The Marlins remain an imbalanced team at the Major League level and in their farm system. They struggled to develop positional players, but their pitching continues to be one of the best in the league.
The top two prospects are pitchers Thomas White and Noble Meyer. While Meyer was taken ahead of White in the 2023 draft, White emerged as the better prospect as Meyer struggled to throw strikes. The best positional players were acquired through trades. I like the two Yankees they acquired for Jazz Chisholm in Augustin Ramirez and Jared Serna, but neither has Chisholm’s upside. Connor Norby missed our list as he lost eligibility, but of all the prospects they acquired at the deadline last July, he has the highest upside and has started showing his wares in Miami.
With all the noted caveats, the system is better today than it was a year ago. Is it good enough to get to the playoffs in three years? I actually think it is.
Prospect Snapshot
- Top Prospect: Thomas White
- Biggest Mover: Javier Sanoja
- Biggest Disappointment: Jacob Marsee
- Emerging Prospect: Luis Cova
1. Thomas White (LHP)
- Highest Level: High-A ETA: 2026 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 30 SP
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: He has impressive stuff with improved control.
Thomas White was the 35th overall pick in the 2023 Draft. He has a promising arsenal with a fastball that can touch 97 (sits 94 to 96 MPH) with tremendous ride (2550 RPM). His curveball (statcast lists it as a slider) already looks like a plus pitch with significant spin and vertical drop. The change-up has a nice fade and looks like it could be a plus pitch.
As the season progressed, his control improved. In nine starts to end the season in High-A, he posted a 3.05 BB/9 rate. The control improvements are not a surprise, as he’s athletic; the timing is a little surprising. The improvements came quickly.
White has top-of-the-rotation potential, and with his improved control, certainty has risen. He’s moving quickly and could see Double-A in 2025 and potentially the Major Leagues in 2026.
2. Noble Meyer (RHP)
- Highest Level: Low-A ETA: 2027 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 40 SP with upside
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: Young and athletic with some physical projection remaining. Control has been an issue.
Noble Meyer was the tenth overall pick in the 2023 draft. He has a solid three-pitch mix consisting of a sinker, slider, and change-up. There were reports that he could throw 100 MPH in high school, but as a professional, his sinker averages 93 to 94 MPH and maxes out at 96 MPH. Perhaps he used to throw a four-seamer and was letting it rip.
His sinker has a ton of spin, so he should be able to get a few more strikeouts with it than you typically see. The slider appears to be his money pitch, with great movement and spin. His change-up has excellent characteristics and could grade out as a plus pitch. The delivery is more lower-three-quarters than I would like, and he needs to gain some of the advantages a 6-foot-5 pitcher possesses.
Meyer’s most significant issue to date is control. In 74 innings across Low and High-A, he walked 55 hitters or 6.7 per nine. That needs to improve.
3. Agustin Ramirez (C/1B)
- Highest Level: Triple-A ETA: 2025 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 20 Catcher
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: He makes excellent contact with plus power.
Agustin Ramirez signed with the Yankees in 2018 and received a solid $400,000 bonus. He’s always made excellent contact, but in 2024, we are starting to see his power emerge. He’s more athletic than you think, provides an excellent target behind home, and will even steal the odd base.
The upside is a starting catcher in the league who should produce 20+ home runs while hitting .260 plus. He’s better than people think and should be owned in all Dynasty Leagues now.
4. Jared Serna (SS/2B)
- Highest Level: Double-A ETA: 2026 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 15 2B
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: He’s showing an excellent understanding of the strike zone with bat speed and above-average speed.
Jared Serna continues progressing steadily through the minor leagues, showing an excellent understanding of the strike zone with growing power. He continues to be an above-average runner and an excellent base runner. Like the Yankees, the Marlins have been playing him at shortstop, and the reports are encouraging.
There are not substantial exit velocities, but it should be enough to hit a ton of doubles and 10 to 12 home runs. He has above-average speed, so expecting 12 to 15 stolen bases seems reasonable. Serna won’t be a star, but he has enough tools to the upside to be a solid regular and a middle infielder in fantasy baseball or even a Top 15 second baseman.
5. Robby Snelling (LHP)
- Highest Level: Triple-A ETA: 2025 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 45 SP with upside
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: It was a rollercoaster season as his fastball and slider backed up to begin the season but started to return in July when the Padres decided to move him.
Robby Snelling was the Padres’ first-round compensatory pick in the 2022 Draft. Like many Padres prospects, he moved quickly through the system.
His season started poorly, with his fastball losing 2 to 3 MPH in velocity and his slider noticeably less effective. As the summer progressed, the velocity returned, and he started to return to form. Then, the Padres traded him to the Marlins, and they quickly began to reap the benefits.
As a member of the Marlins, he’s looked like the pitcher he was in 2023, with improved stuff and control. I still see him as a number three starter, but now, as a member of the Marlins, there’s a better chance he could exceed that ceiling. Snelling finished the season with a strong start in Triple-A, posting the following stat line: 6.0 IP, 7 hits, 1 ER, 7K/1BB.
6. Adam Mazur (RHP)
- Highest Level: Majors ETA: 2024 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 50 SP
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: He has a solid four-pitch mix and the ability to throw strikes. His location is spotty, and he’s been hit hard in Triple-A and MLB.
Adam Mazur was the Padres’ second-round pick in 2022. In 2024, he split his time between Triple-A and the Major Leagues, not pitching particularly well in either league.
He has a four-pitch arsenal. His fastball averages 94.7 MPH with poor backspin; consequently, it gets a very pedestrian 13% whiff rate. His slider and newly added change-up are his best secondary pitches. He’s catching too much of the plate, and hitters are not missing.
He’s always been able to throw strikes, so the elevated walk rate in his Major League debut doesn’t worry me too much. However, it’s the command that is lacking.
If it all comes together, the upside is a strong number four starter in fantasy, maybe even more.
7. Deyvison De Los Santos (1B)
- Highest Level: Triple-A ETA: 2024-25 Fantasy Ceiling: Corner Infielder with upside
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: Plus raw power, but concerns about how much he will hit.
Deyvison De Los Santos was left unprotected by the Diamondbacks entering the 2023 Rule-5 Draft and was taken by the Guardians. However, he didn’t make the team out of spring and was returned to Arizona, where he had done nothing but hit. Granted, his BABIP is .380, but he still swings at everything.
De Los Santos prioritizes power over hit and will expand the strike zone. His style is characterized by raw power, which can be a double-edged sword when facing better velocity. However, he seems to have found something this season, as he’s improved his contact rate. However, he can get overly aggressive, so I’m still not convinced he’ll hit enough. But he could easily run into 30+ home runs annually.
I’ve put his ceiling as a Corner Infielder with some upside. I could have also said with risk. If you decide to roster him, know your parameters.
8. Dillon Head (OF)
- Highest Level: Low-A ETA: 2027 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 45 OF with risk
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: Athletic with 70-grade speed with more doubles than home run power.
Dillon Head was a first-round pick for the Padres in the 2023 draft but was sent in a package to the Marlins for Luis Arraez early in the 2024 season. Unfortunately, he only played in five games with the Marlins before needing season-ending hip surgery.
Assuming he returns healthy in 2025, there is a lot to like. He’s a plus runner who should be able to steal plenty of bases, and if what I hear about his bat speed is true, he could hit plenty of doubles with a chance to grow into 8 to 10 home run pop.
His hit tool is raw, and losing a year of development hurts. However, he showed enough with the Padres to give me hope that he can make enough contact to hit .260 at the highest level. When you combine that with 8 to 10 home run pop and 30+ stolen bases, he could develop into a dynamic leadoff-type batter.
9. Jakob Marsee (OF)
- Highest Level: Triple-A ETA: 2025 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 60 OF with 4th OF Risk
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: He has solid speed potential and can control the strike zone. He doesn’t have high-end exit velo, so his power will be more doubles-power than over-the-fence.
Jakob Marsee was the Padres sixth-round pick in 2022. He put up a tremendous stat line in 2023, but the underlying tools don’t fully support a potential 15-40 player.
It’s not enormous bat speed, so his current exit velos point more to a doubles hitter than a home run-hitter. While he’s an above-average runner, he’s far from a burner. However, he has excellent basepath instincts, so stolen bases should be a big part of the profile early in his career. He walks a ton and strikes out at a league-average level.
He has all the tools to develop into a high OBP player with modest power and 20+ stolen bases early in his career. That might be good enough to make him a full-time regular for the Marlins. He’s far from a star, so make sure you don’t over-evaluate him, or I believe you will be disappointed.
10. Javier Sanoja (OF/2B/SS)
- Highest Level: Majors ETA: 2024 Fantasy Ceiling: Top 60 OF or Middle Infielder
- Last Updated: 11/12/2024
- Tools Summary: Elite contact skills with plus speed and no power.
Javier Sanoja rarely strikes out. Let me define rarely. In 492 plate appearances in Triple-A, he struck out 30 times. That’s roughly once a week. His 6.1% K-rate was the lowest in Triple-A, with the second lowest at 10.7%. Rece Hinds has a strikeout rate of 37.9%. I’m not sure Hinds’ stat line has anything to do with it, but the comparison is fun.
His in-zone contact is 96%, and while his chase rate is high (30%), he can still make contact with those pitches. As you might expect, he’s a ground ball hitter, so power is not a big part of his profile. There is plus speed, stealing 37 bases in 2023 and 14 of 20 in 2024.
The Marlins have him playing second, short, and centerfield. That defensive flexibility, combined with his insane contact skills, will give him a shot in the Major Leagues.
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