The Marlins have their catcher of the future in Joe Mack, and his rookie season in 2026 made that pretty clear.
Mack didn’t just hold his own after arriving on May 4 - he flashed real impact, especially on defense. He led Major League Baseball with 26 runners caught stealing, and Baseball Savant had him in the 84th percentile for framing while crediting him with above-average blocking.
At the plate, his .234/.282/.403/.685 slash line landed almost exactly where the league sat for catchers overall. Add it up, and his 2.2 fWAR was the best single-season mark by a Marlins catcher since the team traded J.T.
Realmuto.
But even with Mack in place, Miami still has to solve the backup spot. A catcher can’t grind through a full season alone, and the Marlins need someone who can handle 1-2 starts a week without forcing the rest of the roster into a bad fit.
That job looks very much up for grabs.
Liam Hicks made his final appearance as a Marlins catcher on August 1, and the late-season workload already hinted at where things were headed. Over the final 50 games, Mack started 32 times, Brian Navarreto got 12 starts and Agustín Ramírez started six.
That group is unlikely to stay intact. Navarreto’s bat simply hasn’t been enough to keep him on an active roster, with a 19 wRC+, while Ramírez’s defense behind the plate is still shaky enough that he profiles more as an emergency option than a true backup.
Logan Driscoll is the other name sitting on Miami’s 40-man roster. He’ll turn 29 next month and has 15 games of big league experience from 2024.
The Marlins picked him up from the Tampa Bay Rays in August for cash considerations, then called him up late in the year without getting him into a game. Still, he did show something with Triple-A Jacksonville, putting together a 1.000 OPS in 14 games after joining the organization.
If Miami wants the cleanest solution, a right-handed backup makes the most sense. Mack has struggled against lefties so far, hitting .190/.238/.259/.497 in 67 plate appearances, so a veteran who can platoon a bit and handle the position is the kind of piece that would actually fit.
Chicago Cubs catcher Carson Kelly stands out as the best free-agent match. In 2026, he hit .258/.336/.376/.713 with 10 home runs, 58 RBI and a 103 wRC+.
He also has a $7.5 million mutual option for next season, but he’s expected to decline it in search of a multi-year deal. Kelly has punished left-handed pitching for a while now, posting an .871 OPS against them last season and topping an .800 OPS versus lefties in four straight years.
That would give the Marlins some real flexibility, especially since he could be used as a pinch-hitting option when he isn’t starting. Defensively, his strongest trait is blocking; Baseball Savant placed him in the 89th percentile in blocks above average.
He also saw a little time at first base, though only in a 10-inning sample.
If Kelly winds up feeling too accomplished for a part-time role, Miami may have to look at veterans more comfortable with a smaller workload. Elias Díaz fits that description.
He split 2026 between the Kansas City Royals and Texas Rangers, batting .234/.266/.404/.670 with eight home runs, 35 RBI and an 83 wRC+ in 87 games. The 35-year-old also posted his lowest on-base percentage since his rookie season.
On defense, he drew very little running game traffic, but when runners did go, he threw out 36.4% of them. Baseball Savant had him in the 68th percentile in blocks above average, 66th percentile in caught stealing above average, 49th percentile in framing and 80th percentile in pop time.
After settling for a minor league deal last offseason, Díaz should be in line for a modest guarantee this time, likely somewhere in the $1 million to $3 million range.
Jonah Heim is another lower-cost option. He was part of a World Series-winning team not too long ago, and he should come in cheaper than Díaz.
After originally signing with the Atlanta Braves, Heim spent most of 2026 with the Athletics. Across those two organizations, he hit .204/.262/.366/.627 with 13 home runs, 43 RBI and a 66 wRC+.
The switch-hitter did most of his damage against left-handed pitching, where he posted an .855 OPS. Heim was an All-Star and Gold Glove winner in 2023, but both his framing and throwing accuracy have trended in the wrong direction since then.
That leaves Peter Bendix with one more wrinkle to manage: the pitch-calling setup. Miami’s system has the dugout relaying pitch calls, and Bendix believes that removes some of the mental load from the catcher so he can focus on other parts of the job. The question now is whether veteran catchers who’ve spent years calling games on their own will be willing to buy into that approach.
In Other News...
Marlins Prospects Are Getting Crucial Offseason Reps For A Few Big Reasons
The Marlins are using the 2026-27 offseason to give a wave of prospects extra game action in places where development can keep moving even after the minor league season ends. Several Miami players are headed to fall and winter leagues around the globe, with the Arizona Fall League again serving as one of the main stops, while other reps will come in the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Australia.
For a farm system that is still trying to sort out its next core, those innings and at-bats matter for more than just staying sharp. The group includes players at a range of minor league levels, along with a few who already logged winter ball experience last offseason and could be back in action again, giving Miami another chance to evaluate progress before spring training opens. [Read more 🡒]
Marlins Offseason May Come Down To One Unsettled Bullpen Role
The Marlins late-inning picture is still taking shape as the offseason moves along, and the biggest question in the bullpen is whether they settle on a familiar face or look elsewhere for the ninth inning. Pete Fairbanks, a free agent after a one-year run in Miami, did not give the club the kind of closer production it had hoped for, which has pushed the front office to weigh a few different directions as it builds out the relief corps.
Among the names being discussed are Seranthony Dominguez, who turned in a solid 2026 season with the Seattle Mariners, and veteran Barlow, whose track record across multiple teams gives Miami another experienced option. The Marlins could still circle back to Fairbanks if both sides find common ground, but for now the role remains unsettled, and the answer may end up shaping the tone of the entire bullpen plan. [Read more 🡒]