, the Marlins were MLB's worst offense in 2024 against lefties. Wagaman's fit on the Marlins Opening Day roster will depend on how well he hits this spring and how much the club believes in his defensive versatility. The first full-squad workout is set to take place on February 17. View full article

During Marlins FanFest, the team unveiled the four members of their inaugural 2025 Hall of Fame class: Jeff Conine, Luis Castillo, Jim Leyland and Jack McKeon. Who should go in next year? View full video