Robert Hanson

The Paddack & Morel signings have been bad, to put it ‘mildly’. On a brighter note, the Marlins thought they needed Paddack, especially after Cabrera & Weathers were traded. Turns out Max & Junk have been as good or better than expected, having both put up numbers comparable to Eddy & Ryan, and Snelling continued his dominance in AAA, earning himself a call up. Turns out Paddack wasn’t necessary. As far as Morel, the Marlins were hoping for the 2023 version, but aren’t even getting the 2024-2025 version. Eventually Conine will be back, maybe by the end of the month. And Alderman is knocking on the door. Time is getting shorter for Morel & Caissie to turn things around. Looks like Leo is safe, for now. Still keeping faith that the Fairbanks signing will pan out & John King was obviously a good signing.

Unfortunately, the Twins win the series 2-1. Byron Buxton is the series MVP.

Xavier got his chance when the Marlins DFAd T.A., allowing X to play ss. The beneficiary, on the Marlins roster, of the Arraez trade was Otto Lopez, who became the Marlins starting 2nd baseman (and eventually, ss.). What would have happened with Otto, if not for the Arraez trade, is unclear. The Marlins won the trade simply by clearing a path for Otto. And acquiring Marsee was icing on the cake, despite finishing 1-26 last season & struggling this season. The fact that the Marlins covered Arraez’s salary, post trade, was the stunner. This was no salary dump.

The Marlins will win the series 2-1. Otto Lopez will be the series MVP.

The Marlins will win the series 2-1. Xavier Edwards will be the series MVP.

Obviously, this move was necessary. Fortunately, the Marlins acknowledged the mistake and are moving on. After trading both Eddy and Weathers, the Marlins had several question marks in the rotation heading into the season and thought signing Paddack was necessary. Max and Junk have answered those questions at the MLB level and both Snelling & Braxton have pitched well in Jville. And Blalock & Gusto have pitched well recently, both going 6 innings in their last start. So on a brighter note, Paddack wasn’t even needed and unfortunately, other than the Yankee game when he pitched 4.2 innings of shutout relief and the Tiger game when he went 6 innings, he wasn’t much help. Only question now is, who starts Friday? Braxton or Snelling? Braxton pitched last Tuesday and did not have a good outing. If he starts tonight, then it will be Snelling, who last pitched Friday.

Will be interesting to see if Agustin continues to strictly catch & DH in Jville. How the Marlins really feel about Ignoffo could determine this. If the Marlins feel that Ignoffo could help the Marlins, eventually, at the MLB level then it doesn’t make much sense to continue to have Agustin catch. Question is, where exactly would Agustin play? Some have suggested 1B, however the Marlins have DDLS as their primary 1B in Jville. Agustin does have decent speed. Have to wonder if corner outfield spot is in his future.

There were some who suggested Meyer & Junk were headed to the bullpen, eventually. And maybe they will eventually but it’s looking like it won’t be anytime soon….

Watching amateur baseball isn’t something I do, so who the Marlins should draft, I’m not going there. Having said that, when reading about this player’s defensive limitations I think about Jacob Berry. IMO, we could see the Marlins lean heavy into position players as opposed to pitchers. As of now, the Marlins strategy seems to be drafting/signing & developing pitchers, then trading them for position players. The Marlins inability to draft/sign & develop position players has been an ongoing issue for many years, going back to the tail end of Loria’s tenure. The F.A. route has also been a disaster for the Marlins. Fortunately, through trades, waiver claims (Otto), & rule 5 (Hicks), they’ve been able to put a MLB team on the field.

Unfortunately, the Marlins will only be able to split the series 2-2. Kyle Schwarber will be the series MVP.

No question that Caissie has looked lost at the plate, not swinging at fastballs in the middle of the zone and swinging at breaking pitches in the dirt. However, as Kevin mentioned, there isn’t any viable candidate in Jville to bring up which speaks to a bigger problem. The Marlins still have a long way to go as far as drafting/signing and developing position players. The fact that Rogers, Luzardo, Eddy, & Weathers were traded for 11 position players, speaks volumes. And not to mention the Arraez, which brought an additional 3 position players (and Woo Suk, too). The run of RH starting pitching the Marlins have faced — 18 in the last 20 games — has done 2 things. 1: Allowed Liam Hicks to bring his game to another level. 2: Exposed Caissie. IMO, Caissie stays for now. It’s still early and, right now, there’s no one else to call up. And the Marlins should not feel obligated to run Caissie out there vs all RH starters. If the Marlins were to send down Caissie or suffer another injury to a position players, depending on who that would be, whoever they bring up isn’t going to be much help or any help at all.

A bit of good fortune last night for the Marlins last night, but also a well deserved and well earned victory. Yet another base running blunder by Agustin, who was really good behind the plate, went from a pick off to an eventual run scored when Ohtani chucked it into CF. Not sure what to make of Otto at SS. There’s been a regression, unfortunately. More good fortune that his error and misplay in the 1st & 9th innings didn’t turn into more runs for the Dodgers. Good small ball by the Marlins with Caissie getting a sac fly in the 2nd & Marsee sac bunting Morel to 2nd, followed by an RBI single by Stowers. Junk very impressive, throwing 6 shutout innings in Dodger Stadium which followed 5 shutout innings vs STL last Wednesday.

I was okay with the Marlins moving on from Cabrera. The tipping point was the elbow strain in September. IMO, that was the final straw on his long list of injuries. The Weathers trade was disappointing, but understandable. The Marlins have multiple LH starters in AAA who are currently blocked. Heriberto and Slater have been a downgrade, no question. Slater signed only because Morel & Esteury were injured. Both Dane & Weimer are both good defensive outfielders. Dane was a good pinch runner with base stealing skills & Weimer has tools, though both have a lot of swing & miss. Letting go of Johnston was a numbers game. Not sure how many LH bats you can have on a 26 man roster. Currently, there’s Caissie, Hicks, Marsee, Pauley, & Stowers, not to mention Conine. As far as Esteury & Morel, I would give them an incomplete, but so far not good. The Marlins have faced just 8 LH starters this year, going 3-5 and have lost their last 4 after starting 3-1 vs said starters. Last year, at the trade deadline, the Marlins held on to nearly everyone except for Jesus (made room for Marsee) & Fortes (too many catchers). They thought they had a shot at the playoffs, especially after sweeping the Yankees Aug. 1-3. Had they not traded Luzardo (replaced by Cal Quantrill), they would have made the playoffs. Last year, after going 1-5 on their west coast trip to Seattle & L.A., the Marlins were 12-18 at the end of April & finished the season 79-83. We’ll see what happens this year.

Unfortunately, the Dodgers will win the series 3-0. Shohei Ohtani will be the series MVP.

I’m okay with Caissie & Pauley sitting vs LHP and am okay with Hicks & Marsee getting occasional days off vs LHP, though they shouldn’t be — and aren’t— platoon players. The Marlins are in line to face RH starters for the next 6 games and likely won’t face a LH starter until next Sunday vs Jesus Luzardo & the Phillies. Caissie, Hicks, Marsee, & Pauley will get plenty of AB’s over the next week. As far as OPS, Caissie is at .664 & Marsee is at .575. Not sure what their OPS vs LHP is but, undoubtedly, it’s not good. As far as the Heriberto situation, both he & Leo are the prime candidates to get sent down when Morel gets added to the 26 man roster. IMO, it’s Heriberto who goes down. For now, I think the Marlins want Sanoja to focus on 3rd base & left field/center field & let Leo continue to back up the middle infield spots. Also, want to see Norby continue playing 1st base. Don’t want Morel taking AB’s away from him. If the Marlins want to sit Norby, let Morel start at first vs LH starters. After all, Norby has reverse splits vs LHP.