The Miami Marlins’ minor league system has spent 2026 turning the ballpark into a launching pad, and Sunday brought the latest proof. Bennett Hostetler went deep for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp in the top of the fourth inning, and that swing gave the organization its 666th minor league home run of the season. With that, the Marlins set a new single-season franchise record.
The previous mark belonged to the 2008 affiliates, who finished with 665 homers. That record came in a different minor league setup, too. Back then, Miami had an extra short-season stateside affiliate, the Jamestown Jammers of the New York-Penn League, but one fewer Dominican Summer League team than it does now.
There’s still plenty of time to add to the total. The Marlins’ affiliates have 66 regular season games left, so this number should keep climbing before the year is out.
The power has been spread across the system, but Brandon Compton has led the way as the organization’s top home run hitter, launching 30 between High-A Beloit and Double-A Pensacola. Echedry Vargas is next with 22, all of them coming for Low-A Jupiter. Overall, 25 players in the organization have reached double figures in MiLB homers, and 20 of those players have been acquired since November 2023, when Peter Bendix took over as president of baseball operations.
The jump from last year stands out even more. In 2025, with many of the same names in the pipeline, Marlins affiliates hit just 499 home runs. If they keep this pace through the end of the season, that production will be up by nearly 50%.
Hostetler’s season is a good snapshot of the surge. The backup catcher was held homerless in 37 games last year, then has already gone yard seven times in only 16 appearances this season. He even followed the record-setting blast with another home run in his next at-bat.
Of course, the broader minor league environment matters here. Home run rates have jumped all over the minors in 2026, and Miami’s record still leaves it seventh in the league-wide race.
Entering Sunday, the Marlins trailed the New York Yankees with 768, the Los Angeles Dodgers with 723, the Minnesota Twins with 694, the Seattle Mariners with 691, and both the St. Louis Cardinals and Texas Rangers with 667.
The power surge has also been fueled by rookie bats like Joe Mack and Owen Caissie. Deyvison De Los Santos, who has 18 MiLB home runs, was recalled from Jacksonville on Saturday. And a few more names are already looking like future big leaguers, including Compton, Kemp Alderman, who has 18 home runs, Cam Cannarella with 13, and Brendan Jones with 12.
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