Since Derek Jeter spearheaded the purchase of the Miami Marlins in 2017, the team has largely been the laughingstock of the National League East.
Jeter quickly became the face of the Marlins and his first edict was one similar to the ownership of the past. He needed to cut payroll.
In his first offseason in power, Jeter helped orchestrate trades sending the 2017 NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton to the New York Yankees and future 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich to the Milwaukee Brewers.
Marcell Ozuna was another causality, as Miami traded three All-Star caliber outfielders in one offseason, shipping the Dominican slugger to the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Marlins were starting from scratch and one could only anticipate how many losses they would pile up in the ensuing years. Two years into the process, Jeter’s Marlins sport an unflattering 120-203 record.
Beating up on the Marlins has become the path towards winning this division, as the Atlanta Braves have won 15 of their 19 games against them in each of the last two years. That is the best record against the Marlins in the division and one of the reasons that the Braves have won consecutive NL East titles.
Last year, the only team in the division that struggled against the Marlins was the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies actually had a losing record against Miami, with the Marlins taking 10 of the 19 contests. Outside of the Phillies, the rest of the division went 43-14 against the Marlins.
Despite suffering an embarrassing sweep against the Marlins in May, the New York Mets still went 13-6 against them in 2019.
While the Marlins are likely to remain bottom-feeders in the NL East, don’t expect them to be quite the same pushover in 2020.
The seeds of their rebuild began to bear fruit last year, as Sandy Alcantara proved to be a quality starting pitcher with a 2.9 bWAR season. Alcantara made 32 starts atop Miami’s rotation and pitched to a 3.88 ERA.
Brian Anderson built on his solid rookie season in his sophomore campaign, hitting .261/.342/.468, with 20 home runs and 66 RBIs. Anderson had a 3.8 bWAR and has proven to be a solid fielder whether playing third base or right field (8 DRS at 3B, 5 DRS in RF).
Standout performers are few and far between on a team that lost 105 games, but Alcantara and Anderson are just the first wave of above-average players that have come from a farm system that Fangraphs currently ranks as the fourth-best in baseball.
This offseason, the Marlins have been quietly making additions that point towards their desire to compete in 2020.
The Marlins’ first move was a trade to acquire Jonathan Villar from the Baltimore Orioles, adding a real spark plug atop their lineup. Villar hit 24 home runs and had 40 stolen bases last season. He also scored 111 runs for an Orioles team that combined to score 729 runs all year.
On the same day they added Villar, Miami also claimed Jesus Aguilar off of waivers, hoping for a bounce-back season for the former Brewers slugger. Aguilar was an All-Star in 2018, hitting .274/.352/.539, with 35 home runs and 108 RBI.
Miami also signed previously non-tendered reliever Yimi Garcia to a one-year deal. Garcia was a casualty of the Dodgers need to protect other players on their 40-man roster, but is coming off a very solid season. Garcia pitched to a 3.61 ERA across 62 1/3 innings pitched. He also had an outstanding 0.87 WHIP.
Finally, the most significant addition for the Marlins (at least financially) was their signing of Corey Dickerson to a two-year, $17.5 million deal. Splitting his time between with the Pirates and the Phillies, Dickerson is coming off a season where he hit .304/.341/.565. The 30-year-old outfielder was limited to 78 games due to injuries, but still managed to hit 12 home runs and 59 RBIs.
Now all of this is not to say that the Marlins are suddenly going to contend for the division in 2020. It would take an epic collapse from any of the top four teams in the NL East for Miami to finish anywhere but last place.
Still, the Marlins are anticipating the debut of some of their top prospects such as pitcher Sixto Sanchez this season and have added veterans to complement that influx of young talent.
Beating up on the Miami Marlins remains a key component to winning the NL East, but that task has just gotten tougher in 2020.
