The Miami Marlins have spent the last six weeks changing the conversation around their season, and now that shift is showing up in the way the rest of baseball sees them.
From June 1 through July 9, Miami went 26-8 and surged into a National League wild-card spot, a run that completely altered what looked like a sell-off path heading into the trade deadline on August 3. Instead of gearing up to move pieces, president of baseball operations Peter Bendix is now staring at a club that enters the break holding the final NL wild-card spot.
That doesn’t mean the finish to the unofficial first half was smooth. The Marlins were swept at home by the Cleveland Guardians, but even with that stumble, the bigger picture still looks very different than it did when June started.
Kerry Miller of Bleacher Report reflected that in his All-Star break MLB Power Rankings, where Miami dropped only two spots to No. 6.
The teams sitting ahead of them were the Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, Tampa Bay Rays, and Chicago Cubs. Miller also pointed to a complication the Marlins now have to manage.
"Miami also lost Owen Caissie (calf) to the IL earlier in the week, right as he was finally starting to break through in a big way with a 1.179 OPS over his last 17 games. They're still in wild card position, though,'' wrote Miller.
That injury matters because Caissie was part of the return from the Cubs for right-handed pitcher Edward Cabrera last season, and after a slow start in Miami, he had begun to trend upward as the year moved along.
The biggest ripple effect, though, may be what this run means for right-handed ace Sandy Alcantara. He had been viewed as a possible trade chip before the deadline, but Miami’s position in the standings makes it look far more likely the Marlins keep him. With a playoff spot in reach, the front office has a much clearer answer now.
The schedule won’t make things easy right away. Miami opens the second half with a weekend series against the Brewers in Milwaukee, then heads to Houston for a series against the Astros. There’s still time before the deadline to address needs, but the Marlins’ recent surge has made the decision for Bendix much simpler: the path now points toward staying in the hunt.
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Marlins Suddenly Have A Deadline Chance Fans Rarely Get
The Marlins have spent much of this season in a place they rarely find themselves this time of year, close enough to the postseason race to justify thinking bigger at the trade deadline. With the club in position to add rather than subtract, the front office is weighing bullpen upgrades as a way to protect a team that has made itself relevant heading into the stretch run.
The need is pretty clear: Miami wants more help at the back end, ideally from a left-handed reliever, and ESPNs Jeff Passan floated a couple of high-end names as possible fits. The catch is that the market may not cooperate, since both clubs involved have reasons to hesitate before moving proven late-inning arms, which leaves the Marlins in the familiar deadline spot of needing impact help while waiting to see who actually becomes available. [Read more 🡒]
Bruce Sherman Just Addressed The Doubts Hanging Over This Marlins Push
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Sherman also pointed to the way the organization has been building behind the scenes, from investments in technology to player development, as part of the reason the team has been more competitive since last summer. He framed the Marlins as a franchise in better shape than many outsiders may realize, which only sharpens the question hanging over the rest of this push: whether the current leadership structure can keep turning that stability into sustained wins. [Read more 🡒]
Marlins Face Franchise Defining Sandy Alcantara Call In Playoff Race
The Marlins have spent enough of the summer in the thick of the NL East race to make every roster decision feel a little heavier than usual, and Sandy Alcantara sits at the center of that. The right-hander, a former Cy Young Award winner, has given Miami a stable presence in the rotation while making 20 starts and posting a 3.99 ERA, a reminder that he has been both available and effective as the club keeps itself in the Wild Card picture.
For a team trying to turn a surprising run into something more lasting, Alcantara is more than just another name on the board. If Miami stays in the hunt, the front office will have to weigh how much it values the present against the future, especially with postseason pitching needs starting to come into focus and the market for help likely to shape the next move. [Read more 🡒]