Kevin Barral

With both teams in desperate need of wins, the Citrus Series meant a lot more this time around. Edward Cabrera and the Marlins were unable to deliver in game one of the two-game set as the Rays offense jumped out to an early lead on Tuesday and Tyler Glasnow dominated the Marlins lineup, giving up only two hits. Cabrera was great in his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals. However, after a quick first inning, things got ugly in the second as he gave up three runs off of four hits and didn't strike out anybody. Back-to-back singles got the inning going for the Rays. An RBI single by Josh Lowe with two outs put them on the scoreboard. Catcher Christian Bethancourt worked a walk to keep the rally going and then Cuban All-Star first baseman Yandy Díaz smacked a double that drove in both Manuel Margot and Lowe. Cabrera's outing came to a close after that due to a blister situation that has frequently been an issue throughout his career. He threw only 30 of 53 pitches for strikes (56.6%). "He didn't have an issue with it before the game started," said Miami Marlins manager Skip Schumaker. "Everything felt fine so just kind of blew up a little bit after the first inning into the second inning and and we looked at it and we had to take him out." Miami got on the board in the top of the third. Joey Wendle worked a walk and advanced thanks to a couple of groundouts. Wendle scored on a Tyler Glasnow wild pitch. Glasnow struck out eight and generated 17 swings & misses. He went to his usual fastball/slider combo and also had some good luck on long fly balls that stay in the park. "He's throwing 97 miles an hour at the top of the zone. Consistently throwing strikes, really hard curveball, and the slider I thought was the most effective pitch tonight against us," said Skip Schumaker. "I felt good," said Tyler Glasnow after the game. "I think timing was good. The only thing I had no idea was my curveball, but especially the last inning, it weirdly felt pretty good." The Rays scored their fourth and final run thanks to Brandon Lowe, who hit his 11th homer of the season off of George Soriano. That's the first homer allowed by Soriano in the big leagues. He ended up going 3.1 innings, striking out three. The rookie's ERA is still in good shape at 2.08. To close out the game, the Rays went with right-hander Pete Fairbanks, who shut down the Marlins in order to end the game. The Marlins once again face the Rays at 12:10 with Sandy Alcantara taking the bump for Miami up against Zach Eflin, who is a familiar foe to the Marlins after previously spending many year in Philadelphia. Photo credit: Nicole Moriarity

The Miami Marlins just snapped their eight-game losing streak on Sunday, thanks to a walk-off winner by none other than Luis Arráez. As the deadline looms closer and closer, Miami heads up to St. Petersburg to face the Tampa Bay Rays in what will be part one of their annual "Citrus Series" matchup. Tampa Bay Rays When looking at the Rays lineup, you'll find Randy Arozarena right in the middle. He's slashing .269/.372/.453/.825 with 17 home runs, 62 RBIs and a 137 wRC+. Arozarena has a .328 BABIP and strikes out at a 24.5% rate, but walks at a 11.5% rate. Yandy Díaz just continues to have a great season for the Rays. In 2022, the Cuban first baseman received down-ballot AL MVP votes, but this season, he has improved in every statistical category. Díaz is slashing .317/.401/.505/.905 with 14 home runs, 47 RBIs and a 159 wRC+. If there is a hitter that Miami will have to fear the most, it will be Díaz because he is such a well-rounded hitter. At shortstop, you have former number one prospect Wander Franco, who is slashing .267/.331/.437/.767 with 11 home runs, 47 RBI and a 115 wRC+. Franco leads the team with 28 stolen bases. Despite a 30.4% strikeout percentage, an underrated player on the Rays is DH Luke Raley who is slashing .268/.353/.540/.893 with 15 home runs, 39 RBI and a 150 wRC+. Raley is a prime example of how well the Rays identify overlooked talent. He was acquired from the Dodgers last year in a minor trade and spent most of 2022 in Triple-A before this breakout season. Game One (Tuesday at 6:40 p.m. ET) On the mound for Miami for game one, it'll be Edward Cabrera. He looked great in his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals, coming off the injured list by going five innings, striking out six, giving up one home run, only two hits allowed, but he issued three walks. After a shaky first inning, Cabrera was consistent. Cabrera didn't generate much swing-and-miss action, but still got enough strikeouts and weak contact to be effective. https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-07/18/04290f41-745afc38-d7965917-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_16000K.mp4This will be an interesting test for Edward. He is known for his changeup, but Tampa Bay ranks third in the majors with a .282 batting average against changeups in 2023. Also worth noting, aside from the Cardinals start, his only great performances this season have come against weak opponents (Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics). On the other side, Tyler Glasnow is the starting pitcher for the Rays. This season, the tall righty is sporting a 3.62 ERA, 3.28 FIP, 13.17 K/9 and 2.96 BB/9 through 54.2 IP. Glasnow mainly relies on his fastball, slider and curveball. He would be leading American League starters in strikeout rate if he had enough innings to qualify. In his last start, Glasnow went seven innings, struck out nine and only allowed two earned runs. Opponents are only slashing .198/.246/.372/.618 against him at the Trop. Betting Lines—Game One (via FanDuel) Moneyline: Tampa Bay -210 Spread: -1.5 Tampa Bay (+104) Isaac's Locks—Game One Tyler Glasnow over 8.5 strikeoutsEdward Cabrera over 1.5 walksMiami +1.5Game Two (Wednesday at 12:10 p.m. ET) The theme of Sandy Alcantara's 2023 season has been one inning of disaster, then looking good the rest of the way through. That was once again the case in his last start against the Cardinals, where he gave up four runs in the first inning and followed it with five scoreless frames. The Marlins bullpen has been burnt out lately, so the key for Sandy will be using his pitches efficiently and lasting deep into the game. Betting Line and Isaac's Locks—Game Two Coming soon Ways to watch and listen Bally Sports FloridaBally Sports Sun940 AMMLB.TV

The Miami Marlins have exceeded expectations so far in 2023. However, to sustain this (and to better position themselves for perennial postseason contention), they’ll likely need to acquire help from outside the organization. Leading up to the August 1 MLB trade deadline, Fish On First will profile potentially attainable players who would fit with what the Fish are building. Detroit Tigers right-handed pitcher Michael Lorenzen is one of the best players available as the 2023 trade deadline approaches. Lorenzen is posting a 3.49 ERA, 4.03 FIP, 6.79 K/9 and a 2.32 BB/9 through 100.2 IP. That production got him his first career All-Star selection. Lorenzen has a deep pitch mix—Statcast has credited him with throwing seven different pitch types this season. His five main offerings are a four-seam fastball, slider, changeup, sinker and sweeper. The four-seamer has been his most valuable pitch overall with a .175 batting average against and 31 strikeouts. Compared to the other starting pitchers who we have covered in this article series (Jordan Montgomery and Marcus Stroman), Lorenzen has higher fastball velocity. https://sporty-clips.mlb.com/d9f57b8c-4bf7-4216-9dda-e3c24d0a08cd.mp4 However, Lorenzen is riskier than Montgomery or Stroman. He has already thrown more innings than in any other MLB season since his rookie year of 2015 because his original team, the Cincinnati Reds, used him mainly as a reliever. He is also benefiting from the lowest BABIP of his career. With that being said, Lorenzen has been lights out since the All-Star break with no runs allowed in his last three starts. During his last outing against the Kansas City Royals, he matched a season high by going seven innings. Lorenzen's bullpen background is not necessarily a bad thing. If Eury Pérez and Trevor Rogers make their way back to the big leagues as starters late in the season, the 31-year-old could contribute out of the 'pen in a role that he's familiar with (269 career relief appearances). After all, the Marlins are thin on quality right-handed relievers right now. Availability The Tigers currently find themselves with a 45-54 record. Although they are a third-place team just like the Marlins, the Tigers are a lot farther back of the nearest playoff spot and don't have the same pressure to compete this season. With Lorenzen performing well and being a pending free agent, he is their most obvious trade chip. MLB.com's Jon Morosi reports that the Tampa Bay Rays and Houston Astros have shown interest in acquiring Lorenzen. Player Movement Lorenzen's well-timed scoreless streak and the expected widespread interest in him around the league would require Miami to give up at least one notable prospect to obtain him. There's only about $2.8 million of salary still owed to him after the deadline. Young right-hander Karson Milbrandt would make sense as a centerpiece. The 19-year-old has already reached the High-A level. Overall this season, he has a 5.11 ERA in 16 starts (68.2 IP). As Craig Mish said on State of the Fish, Milbrandt is drawing a lot of interest from other teams. Along with Milbrandt, the Marlins should be willing to give up one of their Triple-A hitters who are being blocked from big league playing time such as Peyton Burdick or Jordan Groshans. They'll get more of an opportunity with a rebuilding team, plus that would help the Marlins with 40-man roster flexibility.

After going 0-6 on the first road trip after the All-Star break, the Marlins looked to get back in the win column against the Rockies, but that wasn't the case. The Rockies went for two runs in the first and they didn't look back from there. A struggling Colorado pitching staff mostly dominated Miami to take game one of the three-game set and turn up the heat even more on the Marlins as the MLB trade deadline gets closer and closer. Final: 6-1. Braxton Garrett, who had a rough outing against the Orioles in game two of that series, didn't look much better on Friday as he gave up seven hits, six earned runs, three home runs and five strikeouts. Although Braxton relied on his usual sinker/slider combo, Garrett was unable to locate pitches well and the Rockies took advantage of the ones he did throw into the strike zone. "I thought the curveball was just getting hit more than usual," said Miami Marlins manager Skip Schumaker. "A couple of home runs off that. He feels good. It's just we haven't gotten the he hasn't been as successful last few starts." The first home of three Rockies home runs came in the first inning was from C.J. Cron. Braxton threw a curveball that landed in the lower portion of the strike zone and hit it 402 feet for a two-run homer to give the Rockies an early 2-0 lead. After the home run, Garrett gave up an RBI double to Alan Trejo, which drove in Randal Grichuk to make the game 3-0, Rockies. It didn't take long until the second home run of the game was hit by Jurickson Profar, also traveling 402 feet, but this one went to right-center. Once again, Braxton got beat on his curveball. The cherry on the top for the Rockies was the third and final home run of the game, which was hit by Marlins killer Elias Díaz 405 feet into the Marlins bullpen to extend the lead, 6-0. This time around, Braxton went with the cutter and left it hanging. Díaz also homered three times against the Marlins earlier in the season when these teams met in Coors Field. The one bright spot of the night for the Fish was the pitcher that came in after Garrett, George Soriano. He went four innings of hitless baseball and struck out eight. Although Soriano's velocity was slightly down, the spin rate on his pitches was up. Soriano stuck with the usual fastball/slider combo and generated 13 whiffs, a huge total for any relief appearance. Although most of his strikeouts were on the slider, he did utilize his changeup for two of them. To say that he did his job tonight is an understatement, eating valuable innings for a bullpen that could be busy on Saturday in support of Johnny Cueto. "Kept us in the game and helped us for tomorrow," said Schumaker. Miami was able to score one run off of a Nick Fortes groundout that drove in Bryan De La Cruz. However, the team went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position. Right-hander Gavin Hollowell then came in and shut the door down for the Rockies to take game one of the three-game set. The Marlins have now lost seven straight games, which is Skip Schumaker's longest losing streak as a manager, but he's been through this before during his baseball career. "I think you kinda find out who you are when you're going through these valleys," said Schumaker. "It's easy when you're winning. Coming into the ballpark and you're having fun and everyone's laughing and smiling. You kinda find out who you are and what your work looks like and what kinda teammate you are and what kinda coach you are when you go through these valleys."

Kevin Barral and Isaac Azout are joined by Ely Sussman to discuss where the Miami Marlins could find pitching upgrades on the trade market. Then, they analyze the Marlins' draft pick signings and unveil an updated list of the Top 30 prospects in the organization. Subscribe to the Fish On First YouTube channel to watch video versions of every Fish Unfiltered episode. Here is the updated Fish On First Top 30 as of July 21, 2023: RHP Noble MeyerRHP Max MeyerLHP Jake EderINF Kahlil WatsonOF Victor Mesa Jr.LHP Dax FultonINF Yiddi Cappe1B/DH Jacob BerryLHP Thomas WhiteOF/INF Dane MyersSS Nasim NuñezSS Jacob AmayaINF/OF Xavier EdwardsOF Kemp AldermanINF Marco VargasRHP Karson MilbrandtRHP Jacob MillerC Ronald HernándezC Joe MackOF José GerardoOF Antony PegueroINF Ian Lewis1B Troy JohnstonC/DH Paul McIntoshLHP Patrick MonteverdeRHP George SorianoINF Cody MorissetteLHP/OF Janero MillerINF Yoffry Solano1B Brock VradenburgFollowing the recording of this episode, Fish On First sources told Kevin that Miami's 18th-round draft pick, Tristan Dietrich, will honor his college commitment to Florida International University. The draft pick signing deadline is Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. ET. The Marlins are expected to sign their other 20 draftees. Follow Kevin (@kevin_barral), Isaac (@IsaacAzout), Ely (@RealEly) and Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) on Twitter. Complete Miami Marlins coverage here at FishOnFirst.com. Our Fish On First podcast programming includes The Offishial Show, Fish Unfiltered, State of the Fish, Swimming Upstream, Fishology and What a Relief. All new episodes are posted to FishOnFirst.com/podcasts. You can subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Podbean, Megaphone or wherever you normally get your pods from.

The Miami Marlins have exceeded expectations so far in 2023. However, to sustain this (and to better position themselves for perennial postseason contention), they’ll likely need to acquire help from outside the organization. Leading up to the August 1 MLB trade deadline, Fish On First will profile potentially attainable players who would fit with what the Fish are building. The Marlins currently have an open spot in the rotation, so why not target one of the most successful MLB pitchers this season in Marcus Stroman? The veteran right-hander is sporting a 2.88 ERA, 3.38 FIP, 7.66 K/9, and 3.19 BB/9. He just earned his second career All-Star selection. Stroman, 32, has a deep pitch mix centered around his sinker. He's averaging nearly six innings per start and has had two career seasons of at least 200 innings pitched. Stroman has always been a groundball pitcher and he's taken that to an extreme in 2023. His 58.4 GB% is second-highest among qualified MLB starters behind only Logan Webb of the San Francisco Giants (60.3 GB%). Playing for the Chicago Cubs and their great defensive middle infielders—Dansby Swanson and Nico Hoerner—has been a great fit. Stroman's advanced stats are not quite as impressive as his surface stats, such as the half-run gap between his ERA (2.88) and FIP (3.38). However, he showed the ability to outperform his FIP each of the last three seasons as well. That being said, his current .251 batting average on balls in play is on pace to be the lowest of his career—that part might be unsustainable. All things considered, Stroman has had a very nice season. Injecting somebody with his regular season track record, playoff/World Baseball Classic experience and enthusiasm into the Marlins rotation would make a lot of sense if the Cubs are willing to move him. Availability The Chicago Cubs enter Monday with a 43-49 record, eight games back of the nearest NL playoff spot. They own a better run differential than most of the teams ahead of them, but time is running out for them to get hot. FanGraphs gives Chicago only 7.3% odds of making the playoffs. Although the Cubs have a strong foundation and aren't going to launch a new rebuild, they have to be realistic about their 2023 chances and think about trading players on expiring contracts. Stroman is under contract for 2024 ($21 million base salary), but he has the ability to opt out of that and test free agency. He is almost certain to do so in order to secure a long-term deal. It's been reported that teams such as the Blue Jays and Astros have interest in Stroman, and you'd expect most other contenders to pursue him as well if the Cubs want to turn him into multiple controllable players. Player Movement A trade package for Stroman would have to start with one of the Marlins' very best prospects. With top 2023 draft pick Noble Meyer ineligible to be traded this season and Max Meyer still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, left-hander Jake Eder (No. 3 on our Fish On First Top 30 list) is a possible centerpiece. Craig Mish of SportsGrid reported that many scouts were in attendance to observe Eder's most recent start. In four outings with Double-A Pensacola this season, the 24-year-old has a 4.74 ERA in 19 innings pitched, but he is showing slight improvement each time he takes the mound after a long injury absence. Mish previously reported that outfielder Peyton Burdick was discussed between the Marlins and Cubs during Willson Contreras trade negotiations in 2021. Burdick's value has fallen since then, but he is slashing .241/.348/.514/.863 (110 wRC+) for Triple-A Jacksonville and doesn't have a clear fit with the Marlins moving forward. Funny enough, Burdick made his major league debut and hit his first career home run at Wrigley Field. Maybe it is meant to be? Ultimately, this would be risky move for the Marlins because of the team's unwillingness to spend big in free agency. They would be getting Stroman for the rest of 2023 and that's it. Also keep in mind that Stroman's salary for the rest of this season is over $8 million. Would you be comfortable trading away Eder and Burdick for a rental if it means addressing one of Miami's main weaknesses?

The Miami Marlins have exceeded expectations so far in 2023. However, to sustain this (and to better position themselves for perennial postseason contention), they’ll likely need to acquire help from outside the organization. Leading up to the August 1 MLB trade deadline, Fish On First will profile potentially attainable players who would fit with what the Fish are building. Jordan Montgomery is having a career year for the St. Louis Cardinals, posting a 3.23 ERA and 3.52 FIP through 103.0 innings pitched this season. He's simply a well-rounded starting pitcher with solid control, swing-and-miss ability and the efficiency to work deep into his starts when needed. The 30-year-old has been the most valuable piece of a shaky Cardinals rotation. Montgomery throws a sinker, changeup, curveball and occasional four-seam fastball. The curve is especially effective for him when he has the platoon advantage. He hasn't walked any left-handed batters all season. Another desirable quality about Montgomery is his track record of eating innings. He pitched full-length seasons in both 2021 and 2022 and he's on pace to do the same in 2023. The Miami Marlins starting rotation consists of Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett and Jesús Luzardo, with Edward Cabrera expected to return from the injured list on this current road trip. Bryan Hoeing received an opportunity, but couldn't fully take advantage of it—he fits better in the bullpen. The Johnny Cueto signing has not worked out, to put it gently. Posting a 2.36 ERA in 11 starts, 20-year rookie phenom Eury Pérez showed that he belongs in the majors. However, the Marlins are managing his innings carefully and recently optioned him to AA Pensacola. Trevor Rogers (right lat strain) is still more than a month away from contributing. Montgomery is a nice fit for the Marlins to stabilize their rotation in August and eventually start playoff games for them if they're able to make it that far. Availability The Cardinals are suffering through their worst season in decades, entering Sunday with the third-worst record in the National League. They have made it clear that they're approaching the trade deadline with a willingness to sell veterans on expiring contracts like Montgomery. He'll be among the most desired arms on the market. As long as the proposals they receive are more valuable than the compensatory draft pick that would come from Montgomery declining a qualifying offer, he'll be moved. Player Movement The Cardinals will be seeking multiple prospects in exchange for Montgomery, at least one of them being a quality pitcher. The Marlins have to be careful not to subtract guys who are important to their 2023 playoff hopes. A package that would make sense for both sides includes Yiddi Cappe (No. 7 prospect on our updated Fish On First Top 30 list) along with 2022 draft pick Karson Milbrandt (No. 16). Both are currently assigned to High-A Beloit. Although Cappe has struggled this season, he still has a high ceiling and would thrive in a system like the Cardinals which is well known for developing raw bats into major league talent. As for Milbrandt, he's a projectable right-hander who conveniently grew up in the Midwest.

After dropping game one of the three-game set, the Marlins offense woke up early, leading by as many as four runs. However, Miami's pitching staff had a lot of trouble continue the Orioles offense as well. The Fish lost once again on Saturday, this time by the final score of 6-5. The Miami offense wasted no time getting to former Phillies pitcher Kyle Gibson. Jesus Sanchez got the second inning going with a single followed by a single by Yuli Gurriel, but Sánchez noticed that the center fielder wasn't making much of an effort to go for the ball and pushed for third, which allowed Gurriel to get to second o the throw. Jean Segura then hit an RBI single to drive in Sanchez and move Gurriel to third. https://sporty-clips.mlb.com/46f7b09d-7c3f-4eb5-be7a-2ee0a0b05ef9.mp4Still, with no outs in the top of the second, Joey Wendle hit an RBI single that drove in Yuli and moved Segura to second. Miami extends the lead, 2-0. A soft dribbler by Nick Fortes moved both Segura and Wendle into scoring position. Dane Myers then pushed across another un on a fielder's choice. The rally was capped off by a Luis Arráez RBI single, stretching the lead to 4-0. The Orioles answered right back in the bottom of the second inning. They would tack on three runs of their own. A Ryan Mountcastle double was followed by Aaron Hicks working a walk, and then Cedric Mullins, who did damage to Miami's pitching staff on Friday, smacked an RBI single driving in Mountcastle and moving Hicks to second. https://sporty-clips.mlb.com/a7d13862-db57-4fdd-a7c2-76acef2429be.mp4With Mullins on first, Jordan Westburg was at the plate and he hit a foul ball that just barely missed staying fair for an extra-base hit. Mullins was removed for a pinch-hitter after that pitch due to what was later announced as right quadricep tightness. Colton Cowser entered the game to pinch-run for him and replace him in center field. After Westburg struck out, Gunnar Henderson grounded out, but moved both runners into scoring position. Jorge Mateo, who has struggled for the majority of the season, smacked an RBI triple which drove in both Hicks and Cowser and the Orioles were down by just one. Miami's fifth run of the night came on a Bryan De La Cruz sac fly which drove in Dane Myers who had a base hit in his at bat. Miami extends their lead, 5-3. Braxton Garrett struck out five, one walk, but gave up four runs off of six hits. Garrett went into his deep pitch mix, leaning heaviest on his sinker and cutter. His overall performance would've been better if the inexperienced center fielder Myers had gotten a better read on the Mateo triple—although not charged with an error, it was a catchable ball that led to two extra runs scoring. Still, you have to tip your cap to the Orioles offense, which is one of the best in baseball. Skip Schumaker took out Garrett with two outs in the fifth after allowing an RBI single to Anthony Santander. On the other end, Kyle Gibson lived up to his groundball-heavy reputation. He only struck out one Marlin among the 28 total batters he faced. The Orioles offense bailed Gibson out for the most part as he left the game only being down a run. He still made a contribution by giving the Orioles length and lasting 5.1 innings. Miami went with Huascar Brazoban in the seventh inning. On the first pitch he threw, Gunnar Henderson took Brazoban deep for a 371-foot solo homer tying the game at 5-5. That was Henderson's 14th home run of the season. The Orioles saw Brazoban very well as Austin Hayes and Adley Rutschman had back-to-back singles, but Hayes went to third on Adley's single. With runners on the corners and one out, Santander smacked another RBI single, scoring Hayes and giving the Orioles their first lead of the ballgame at 6-5. After the Orioles took the lead in the bottom of the seventh, Miami was unable to score any runs. The closest they got was when Jorge Soler launched a 393-foot fly ball in the eighth, just missing a go-ahead homer. Felix Bautista shut the door for the second night in a row. Baltimore clinches the series against Miami. The Marlins will lean on a bullpen day to try to salvage Sunday's game. Steven Okert will be their opener for the first time in his career, with George Soriano and Johnny Cueto available to eat the bulk of the innings in relief. Game begins at 1:35 pm EST.

After a historic first half for the Miami Marlins, they looked to get the second half going on a high note, but the Marlins offense struggled for the majority of the night on Friday. Sandy Alcantara had a quality start, but gave up home runs to Cedric Mullins and Adam Frazier as the Baltimore Orioles won game one of the three-game set. Final Score: 5-2. Although Sandy gave up three runs, the Marlins ace struck out five and only allowed one walk. The issue was his pitch placement and high pitch count per hitter. Sandy had a 21-pitch first inning followed by an 18-pitch second inning. The Orioles are an overall patient ball club that works high counts, and that is exactly what happened here. The first run of the ballgame came in on an Adam Frazier RBI single which drove in Cedric Mullins and gave the Orioles an early 1-0 lead. That same part of the lineup would do more damage against Sandy in the bottom of the fourth inning. The first home run was hit by Mullins. Sandy threw a fastball down the middle that he took 382 feet deep to right field for Baltimore's second run. That was Mullins' ninth homer of the season. The second solo home run came from Frazier. On a 1-0 count, Sandy threw a 97.7 mile-per-hour sinker that also caught too much of the plate. Frazier hit a no-doubter to right-center field and extended the Orioles lead, 3-1. Frazier's 11th home run of the season left the bat at 101.9 MPH and went 413 feet. Otherwise, Sandy pitched fairly well to contain an explosive offense on the road. His next scheduled start is set to be against the final game of the three-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals. Miami only scored once while Sandy was on the mound. That's because Dean Kremer was lights out, striking out eight, only walking two, and giving up one run. The only run Kremer gave up was a bases-loaded RBI single to Bryan De La Cruz, which drove in Joey Wendle. When it came to pitch mix and usage, it was his usual fastball/cutter combo. Kremer generated 16 swings-and-misses. He out-dueled Alcantara. https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2023/2023-07/14/c446afb9-b83240d6-99553c68-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4Called up from Triple-A Jacksonville last week, left-hander Robert Garcia entered in the seventh inning to make his major league debut. Garcia allowed a walk, lineout and single during his brief appearance and didn't surrender any runs. Late in the game, the Orioles went with All-Star flame-thrower Yennier Cano to see if he could shut down the eighth inning, but Jorge Soler had plans of his own and homered off the Cuban reliever. Soler's 24th homer left the bat at 106.5 MPH and traveled 406 feet to left field. It's a rare sight for hitters to go deep to that part of Camden Yards ever since the fence was moved back last year. Orioles still led, 3-2. All hope went away for the Fish in the bottom of the eighth inning when Frazier crushed a two-run home run. Bryan Hoeing, who was pitching in relief for Miami, threw a sinker right down the middle. This was Frazier's second home run of the night and made the score 5-2. In the ninth inning, the Orioles went with their second All-Star reliever (and former Marlins prospect) Felix Bautista to close it out. He struck out both Jean Segura and Joey Wendle, and then pinch-hitter Yuli Gurriel flew out to end the game. Miami now has a 53-40 record, still holding onto the top spot in the NL Wild Card race. On Saturday, Braxton Garrett will take the mound for Miami as Kyle Gibson will go for the Orioles. Game two of the three-game set is scheduled to begin at 7:05 pm.

Going off of Alex Carver's article highlighting Marlins prospects at the lower levels who deserve promotions, it is also time to show love to the upper levels (Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Jacksonville). Here are five players ready for their next challenge. C Will Banfield (AA) The Marlins 2018 competitive balance round pick is finally living up to the hype as he has found an offensive rhythm, slashing .267/.291/.474/.765 with 12 home runs, 43 RBIs, and a 97 wRC+. Combined with his great defense behind the plate, Banfield deserves a promotion to AAA and needs to be looked at as a potential MLB option for Miami in the near future. Statistically, the Marlins have the third-worst catching tandem in the majors when it comes to hitting. Banfield could possibly be an upgrade there and he has familiarity with the Marlins pitchers already from his time in major league spring training as a non-roster invitee. /podcasts/swimming-upstream-will-banfield/The only concern with Banfield is the fact that he relies a lot on power to have success. His walk rate in 2023 is only 3%. Another reason he hasn't been promoted yet is AAA Jacksonville has a crowded catching situation with Austin Allen, Paul McIntosh and Santiago Chávez. C Austin Allen (AAA) How about making room for Banfield by calling up veteran Austin Allen from the Jumbo Shrimp? Allen signed a minor league deal with the Marlins this past offseason. He has been on a power surge for most of the year, slashing .232/.324/.574/.898 with 18 home runs (tied for the most among Marlins minor leaguers), 47 RBIs, and a 112 wRC+. The 29-year-old has put up those numbers despite being held back by a very low .197 BABIP. Allen's strikeout rate has improved a lot from where it was in 2022 when he was with the Athletics and Cardinals organizations. He's been especially hot recently, leading all of Minor League Baseball with 20 RBIs in July. Realistically, it is more likely that the Marlins acquire a catcher via trade in the coming weeks than call up Allen to take the spot of Jacob Stallings or Nick Fortes, but he has earned a shoutout with his production. INF/OF Xavier Edwards (AAA) Xavier Edwards earned his way up to the majors earlier this season and he's been even better since going back down to Jacksonville. Overall, he is slashing .368/.437/.466/.903 with three home runs, 27 RBIs, and a 133 wRC+, leading the International League batting title race. To make himself more versatile, Edwards began playing center field in spring training, and thus far, he has played it well in the minors (no errors in 25 games). But when Jonathan Davis and Jazz Chisholm Jr. suffered their recent injuries, Miami called up Garrett Hampson and Dane Myers instead. Even in a limited role, calling up Edwards now makes a lot of sense because of the offense he can provide with his contact skills. 1B Troy Johnston (AA) This is the most obvious promotion candidate. Troy Johnston has been repeating the AA level throughout the season and has proven everything that he has had to prove. He is slashing .277/.389/.558/.947 with 18 home runs, 66 RBIs, and a 148 wRC+. The biggest improvements that Johnston has made are adding speed and working to get more extra-base hits. He already has four triples this season and will have more doubles than he had in 2022. Johnston also has a career-high 14 stolen bases, so shedding weight in the offseason has really made a big difference for him. He should be at AAA and next in line to make the big league roster when there's an opening at first base. The Marlins' future at the position is unclear because Yuli Gurriel and Garrett Cooper are both on one-year deals. LHP Patrick Monteverde (AA) The top Marlins minor league pitcher this season has easily been Patrick Monteverde. Posting a 1.93 ERA, 3.07 FIP, 10.13 K/9, and a 3.31 BB/9 through 74.2 innings pitched, Monteverde is having the best season of his career. Monteverde has been so good that he alongside Nasim Nuñez were chosen to participate in the All-Star Futures Game. It wouldn't hurt to promote the 2021 draft pick to AAA to showcase himself at the next level of Minor League Baseball.

When the Miami Marlins signed 2018's number one international prospect Victor Victor Mesa for $5.25 million, they were expecting him to become one of the big building blocks of their future. Unfortunately, the Cuban outfielder has never come close to living up to the hype and his time with the Marlins organization may have just reached its end without him even tasting the major leagues. On Monday, Francys Romero of beisbolfr reported that Mesa abandoned the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, which is the Marlins AAA affiliate. According to Romero, Victor Victor had "disagreements with the coaches and he’s not expected to return." I was able to confirm that report and can add Mesa has been away from the team since June 20, when they began a road series against the Gwinnett Stripers. His last appearance with Jacksonville came on June 16. Per Yordano Carmona of Pelota Cubana, Mesa did travel with the team to Gwinnett, but hours after arriving, he left in another vehicle and went back to Jacksonville. He was then placed on the restricted list. Turning 27 years old later this month, Mesa had been getting limited playing time this season (he also spent more than a month on the injured list). With Jacksonville and Double-A Pensacola combined, he had only 40 plate appearances and a .189/.250/.270 slash line (29 wRC+). His minor league career as a whole isn't much better. Although a great defensive outfielder and efficient base-stealer with consistent contact skills, the quality of his contact has been poor since arriving to the U.S. (low exit velocities). His MiLB career slash line in 290 games is .233/.289/.289 with only eight home runs and 92 RBIs. Victor Victor was briefly Double-A teammates with his younger brother, outfielder Victor Mesa Jr., who came with him to the Marlins in a package deal and received a $1 million bonus. Victor Jr.'s development has been far more encouraging and the 21-year-old is now considered one of Miami's best hitting prospects. Signing the Mesa brothers was the first big splash that the Marlins made in the international market under Bruce Sherman's ownership. They've had more success since then, most notably acquiring rising star Eury Pérez (Dominican Republic). They also inked infielder José Salas out of Venezuela and he became a key piece of the Luis Arráez trade package. It's unclear whether Victor Victor Mesa will continue his playing career once the Marlins eventually release him.

After the selection of pitcher Noble Meyer, the Miami Marlins doubled down on high school arms by selecting left-handed pitcher Thomas White out of Phillips Academy (MA) with the 35th overall pick of the 2023 MLB Draft. Then in the second round of the draft (47th overall pick), the Marlins followed through on the pre-draft college bat buzz by taking outfielder Kemp Alderman out of Ole Miss. "An elite left-handed pitcher," said Miami Marlins senior director of amateur scouting DJ Svihlik on Thomas White. White ranked as the 19th overall draft prospect on Baseball America, 24th on MLB Pipeline, 27th on The Athletic and 27th on FanGraphs. In his senior season, White had a 5-2 record, 1.66 ERA, 95 strikeouts and allowed only 10 hits over 42.0 innings pitched. White was named the Gatorade Massachusetts Player of the Year this past season. White's arsenal includes a mid-90s fastball, plus curveball and changeup. Svihlik compared his body type to that of Andy Pettitte. What stands out about White is the 6'5", 225-pound frame that he brings to the organization. Not only does the body type fit the Marlins mold, but so does the three-pitch mix that he has. "Thomas was really, really good at a young age," said Svihlik. "He was big, he was strong, and he was throwing hard at a younger age. I can imagine the recruiting process sped up a little bit for Thomas and he was able to get committed a little bit earlier." White is committed to play collegiately at baseball powerhouse Vanderbilt, but the Marlins have experience with signing fellow Vandy commits, including Will Banfield in 2018 and Karson Milbrandt in 2022. In the second round, the Marlins selected Kemp Alderman as their first position player of this draft class. In 2023, the outfielder from Ole Miss slashed .376/.440/.709/1.149 with 19 home runs and 61 RBIs. He was ranked 55th in this class by MLB Pipeline, 82nd by The Athletic and 102nd by Baseball America. Alderman's 19 homers were the third-most in program history and his 80 hits and 151 total bases was the fourth-highest in the SEC during the regular season. He also won the Boo Ferriss Trophy winner. Svihlik described the Alderman pick as the most impactful bat available who can also play multiple positions including catcher, which is an organizational need for the Marlins. "He's played a little bit of everywhere on the field," said Svihlik. "He needs some development defensively. Shouldn't be a problem." When asked about the exact plan, he said that they will place him at his natural position as a corner outfielder initially and then ease him into catching (most outstanding college baseball player in the state of Mississippi). Alderman's best tools are his 60 grade power and 60 grade arm. Limitations in the other aspects of his game could help the Marlins sign him to an underslot deal, saving money to be used on upcoming picks. The Marlins next pick will be No. 78 overall, which is in Round 3 of the draft.