Kevin Barral

After taking three of four against the New York Mets to begin their road trip, the Miami Marlins looked like a completely different team in DC. For the first time in three months, they were swept in a series, trailing the Washington Nationals from start to finish on Wednesday and falling by a final score of 10-5.

Eury Pérez, the Marlins starting pitcher, had been unable to complete the first inning in New York. He did go further into his start this time, but surrendered a career-high seven earned runs. In four innings, Pérez allowed seven runs on eight hits, one walk and struck out two.

Opposing hitters posted an average exit velocity of 98.1 mph off Pérez's four-seam fastball, which is normally his best pitch. In the bottom of the second inning, he gave up a home run to former Marlins prospect Nasim Nuñez, who had never homered in the big leagues before.

Pérez also gave up an RBI double to Jorge Alfaro and RBI single to Daylen Lile. Despite its ineffectiveness, he used his fastball 50% of the time.

"The command's not been great," said manager Clayton McCullough. "He's behind in too many counts and they took advantage of some pitches that probably weren't located as well and it's just part of it. Eury is going to just have to keep his head up, go back to work tomorrow. He's not the first starter that's had a couple starts that are tough. It's more about what you do about it. So fully anticipate that Eury will go right back to work when we get back to Miami and be ready for his next one."

On the bright side, Joey Wiemer hit his first home run of the season, taking Nationals starter Mitchell Parker deep 403 feet to left field. The ball left the bat at 107.6 mph. It was his major league home run since 2023.

"He's not too far removed from having a good start to his career in Milwaukee," McCullough said. "There's strength there. He's tough. He's a great teammate, plays good defense, so nice to see him get some regular at-bats and be able to come through offensively for us and have some nice games here on this road trip. Hopefully that just gives him confidence to take that as we get back home and get ready for the Phillies."

Heriberto Hernández drove in two more runs in the same inning on a two-run RBI single, making it a 7-4 game. In the eighth inning, a passed ball from Jorge Alfaro allowed Hernández to score Miami's fifth run.

Nuñez hit his second home run of the game to put the nail in the coffin, giving the Nationals a 10-5 lead, one that they wouldn't look back on.

The Marlins were most recently swept by the Colorado Rockies from June 2-4, the only NL team with a worst record than the Nats. They've now dropped to 65-75 on the season.

The Fish will have an off-day in Miami on Thursday before they welcome the Philadelphia Phillies for a three-game set. There has been no starter announced for what would have been Edward Cabrera's turn in the rotation. Valente Bellozo is the leading candidate to fill Cabrera's shoes.

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While most Americans were celebrating a national holiday on Monday, the Miami Marlins were stressed out. In the morning, they placed right-hander Edward Cabrera on the 15-day IL due to a right elbow sprain, likely ending his exciting 2025 season and putting 2026 in jeopardy as well. Things didn't get any better on the field as they were shut out by the Washington Nationals and limited to a season-low two hits, losing Xavier Edwards to an ejection mere minutes after first pitch and then removing Derek Hill due to right hamstring discomfort.

Cabrera, who last started for the Marlins on Saturday, has posted a 3.57 ERA, 3.68 FIP, 9.8 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 through a career-high 128 ⅔ innings pitched.

"He's had a remarkable season," said McCullough. "The stretch of starts that we got from him, it was over months of time that he put himself as arguably one of the best pitchers in the National League from a performance standpoint. We saw the consistency I think everyone had been hoping for out of Cabby. He proved to himself that he can go out and pitch at a really high level at the major leagues over a stretch of time. Great season for Cabby. We'll wait to get further information on what next steps will be, but it certainly won't put a damper on the productive season that he had for us."

Frankly, it was a boring game. Edwards' ejection would have to be considered the top Marlins highlight because of how manager Clayton McCullough came to his defense.

After grounding out in the top of the first inning, Miami's leadoff hitter continued to exchange words with home plate umpire Brennan Miller. "(Edwards) had something to say as he ran across the field," McCullough explained postgame. "Wasn't happy with his second strike call and said some more from the dugout. Brennan had heard enough."

Despite loudly cursing out Miller, McCullough was allowed to remain in the game. The rookie skipper has been ejected two previous times this season.

Ryan Gusto was originally lined up to work on Monday, but recently landed on the IL with an injury of his own, so it turned into a bullpen game for the Marlins.

Serving as an opener, Lake Bachar lasted two innings and allowed the lone two runs of the day. Bachar surrendered an RBI triple to Washington Nationals rookie Daylen Lile, followed by a sac fly, which drove in Lile.

After Bachar, the Marlins went with Cade Gibson, Seth Martinez, Michael Petersen and George Soriano, all of whom prevented the Nationals from extending their lead. Petersen was making his Marlins season debut.

On the flip side, left-hander Andrew Alvarez impressed in his first-ever major league appearance. Alvarez's no-hitter was broken up by Victor Mesa Jr. in the fifth inning. Heriberto Hernández smacked his tenth double of the season in the seventh inning. That was it. Alvarez earned the win by going five shutout innings, allowing one hit, two walks and striking out four.

"From the start, it really wasn't a good offensive approach," McCullough said. "We chased around—chased a lot of balls down out of the strike zone. Disappointing with what we felt were some pretty nice days offensively coming into this, and today, we just didn't. Weren't able to string any at-bats, create much traffic and any scoring opportunities."

In the top of the third inning, Marlins center fielder Derek Hill was removed after running down the first base line on a grounder and beating out a throw from shortstop CJ Abrams. Hill has already made three trips to the IL in 2025. He's been limited to 53 games.

"We'll just get that evaluated and have a better idea about it tomorrow," McCullough said.

As announced on the FanDuel Sports Network game broadcast, Janson Junk, Ryan Weathers and Griffin Conine will all be rehabbing with Triple-A Jacksonville this upcoming week. Junk and Weathers are scheduled for rehab starts on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively. They should be rejoining the Marlins rotation next week if those starts go smoothly.

With the loss, the Marlins fall to 65-73 on the season. They will send out Adam Mazur on Tuesday night to make his third start of the season. Cade Cavalli will toe the rubber for Washington. First pitch from the nation's capital is at 6:45 pm.

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MIAMI, FL—On Thursday, Miami Marlins starter Cal Quantrill was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves. With that rotation spot open for the first time all season, Ryan Gusto was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville to start Friday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays. Gusto was overshadowed and out-pitched by Shane Bieber as the Miami Marlins fell by a final score of 5-2.

Gusto struggled in the top of the first inning, allowing an RBI double to Daulton Varsho, driving in the game's first run. Ty France, who followed Varsho, drove in two more runs on a single, but was thrown out trying to get to second base, ending what was a 29-pitch top of the first for the recent trade acquisition.

In his final inning of work, Gusto surrendered a 423-foot home run to Varsho, giving the Blue Jays a 5-1 lead. It marked Varsho's 14th home run of the season. However, he found "a nice groove" in between, in the words of Marlins manager Clayton McCullough.

"Overall, his stuff was good and you saw a good fastball he used," said McCullough. "It's a deep mix with the cutter, sweeper, threw some changeups right-on-right, which is going to be a good pitch for him moving forward. Ryan came up, gave us six innings and unfortunately, in first and sixth, there was two-out base hits to cash in their runs. In totality, you look at it from a stuff perspective and and how well he got into a rhythm there in the middle part."

Gusto posted a 70.8% first-pitch strike rate and a 54.5% ground ball rate. For the fourth time this season (including his time with the Houston Astros), the righty failed to record a single strikeout. He finished his outing going six innings, allowing five runs on seven hits and one walk.

"Definitely love some strikeouts to be on that line as well," Gusto said. "I think that I was a little bit too uncompetitive with some of my two-strike offerings. I think that they're a good bat-to-ball team. They were seeing the ball well, sticking to their plan that we talked about and I think that I had a lot of weak contact in two strike counts and to me, that's still a win. It's not the strikeout, it's not the whiff that you want, but there's a lot of really weak contact into the infield and pop-ups, so I take that as a win."

Seems like Gusto has done a lot of experimenting throughout his time at the big league level, throwing six pitches on Friday: four-seam fastball (33% usage), cutter (19%), changeup (14%), sinker (12%), sweeper (11%) and curveball (10%).

"So far, I absolutely love it," Gusto said about the Marlins organization. "I think these guys are really smart. They have a lot of really good insight and they've been very helpful with a lot of things. I'm already seeing the fruit of some of that with a few of my pitches that have seen good improvement. It's just about working that into how I pitch and then getting the results. I'm looking forward to really seeing the the last month and a half go very well."

The remainder of the season could be considered a trial period for Gusto, who will be competing for a rotation spot in 2026. Miami's more experienced MLB starters include Sandy Alcantara, Edward Cabrera, Eury Pérez, Ryan Weathers, Braxton Garrett and Max Meyer. Even if one or more of them are involved in offseason trades, prospects Adam Mazur, Robby Snelling and Thomas White are all on the brink of being called up at some point next season. Gusto will really need to perform to make his case to stick with the big league team moving forward.

"They traded for me," Gusto told the media postgame. "They had some plans for my arsenal and some adjustments that I could make. I think finishing the season out is going to be, in large part, making those adjustments that they wanted to see and really trying to see some success with that and put me in a really good situation for next year."

For the Blue Jays, Shane Bieber was pitching in the big leagues for the first time since April 2024 coming off Tommy John surgery. He gave the Blue Jays six innings of one-run ball, allowing two hits, no walks and striking out nine. 

"He got ahead, really good fastball command and then the ability to spin the ball down below," McCullough said. "Had his changeup going to some left-handed hitters. He can do enough work on the inside part of the plate to keep the outer lane open versus right. Going in, we needed to be aggressive against him because he's going to come in and fill up the strike zone. He did that tonight and we just weren't really ever able to string a whole lot. We did get in deep counts and he seemed to make some pitches when he needed to tonight."

In the bottom of the second inning, Javier Sanoja took Bieber deep on the tenth pitch of the at-bat. It was Sanoja's fifth home run of the season. The Blue Jays still led, 3-1.

"It was a great at-bat," McCullough said. "Bieber pitched a nice game. Had really been cruising at that point and Javi just kept spoiling pitches, kept fouling off and got something elevated and put a really good swing on it. We've seen that a lot from him this year—just the ability to stick his nose in there and spoil pitches battle."

Maximo Acosta's first career hit was a home run on Wednesday night against the St. Louis Cardinals. His second hit? Also a home run. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Acosta took Blue Jays reliever Yariel Rodríguez deep.

With the loss, the Marlins fell to 60-68 on the season. Janson Junk will toe the rubber against José Berríos on Saturday with first pitch at 4:10 pm.

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MIAMI, FL—Sandy Alcantara for the third time in 2025 completed seven innings of work. Alongside Maximo Acosta, who hit his first career home run, they propelled the Marlins to a 6-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday, salvaging the series finale.

Alcantara threw what manager Clayton McCullough thought was his best overall game of the season on Friday night against the Red Sox. This performance was very similar, going seven innings, allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits, one walk and striking out a season-high nine batters.

"It's been a difficult season overall," said McCullough. "To come off an incredible start in Boston and back that up tonight with seven very strong innings, get through that finish with a punchout. His stuff seemed to be at his best there at the end. Even as things have gone this year, Sandy hasn't forgotten how to compete. He knows moments and he knew that was a moment there and we saw him dig down and empty it out."

What made this one different from his start against the Red Sox was a relatively low 33.3% ground ball rate, which is uncharacteristic of Alcantara. His changeup specifically was up 1.6 mph compared to his season average. He generated six whiffs with the changeup. Alcantara struck out three hitters with the changeup.

"It's been great since last outing," said Alcantara. "We had that plan since yesterday. We got to use it more in the game and I think me and Agustín did a great job trying to be more aggressive with it."

Alcantara's four-seam fastball also topped out at 100.0 mph for the second time this season. It generated five whiffs and struck out two hitters. The sinker, which was used 21% of the time, generated three strikeouts.

In the fourth inning, Alcantara struck out Willson Contreras, moving him into sole possession of second place in franchise history with 1023 IP, surpassing Dontrelle Willis. On top of that, Alcantara became one of five pitchers to throw over 114 pitches in a start.

Alcantara, who the St. Louis Cardinals traded to the Marlins in December 2017, now holds a 1.66 ERA in eight starts against his former team. He also went five shutout innings against the Cardinals in his final start before the trade deadline.

"It's always a great fight from both sides," said Alcantara. "I think they've did a great job since the first at-bat all the way through the last at-bat. I just feel comfortable to be out there—not just with the Cardinals, with everyone. Sometimes you're gonna have better results with one team and sometimes you're gonna have better results with different team. I think everything just comes together well every time I face the Cardinals."

Another big difference was the run support provided to Alcantara. In the bottom of the second inning, Javier Sanoja grounded into a double play, but the first run of the game scored. Heriberto Hernández knocked in two more runs, making it 3-0 in the third inning. Troy Johnston drove in the fourth run of the ballgame on an RBI single.

"I think we saw someone that was really trying to make things happen," McCullough said regarding Johnston. "Very aggressive, not letting (pitches) come to him. I think we've seen the at-bats are not just in swing mode. He is shrinking the area which he's looking for the pitch. He's getting himself in much better counts. He's getting into at-bats and giving himself a chance to have some success. It takes 10-15 at-bats up here to settle in a little bit. Now we're seeing a much higher quality of at-bat and the decision-making is better. That's led to some of these results that we've seen."

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Maximo Acosta took Cardinals starter Andre Pallante 418 feet deep to dead center, for his first big league hit and home run. Acosta is the first Marlin to homer for his first hit since Jerar Encarnación (June 19, 2022), according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

"I was thinking about my father right there," said Acosta. "That's the only memory in my mind—it's my father. My mom is not here. So it's a special night."

Acosta was one of three prospects acquired in the Jake Burger trade and is the first of those players to debut. Through 106 games this season in Triple-A Jacksonville, he slashed .232/.319/.376 with 12 home runs, 49 RBI and 28 stolen bases. One tool that seems to have been consistent throughout his career is the power. On Wednesday night, he showed it off.

With the win, the Marlins move to 60-67 on the season. There is an off-day on Thursday before the Fish welcome the Toronto Blue Jays, who will have Shane Bieber making his 2025 season debut, his first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in early 2024. For the Marlins, it would normally be Cal Quantrill's turn to pitch, but he was placed on outright waivers on Tuesday. They'll wait for the waiver process to play out before listing a starter.

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MIAMI, FL—After a very rough 3-8 road trip, the Marlins returned home looking to turn the page and get back to playing up to their usual standards. Unfortunately, mental errors on the mound and in the field caused the Marlins to fall to the St. Louis Cardinals Monday night by a final score of 8-3.

"Not great," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough. "This was not a very pretty brand of baseball tonight. When the game was invented, this is not how it was drawn up, so ugly. We gave up far too many free bases, didn't handle our chances. We had at least people get on base, but then you also think about the number of pitches your pitchers have to throw, start to stress them out more. We just did not take care of the routine at times tonight. We gave up too many extra bases and free bases to St Louis tonight, so we deserved to lose this game."

Eury Pérez was on the wrong side of history, becoming the first pitcher in franchise history to throw four wild pitches in a game. He finished the night going 4 ⅓ innings, allowing three runs (one earned) on two hits, four walks and struck out six. His four walks marks a season-high.

Pérez's fastball averaged 98.1 mph, topping out at 99.4 mph. It generated five whiffs and two of his strikeouts came on that pitch. He threw his fastball for strikes 80% of the time, but could not consistently locate his secondary stuff, landing only 53% of those pitches for strikes .

On the bright side, Pérez posted a 60.0% ground ball rate and generated 14 total whiffs.

The first of many bad plays happened in the first inning on a pop-up behind home plate. Agustín Ramírez took a couple moments to find the ball and couldn't recover in time to catch it. Although it did not lead to runs being scored, it extended the plate appearance and increased the workload for Pérez.

Pérez held the Cardinals scoreless until the top of the fifth inning. Things began to unravel with one out and a 2-0 lead when rookie outfielder Nathan Church hit a grounder towards second baseman Maximo Acosta, who was making his MLB debut. Attempting to flip the ball to second for a force out, Acosta was unable to field it cleanly and was charged with an error. After another wild pitch from Pérez moved Pedro Pages to third and Church to second, Lars Nootbaar drove in the Cardinals' first run of the game.

Pérez threw his fourth wild pitch of the game and went on to walk Iván Herrera before leaving the game. Ronny Henriquez, who hadn't pitched since last Tuesday against the Guardians, entered in relief with the bases loaded. He surrendered an RBI single to Alec Burleson and Wilson Contreras drove Nootbaar in on a sac fly. The Cardinals took a 3-2 lead.

With the game tied at three apiece in the seventh, Herrera hit a deep but routine fly ball to Dane Myers, but Myers took his eye off the ball and didn't make the catch, allowing Herrera to reach second. He was driven in by Burleson as the Cardinals retook a 4-3 lead.

Even late in the game, the sloppiness continued. In the top of the ninth inning, with runners on the corners, Agustín Ramírez allowed his 11th passed ball of the season, which allowed pinch-runner Garrett Hampson to score an insurance run. Nolan Gorman hit his 12th home run of the season, extending the lead to 8-3.

"Gus is going to have to continue to improve behind the plate," said McCullough. "We believe that we've seen strides made this year. The controlling of the baseball, the blocking game and throwing becoming more consistent are areas that Gus still needs to work on and he's shown a commitment to continuing to work to improve those. Like many young developing players, there are going to be moments. There are going to be games that just aren't as pretty as others and that is the nature of the learning curve that all young players go through at the major league level."

Jakob Marsee's successful run continued on Monday, driving in the first run of the game on a sac fly in the bottom of the first inning. In the sixth inning, Marsee knocked in an RBI double to tie the game.

Going into this game, Eric Wagaman was slashing .235/.333/.529/.863 in the month of August. In the fourth inning, Wagaman took Cardinals starter Matthew Liberatore deep. It is the first time this season that he has homered in back-to-back games.

With the loss, the Marlins are now 59-66 on the season. Edward Cabrera toes the rubber on Tuesday against Michael McGreevy as the Fish look to even the series. First pitch is at 6:40 pm.

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Hours after the Miami Marlins defeated the Boston Red Sox, Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase reported that Fish On First #11 prospect Maximo Acosta is on his way to Miami to join the team. No corresponding move has been made and the club has yet to make the move official.

Acosta, 22, was one of three players acquired in the December trade that sent Jake Burger to the Texas Rangers. At the time of the trade, he was coming off a season in Double-A where he slashed .288/.353/.425/.777 with 11 home runs, 58 RBI, 26 stolen bases and a 118 wRC+.

In very limited spring training action, Acosta slashed .273/.429/.545/.974 in six Grapefruit League games while looking comfortable at shortstop. There was talk of him potentially making the Opening Day roster, but he was ultimately optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville. The Marlins middle infield has had stability with Otto Lopez at shortstop, Xavier Edwards at second base and Javier Sanoja serving as the backup at both positions, so Acosta has remained in Jacksonville ever since.

Through 106 AAA games played, he has slashed .232/.319/.376/.695 with 12 home runs and 49 RBI, 28 stolen bases and a 91 wRC+. After posting a .594 OPS from March 28 through May 31, his performance has come much closer to what was initially expected, slashing .244/.317/.472/.789 with 10 home runs and 32 RBI.

There is still a concern about Acosta's increased strikeout rate, which has nearly doubled from 13.4% last year to 26.3% this year. That's due to the combination of a reduced contact rate and taking a lot of pitches in the zone.

Although a right-handed batter, Acosta has once again done his best work against righties—slashing .238/.329/.400/.729 in 359 plate appearances—while posting a terrible .529 OPS against left-handers. The Marlins usually seek platoon advantages as much as possible, so it'll be interesting to see how they use somebody with reverse splits like this.

Defensively, Acosta has played all but five games at shortstop this season. His ability there gives him a high floor at the major league level.

Graham Pauley is the top candidate to be placed on the injured list to make room for Acosta. He was unavailable to play Sunday due to right side tightness, according to MLB.com's Christina De Nicola. Pauley had been serving as Miami's starting third baseman over the past month.

The Marlins welcome the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday with first pitch at 6:40 pm.

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The year is 2025, but Friday's game unfolded like a lot of Sandy Alcantara's starts from the 2022 season. Alcantara tossed a gem against the Boston Red Sox while his own team's offense gave him little to no run support in a losing effort. With the score tied entering the bottom of the ninth inning, Marlins manager Clayton McCullough put the game in the left hand of rookie Josh Simpson, who loaded the bases without recording an out. The Red Sox walked off to win by a final score of 2-1.

Alcantara has struggled post-trade deadline, allowing six runs against the Houston Astros and five runs in his most recent start against the Atlanta Braves. Pitching at Fenway Park against the Red Sox was an even tougher test, yet he went six innings of one-run ball, allowing two hits, one walk and struck out seven—his highest strikeout total since May 11.

What made this a vintage Sandy start? First off, the efficiency, averaging 14 pitches per inning and posting a 53.8% ground ball rate. Alcantara pounded the strike zone, throwing 65 of his 86 pitches for strikes, including an 81% first-pitch strike rate.

"This was his best start of the season," said Clayton McCullough. "I think from a execution standpoint, the quality of stuff that he threw, I thought this was definitely his best. Terrific changeup, his slider was very good and saw the fastball...I felt that was the time there—with a fully rested 'pen—to acknowledge him for how well he did and he fought. He of course wants to go back out there, but felt like that was an incredible outing by him and another one we can build on."

In the bottom of the fifth, Alcantara surrendered his first baserunner of the ballgame when Trevor Story singled. In the sixth inning, the Red Sox tied the game at one apiece thanks to an Alex Bregman RBI double.

From there, it would be quiet until the bottom of the ninth inning. Both Ronny Henriquez and Josh Simpson were warming up in the Marlins bullpen. Henriquez, Miami's most valuable reliever this season, was getting ready in case the Fish took the lead to create a save situation, said McCullough afterward. He had only thrown 11 pitches during the past week.

When the Marlins went down quietly in the top of the ninth, Simpson was thrown into the fire. He walked both Roman Anthony and Alex Bregman, then hit Jarren Duran. As soon as he faced the minimum three batters, Simpson was taken out in place of Calvin Faucher, but there was little Faucher could do when inheriting the bases loaded with no outs. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Story singled to right field to end it.

"Josh is going to be a key piece for us, and his ability to get out left is going to be a big part of that," McCullough explained. "Throwing strikes, especially late in games coming out of the 'pen is a critical thing, which Josh knows and he's aware of that. Tonight, he just didn't have much feel for his pitches and had trouble finding the strike zone. I think we'll look back on this one and it'll be a good moment for Josh. While it stings for him right now and for us, this is part of it and still have a lot of confidence that Josh is going to be someone that will take down high-leverage innings versus left for us."

Simpson entered the game having held lefty opponents to a .194 batting average since his call-up, but a less-impressive .737 OPS. Also, he had given up seven earned runs over his previous 4 ⅔ innings pitched. 

This was the fifth time this season that the Marlins have suffered a walk-off loss. Most recently, it happened against the Milwaukee Brewers on July 27. That game was also decided with an unestablished rookie on the mound (Cade Gibson).

The Marlins' lone run of the ballgame came in the top of the third inning thanks to a Kyle Stowers RBI double off the Green Monster, driving in Xavier Edwards. Despite nine hits, they only had one run to show for it and went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

With the loss, the Marlins fall to 2-7 on this road trip and 58-64 on the season. For those keeping a close eye out on the National League postseason race, both the Reds and Mets lost, keeping the Marlins six games out of the final wild-card spot. The Fish will try to bounce back on Saturday as Cal Quantrill will toe the rubber against Brayan Bello. First pitch is at 4:10 pm.

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The Jakob Marsee experience continues to amaze. On Wednesday night, Marsee went 4-for-5 with two home runs, seven RBI and a triple shy of the cycle. His performance was key in snapping the team's four-game losing streak, winning by a final score of 13-4.

Since being called up by the Marlins the day after the trade deadline, Marsee has been among MLB's most valuable players, slashing .436/.542/.872/1.414 with three home runs, 13 RBI and six stolen bases. He just became the first Marlin since Adam Duvall in 2021 to have a seven-RBI game. He also tied a franchise record for most RBI in a single game.

In the top of the first inning, Marsee took Cleveland Guardians starter Gavin Williams deep for his second home run of the season. That would cap off a four-run first inning for the Marlins.

After falling behind in the count, Marsee knocked in a base hit in the third inning.

With the game tied 4-4 in the top of the sixth, Marsee took reliever Kolby Allard deep for his third home run of the season. This marked not only Marsee's first multi-homer game, but his first three-hit game. The Marlins took a 6-4 lead and would never look back.

In the top of the sixth inning, Marsee drove in two more runs on a single, putting him a triple shy of the cycle. When he went up to hit in the eighth inning, Marsee grounded out to first base, ending his night.

"We've talked about (Marsee) a lot since he's come up," said manager Clayton McCullough. "The high quality at-bats, the discipline at the plate and he's hit for impact...Had all around another terrific game and helped in a big way tonight."

Along with Marsee, another former Padres prospect, Graham Pauley, had the first four-hit game of his career, with each coming against a different pitcher. After singling off of Williams and Allard, Pauley took Matt Festa deep in the sixth inning for his fourth home run of the season and second of the road trip. Pauley worked a walk in the seventh and knocked in one last base hit off of catcher Austin Hedges.

In addition to his strong offensive night, Pauley continues to flash the leather at third base, posting six outs above average and four defensive runs saved. He's been an upgrade within the Marlins defense.

"We've seen a much more relaxed, confident version of Graham this time," McCullough said. "What's really stood out outside of some of the production, some of the power that he's shown, has been his decision-making. I think he's been more in control of his at-bats. He's put himself in much better counts, he's seen the ball much better, slowed things down and that's going to be key for him."

Fitting with the theme of the night, Xavier Edwards, who was selected by San Diego in the 2018 MLB Draft, led the game off with a solo home run, his second of the season and the farthest-hit homet of his MLB career. The ball left the bat at 104.0 mph and the ball went 402 feet.

"A different kind of boost," said McCullough. "We're used to X getting things started for us, but we haven't seen that one come out that much. He's been impacting the ball really well recently. I think he's accessed the pull side some and it hasn't taken away from his ability to get hits all over the field. He's being calculated with when he's taken some shots."

Ever since going back to second base, Edwards has been great, posting seven defensive runs saved and six outs above average. The move back to second base has been a plus for his all-around game as he was slashing .333/.383/.426/.809 at the position going into Wednesday's game.

Edwards' surge has put him in play for the National League batting title—he is now leading all NL qualifiers with a .305 batting average. Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman (.302 BA) is a close second.

Eury Pérez, who made his 12th start of the season, went five innings, allowing four runs on three hits (two home runs). For the third time this season, Pérez did not walk a hitter and matched a season-high with eight strikeouts. His season ERA now stands at 3.58.

Pérez's changeup was crucial, accounting for four of his eight strikeouts, all swinging. He generated six whiffs on that pitch as well. His four-seam fastball, his most-used pitch, averaged 97.7 mph and topped out at 99.5 mph.

"We talked about it before pregame and that's a pitch he's continuing to gain comfort," McCullough said regarding the changeup. "It was a weapon for him tonight."

With the win, the Fish are now 58-62 and 6.5 games out of a wild-card spot. They go for the series win Thursday with Edward Cabrera starting the rubber match. Cabrera is coming off of an eight-inning performance in Atlanta. First pitch is at 6:40 pm.

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Fish Unfiltered—Episode #78

With only a couple notable changes, the Miami Marlins will battle during the stretch run using the same roster they had leading up to the trade deadline. Kevin Barral, Isaac Azout and Ely Sussman share their final thoughts on the club's negotiations involving Sandy Alcantara, Edward Cabrera, Cal Quantrill, Dane Myers and others, plus their performance on the recent 4-2 homestand, which featured the debut of Jakob Marsee.

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.

The Marlins have won six of their last seven series and enter Thursday six games back of a National League postseason spot.

Now, they embark on their longest road trip of the season, a three-city, 11-game odyssey with matchups against the Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Guardians and Boston Red Sox.

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MIAMI, FL—Outfielder Jakob Marsee has been doing it all since being called up by the Miami Marlins. In addition to looking right at home in center field, Marsee became the fifth player in franchise history to record at least one single, one double, one triple and one home run in his first five career games. It wasn't enough on Tuesday as the Fish fell by a final score of 7-3 to the Houston Astros, snapping their streak of six straight series wins.

Marsee's milestone home run came in the bottom of the fifth inning off of Astros long man AJ Blubaugh. The ball left the bat at 105.6 mph and went 409 feet into the visitor's bullpen.

Someone in the 'pen tossed the ball up to an Astros fan in the stands, unaware it was Marsee's first career homer, so the Marlins had to negotiate to get the ball back. In exchange for it, the fan received a signed bat, ball, photo and Marlins merch.

"She didn't want much and was really easy to communicate with, so it was really nice of her to be able to give that up," Marsee said postgame.

Marsee finished the night 2-for-2 with a home run, two RBI and a walk before being removed for a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the ninth. He has a .500/.647/1.167/1.814 slash line overall.

Cal Quantrill, whose name circulated in rumors leading up to last week's trade deadline, was not dealt. In his first start post-deadline, he went 4 ⅓ innings pitched, allowing seven runs on nine hits, three walks and two strikeouts. It was a season-high in hits allowed and tied a season-high in earned runs allowed.

Jose Altuve's home run off Quantrill in the top of the first inning put him in sole possession of third place on the franchise's extra-base hits list (728), behind Jeff Bagwell (969) and Craig Biggio (1,014). It gave the Astros a 2-0 lead. In the top of the fourth, Jeremy Peña hit an RBI triple, driving in two more runs. Yainer Diaz's 16th home run of the season blew the game open, giving the Astros a 7-1 lead. 

The veteran who Marsee was called up to replace, Jesús Sánchez, had a 2-for-5 night for the Astros (both hits coming off of Quantrill).

In recent starts, Quantrill had been efficient and able to induce plenty of ground balls. That was not the case on Tuesday night—only three of the batted balls put in play were on the ground (15.0 GB%). His cutter, which has been his most-used pitch this season along with his best in terms of run value (+11 RV), was hit hard, posting an average exit velo of 95.8 mph.

"I don't think any pitches were that bad," Quantrill said postgame. "It's just really the location. Need to be 0-1, 1-2 on guys—just didn't do a very good job of that. Made a couple bad pitches with runners on and it kind of burned me. It's been a good two months and it can't be perfect, so put this one behind us and keep on going."

The last time Eric Wagaman hit a home run going into Tuesday's game was on June 17 against the Philadelphia Phillies. In the bottom of the seventh inning, he ended that drought. The ball went 103.7 mph to right-center field. The Marlins still trailed, 7-3. Wagaman finished the day going 1-for-2 with a home run and two walks.

"Boosted confidence," is what Wagaman thinks a night like tonight can do for him. "If you can take that to the next day and just 'let the game come to you' type of thing, I think pressing for hits, forcing those good ABs—that's when stuff starts to go downhill. You just gotta go out there and keep a clear mind."

With the loss, the Marlins fall two games under .500. The Fish will send out Janson Junk in hopes to salvage the series on Wednesday,. The Astros will go with Spencer Arrighetti, who is coming off the injured list after missing the last four months due to a broken thumb. First pitch is at 4:40 pm.

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MIAMI, FL—With trade speculation no longer a factor, the Miami Marlins were hopeful that Sandy Alcantara would loosen up. While the veteran starter matched a season-high with seven innings pitched, it was one bad inning that ultimately decided the game. The Marlins dropped their series opener to the Houston Astros by a final score of 8-2, with Alcantara suffering his 10th loss.

Jeremy Peña led off the fourth inning with a double and five of the next six Astros recorded hits of their own. Peña was driven in by former Marlin Jesús Sánchez, giving the Astros the lead. Jose Altuve smacked a base hit and Carlos Correa drove Sánchez in on an RBI single before Christian Walker grounded into a force out, which drove in Altuve for a third run. Victor Caratini laced a base hit, then Yainer Díaz smacked a double to score both Walker and Caratini, making it 5-0.

"Couple hard contact, couple soft contact balls and it seems like they came out ready for all the breaking balls that I was throwing," Alcantara said postgame. "They were very aggressive since the first inning."

The Astros lineup didn't add on any more runs until the seventh inning when the Marlins righty allowed an RBI double to Jeremy Peña. Alcantara went on to go seven innings, allowing six runs on nine hits, one walk and struck out five. Alcantara prevented Houston from hitting any home runs, but he did allow 12 hard-hit balls.

Well known for inducing ground balls, Alcantara only had a 40% ground ball rate on the night. He generated 11 swings-and-misses. His curveball continues to be inconsistent, this time being responsible for four Astros hits.

"It's an aggressive offense," said Marlins manager Clayton McCullough following the game. "They strung some hits together and he really got the sinker going after that. He was in the strike zone and they were aggressive.."

On the flip side, Astros starter Jason Alexander, who was making his fourth start of the season, went six shutout innings, allowing three hits, one walk and struck out six to out-duel the 2022 Cy Young Award winner.

"He sped us up. The changeup was a really good pitch for him. Struck with his sweeper early in the count, had his sink and we had a tough time getting the ball off the ground," said McCullough. "Guys just seemed like they were caught in between some and he really did have a good feel for his changeup tonight. Was able to locate it at the bottom of the zone and then get it to play down below. He threw a really nice game and we just didn't adjust to things well enough."

For the first time since 2006 (Joe Borchard and Wes Helms), Marlins pinch-hitters had back-to-back home runs. Javier Sanoja and Derek Hill both went yard in the seventh inning. Sanoja hit his fourth of the season, while Hill, who was reinstated off the injured list prior to Monday's game, hit his third. The Marlins still trailed, 6-2.

"We were down there, we're chasing and they have a very lefty-heavy bullpen. Looking at this series, there were actually going to be some times where we have some guys that aren't starting there, that come off the bench and we feel really good versus left and to try to take a shot there to create something," said McCullough. "To tell you that I thought they were going to go back-to-back, I can't say that, but thinking they'd go up there and at least try to start an inning and try to get some people on base and mount a rally and chip away into the deficit as much as we could."

In the top of the eighth inning, with a runner on first and one out, Yainer Díaz grounded out to first baseman Eric Wagaman who then fired off to shortstop Otto Lopez to make the tag for an inning-ending double play, but Lopez assumed there would still be a force out at second. The inning continued. Mauricio Dubón drove Caratini in on an RBI double and Cam Smith drove in Dubón on an RBI double, making it an 8-2 game.

"[Lopez is] racing over, trying to get to the base and I think with just how quickly it happened and Wags turning through, just lost track of if Wags touched (first base) or not. As a group there, you're trying as best as we can to help each other out, communicating there and we just didn't."

In the bottom of the eighth inning, with Agustín Ramírez at first and no outs, Liam Hicks knocked in a base hit. Ramírez tried to go from first to third, but halfway to third base, he stopped and decided to go back to second. It was too late and he was tagged out for the first out of the inning. The Marlins did not score for the remainder of the game.

"We've touted and preached our aggressiveness and wanting to be aggressive on the bases and that's one way on the scoreboard," McCullough said. "Being down, we're just at a point in the game where outs are at a premium. We're chasing a pretty large deficit at that point. You're looking at that—how important is that 90 feet in comparison to what we need right now at this moment is to try to scratch and claw back? They're all unfortunate when they happen and we'll talk about it, learn from it, move on to the next thing."

With the loss, the Marlins are back to one game below .500 and 6.5 games back of the final National League Wild Card spot. Cal Quantrill will take the mound for the Marlins on Tuesday. The Astros will go with an opener. First pitch is at 6:40 pm.

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MIAMI, FL—The lone move the Miami Marlins made on the day of Thursday's MLB trade deadline was trading longtime outfielder Jesús Sánchez to the Houston Astros in exchange for pitcher Ryan Gusto and prospects Chase Jaworsky and Esmil Valencia. Sánchez made his return to Miami as an opponent on Monday.

"Honestly, I thought that they were going to keep me up until the end of the season," Sánchez told a small group of reporters in Spanish prior to the series opener. "It's a business. They had their prospects that they wanted to call-up, so I thought it was a good trade for me and for them as well."

Sánchez told the media that although he assumed he'd stay, he was prepared for the inevitable with his name being in rumors throughout the last month or so.

"About one week before, I was feeling pretty frustrated," said Sánchez. "I was overthinking about my future here—that maybe I would stay, maybe I wouldn't. I was overthinking it, but now that it's here, I feel great and happy about it."

The previous time Sánchez was dealt was exactly six years earlier on 2019 deadline day when he went from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Marlins. Back then, he was only 21 years old and he hadn't made his debut.

"When I was traded the first time, I was a lot more nervous. I had been with Tampa my whole life. Having new teammates that I was unfamiliar with on the Marlins, I was just nervous and really didn't know what direction I would go. This time around, I don't think it was the same. This time around, I had a better understanding of who my teammates were here in Houston and everything is well."

Up until the trade, Sánchez was slashing .256/.320/.420/.740 with ten home runs, 36 RBI and a 104 wRC+. He was on pace for a third straight season of above-average offensive production.

Per Astros manager Joe Espada, Sánchez will be platooned. Houston has faced four straight right-handed starting pitchers since adding Sánchez, so he has been in the lineup every game thus far. On Monday, he started in left field and drove in the first run for the Astros with an RBI double off of Sandy Alcantara. He finished the night going 1-for-4.

Sánchez said that he is someone who will bring "energy" and "a lot of winning" to his new club. He also expressed love for his former teammates.

"I hope they keep winning. I wish them nothing but the best and that God continues to bless them because they are a good team."

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MIAMI, FL—On Monday, the Miami Marlins claimed outfielder Joey Wiemer off waivers from the Kansas City Royals. He was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville. FanDuel Sports Network's Craig Mish was the first to report the news. The corresponding roster moves were to designate Jack Winkler for assignment and reinstate Derek Hill from the injured list.

Wiemer, 26, was originally drafted and developed by the Milwaukee Brewers. He had a monster season in 2021 between Low-A and High-A where he slashed .295/.403/.556/.958 with 27 home runs, 77 RBI, 30 stolen bases and a 193 wRC+. He was rated as a Top 100 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline entering both the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

Wiemer made his major league debut in 2023 and through 132 games, he slashed .204/.283/.362/.645 with 13 home runs, 42 RBI, 11 stolen bases and a 77 wRC+.

This will be Wiemer's fourth different MLB organization. In 2024, he was dealt alongside Jakob Junis to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Frankie Montas. Wiemer only played in two games with the Reds before he was once again traded last offseason, this time to the Royals along with Jonathan India in exchange for Brady Singer. He never played a major league game for the Royals, struggling for their AAA-Omaha affiliate with a .182/.291/.312 slash line in 72 games.

Wiemer can play all three outfield spots and do so very well. In 2023, he posted five outs above average in center field along with one DRS. His arm strength ranked in the 81st percentile among MLB outfielders, per Baseball Savant.

Wiemer is using up his final minor league option in 2025, so there's some pressure on him to show improvement down the stretch of this season.

As for the other roster moves, Hill returns from a left middle finger sprain, his third IL stint this season. Through 33 games, he's slashing .211/.276/.322/.598 with two home runs, seven RBI, six stolen bases and a 66 wRC+.

Hill will be a defensive replacement and face primarily left-handed pitching, per manager Clayton McCullough. Javier Sanoja, who has been splitting time between the infield and outfield, will be used in the infield only for the time being.

Winkler was in his second stint with the big league team, but was barely leaving the bench. His last appearance came on July 28 during a lopsided loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. He's likely to clear waivers and remain with the Marlins organization.

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MIAMI, FL—One night after Agustín Ramírez walked off the New York Yankees in what was the most exhilarating game of the season, he made an even bigger impact with his bat on Saturday. With a pair of solo home runs, the "Gus Bus" singlehandedly accounted for all of the offense in the Marlins' 2-0 victory, which clinched their sixth straight series win. The Marlins are now one game under .500 at 54-55.

Ramirez was one of three players acquired last season in the trade that sent Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the Yankees. As a rookie, he is now slashing .244/.289/.471/.760 with 17 home runs and 50 RBI—leading all National League rookies in both categories.

"I'm sure it felt even a little extra special for it to happen against his former former organization," said manager Clayton McCullough. "Put great swings on both of those, hit out to left-center field and we've seen Gus do some really incredible things throughout the season. Offensively, we've seen his ability to impact and we believe that his offensive ceiling is not close yet. We're going to see continue to see a better version of him as he gets more at-bats. He understands how people are pitching him in situations and there's always a threat when Gus is in the box."

Eury Pérez's awesome outing went under the radar because of Ramírez's afternoon, but the Marlins starter went six shutout innings, allowing two hits, three walks and struck out five. He generated 13 total whiffs, with five each on both the four-seam fastball and slider. Pérez's only struggle was falling behind in the count, posting a 47.6% first-pitch strike rate. His season average entering Saturday's start was 60.5%.

"He's got terrific stuff and it can be a tough lineup to navigate with their ability to control the strike zone very well," said McCullough. "Historically, it's a group that forces you into the zone, and that's the place you have to get them out. I think Eury over the whole outing did enough work to get them engaged into at-bats...I think it was just when he needed to make some pitches, he did after that first inning."

In that first inning McCullough is referring to, Pérez had to ask for time on three separate occasions due to PitchCom communication issues. "None of the PitchComs were working around the infield," Pérez told the media in Spanish. "We talked to the umpire and he told me that if I ask for time again, he was going to charge me with a ball. At the end, we decided to just to go with signaling in our hands."

Pérez, who is the youngest pitcher on any MLB team's active roster, has been on a dominant run. Per the Marlins, he is the first pitcher in Marlins history to allow 15 hits or fewer while posting a sub-1.50 ERA in a span of six starts. And yet, he seemingly does not get anywhere close to the same national recognition as Milwaukee Brewers All-Star Jacob Misiorowski, for example.

"I don't know if they forgot about me, but if they did, we are beginning to make sure that they do know who I am," Pérez said in Spanish. "Every time I go out there, I try to perform to the best of my capabilities. We're going to continue doing that."

A big reason for Pérez's success was the defense behind him, primarily Xavier Edwards deking Chisholm in the top of the second inning. With one out and Chisholm on first, Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt hit a pop-up just a few feet beyond the edge of the infield dirt. Edwards noticed Chisholm straying too far off the bag, and after making the catch, he quickly threw to first before Chisholm could get back, ending the inning.

Following the game, Chisholm confirmed with the media that he was under the impression that Edwards would drop the ball on purpose.

"Already playing with both of the middle infielders out there, I saw something that I thought they were going to do. He deked it like he was going to what I thought he was going to do, but he didn't do it. I'm still trying to be aggressive because I've played here before and I know how the field played, but sometimes you get aggressive and you get caught up and you make an out."

Ronny Henriquez, Tyler Phillips and Calvin Faucher threw one scoreless inning apiece in relief of Pérez. They retired all nine batters they faced.

The Marlins will look to sweep the Yankees for the first time in franchise history. Edward Cabrera will toe the rubber with Luis Gil, who will be making his 2025 season debut. First pitch is at 1:40 pm.

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Sources tell Fish On First that outfielder Jakob Marsee (FOF #23 prospect) has been called up and will make his major league debut against the New York Yankees this weekend. The club has yet to confirm any roster move.

This promotion comes immediately after the Marlins traded away Jesús Sánchez to the Houston Astros in exchange for three players.

Marsee, 24, was one of four players acquired in the Luis Arraez trade early last season. He will become the first player from that package to debut in the big leagues. Through 98 games this year with Triple-A Jacksonville, Marsee is slashing .246/.379/.438/.817 with 14 home runs, 37 RBI, 47 stolen bases and a 125 wRC+. He ranks in the 93rd percentile among all AAA hitters in chase rate, per Prospect Savant.

"His average exit velo is up like six miles an hour right now compared to last year," said AAA hitting coach Mike Marjama a couple days ago. "His BABIP actually down, which is even more encouraging. Seeing some of the things and the process metrics show up again and again, he's one of those guys who had a little rocky start at the beginning, but now that we've gotten to know each other, better in communication, it's been super helpful and the trust factor is there. He's a Detroit kid, a hard-nose underdog and so watching him come in, chip on his shoulder, compete, he's the heartbeat of our team."

Marsee should be starting whenever Miami faces right-handed pitching, likely platooning with the right-handed-hitting Heriberto Hernández. He has a .857 OPS against righties in 2025.

Defensively, Marsee plays all three outfield spots, but profiles best in center with his speed and route-running. The Marlins could shift Dane Myers to right field on days when they're in the lineup together.

The Marlins and Yankees kick off a three-game set on Friday with first pitch slated for 7:10 pm. Marsee will likely be in the lineup on both Saturday and Sunday against right-handers Cam Schlittler and Luis Gil.

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Those who follow the Marlins minor league system closely have noticed the pattern. From March-May, Jacob Berry simply doesn't hit, and that's a problem for somebody whose value depends on their bat.

At High-A in 2023, Berry was slashing .171/.204/.288/.492 through the end of May. It got even worse the next year with Double-A Pensacola, where he had a .155/.205/.217/.422 slash line through the same stretch of the calendar. By comparison, his 2025 season-opening slump wasn't as extreme (.181/.268/.306/.574), but he still ranked among the worst qualified Triple-A hitters.

"Getting into the season, there's high expectations," Berry told Fish On First during a visit to Jacksonville this week. "Puts a little bit of added pressure instead of just going back out there and playing. Just have to worry about my last at-bat and next at-bat coming up and just letting it go in the past, which is all I can do."

The slow starts have ruined his overall numbers in the minors, but the 2022 first-round pick has done more this time to recover. He slashed .303/.413/.492/.905 with five home runs and 22 RBI during June and July combined. In terms of wRC+, he has been an above-average hitter for the Jumbo Shrimp (102 wRC+).

"Just took a step back and realized that it's not the end of the year," said Berry. "Still got a long year left and we've still got 48 games left. I am just trying to have quality at-bats every time I go up there."

Similar to most of his Jacksonville teammates, Berry is making better swing decisions and stealing more bases than he has in the past. His walk rate has gone from 7.8% in 2024 to 11.7% in 2025 while his strikeout rate has remained stable. His 17 stolen bases is already a career-high.

When new Marlins call-up Jakob Marsee was scratched from Thursday's AAA lineup, Berry filled his shoes in the leadoff spot. That could be his regular spot moving forward after being buried at the bottom of the order for much of this season.

The timing of Berry potentially getting called up himself depends on where the Marlins see him defensively. He was originally drafted as a third baseman, but his playing time at the position has dropped each season (only 12 starts there in 2025). The majority of his appearances this year have come at second base. During Jacksonville's current series against Columbus, he's been exclusively in right field.

"Learning different positions is something new," Berry said. "Feel like I can play them and starting to learn how to play them well is the biggest thing and I just gotta grow in every area."

The 24-year-old switch-hitter will be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft during the upcoming offseason. If his production over the final two months looks like the previous two months, Berry could be in consideration for a 40-man roster spot.

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On Thursday, the Miami Marlins dealt the longest-tenured position player on the team, Jesús Sánchez, to the Houston Astros in exchange for right-handed pitcher Ryan Gusto and prospects Chase Jaworsky and Esmil Valencia. Michael Schwab was the first to report that Sánchez was traded.

This marks back-to-back years that the Marlins and Astros have struck a deal. In 2024, they swapped Jacob Amaya for Valente Bellozo.

Sánchez, who the Marlins acquired alongside Ryne Stanek back in 2019 when they traded reliever Nick Anderson and Trevor Richards to the Tampa Bay Rays, finishes his career with the Marlins slashing .243/.310/.426/.736 with 69 home runs, 226 RBI and a 100 OPS+.

Through 86 games in 2025, Sánchez is slashing .256/.320/.420/.740 with 10 home runs, 36 RBI and a 105 wRC+. After the Marlins trade to give him an opportunity to face more left-handed pitching in 2024, he's been primarily facing righties this season, which will likely be the case with the Astros.

Sánchez ranks 23rd in Marlins history in games played (532).

As for the return, Ryan Gusto was currently in the Astros rotation. He has posted a 4.92 ERA, 4.11 FIP, 9.10 K/9 and 2.93 BB/9 through 86 innings pitched. His last start came on July 30 against the Washington Nationals, going six innings, allowing one run on four hits, one walk and struck out five.

Gusto's arsenal consist of a four-seam fastball, curveball, sinker, cutter, changeup, sweeper and slider. His fastball is his best pitch, posting a three run value, averaging 94.1 mph, generating a 28.4% whiff rate and 21.2% PutAway rate. 

With the Marlins surprisingly holding onto everybody in their major league rotation, expect Gusto to be optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville.

Infielder Chase Jaworsky was one of two prospects acquired in this trade. He is the 22nd ranked prospect according to Baseball America and 13th per MLB Pipeline. Through 57 games at the High-A level, he's slashing .242/.353/.359/.712 with three home runs, 29 RBI, 24 stolen bases and a 100 wRC+.

Esmil Valencia, who isn't ranked in any Top 30 list, is currently in Low-A slashing .263/.325/.357/.682 with five home runs, 36 RBI, 50 stolen bases and a 103 wRC+. Right away, Valencia joining the organization puts him as the system's stolen base leader, ahead of Jakob Marsee who currently stands at. The 19-year-old outfield prospect is striking out 24.6% of the time, which is an increase from last year's 17.5% rate.

Overall, the Marlins did well in this trade. They acquired Gusto, who was struggling a bit in the Astros organization, but has the makings of a middle-of-the-rotation starter, while the two other prospects have some nice underlying tools which the Marlins have been looking for in prospects ever since Peter Bendix joined the organization.

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Marlins outfield prospect Jakob Marsee speaks with Fish On First about his offensive improvement this season and being on the verge of reaching the major leagues.

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