A six-pack of Marlins notes on a Tuesday: ▪ Because the Marlins have a very good catching prospect in Joe Mack, some have wondered why the team has continued to stick with Agustin Ramirez at catcher, where he has struggled mightily, as opposed to using him exclusively at designated hitter.
In his rookie season, Ramirez has started at catcher in 67 games and served as the DH in 57 games.
We’re told the Marlins are determined to see if they can make it work with Ramirez at catcher and give him every opportunity to improve defensively. They don’t want to give up on the idea of using him at catcher — even if it’s ultimately in tandem with Mack — and commit to the idea of using him full-time at DH.
It might work out that way, but at this point the Marlins don’t want to go that direction.
Ramirez is rated the majors’ worst defensive catcher in several traditional measurements and advanced metrics.
He leads all MLB catchers in errors (10) and passed balls (15). He has allowed a horrifying 78 steals in 84 attempts, though the Marlins’ pitching staff deserves some of the blame for that.
Per Statcast, he is the 68th and worst catcher in blocking, at an abysmal minus-22.
Manager Clayton McCullough made clear that the Marlins want to see this through with Ramirez catching.
“No. 1, Gus wants to catch,” McCullough said. “That’s an important part of this to be able to get through these initial struggles, a desire to do that. You look at last year in the minor leagues and the receiving in particular, the moves he makes to the ball are better. He is close to the league average [in that area].
“It’s no secret that blocking and throwing are the two areas defensively where there is continued work to be done. We’ve seen some glimpses on both fronts. It’s been good. Now we’re going to need to show that with more regularity. We think Gus has the ability to stay behind the plate and for us and him, moving forward, him being able to catch is going to be most beneficial.”
Ramirez’s power (20 homers) and run production (63 RBI in 124 games) suggest he’s a potential long-term big-league player, though he needs to get on base more (.230 batting average, .287 on-base percentage heading into Tuesday night’s game in Colorado).
His 50 extra base hits (29 doubles, one triple, 20 homers) are five short of the franchise record by a catcher (Pudge Rodriguez had 55 in 2003.)
Mack is considered the better defender. In Double A and Triple A this year, he has permitted 65 steals but thrown out 34 runners. He has 10 errors and eight passed balls in 82 games as a catcher. He also has been a designated hitter for 25 games this season at Double A Pensacola and Triple A Jacksonville.
Offensively, Mack is hitting .250 (.323 on base) with 17 homers and 50 RBI in 95 games at Jacksonville after playing 13 games at Pensacola to start the season.
The Marlins believe he will benefit from spending the entire year in the minors, considering he started the year at Double A. They also want to give Ramirez and Liam Hicks the reps behind the plate.
▪ Troy Johnston, who finally got a chance after toiling for seven years in the minors, has made something of an impression, hitting .276 (.323 on base) with three homers and 10 RBI in 34 games. He could compete for a backup first base/DH/corner outfield job next season.
“After he was able to get 12, 15, 18 plate appearances and kind of settle in, his at-bat quality has been much better,” McCullough said. “You see the overall swing rate go down. He’s not being passive at the plate but trying to be much more selective. You see the performance trend in a really good direction. He has provided versatility with first base, corner outfield .. his at bats lately have been good.”
Johnston has played 15 games at first, eight in left field, eight in right field and four at DH.
▪ Outfielder Victor Mesa Jr., in his second Marlins call-up this season, is hitting just .188 in 38 plate appearances overall, but has had a few good moments, including a home run last week.
“He’s a sum of the parts; he’s a good player, across the board,” McCullough said. “At least adequate defending all three outfield spots.
“There’s contact in his bat; you saw some of the impact with the home run he hit. You see a pretty high floor player that can give you value on the defensive end. And offensively, someone who can make contact and spray the ball around.”
▪ Impressive Marlins rookie outfielder Jakob Marsee is the first MLB player since Barry Bonds (in 1986) to produce at least 20 extra base hits and 10 stolen bases in his first 37 games.
“It’s cool, but it doesn’t mean anything,” he said when informed of that statistic. “He did what he did his whole career. I’ve been here a month.”
As The Athletic noted, no major league player with at least 120 plate appearances in August swung at fewer pitches outside the strike zone than Marsee. He said learning to be selective was instilled in him at any early age and re-emphasized at Central Michigan, where he played collegiately before the Padres drafted him in the sixth round in 2022.
Has his level of production surprised him? “I wouldn’t say surprised. Everyone believes in themselves and works hard to achieve things. When it happens, you’re excited.”
Marsee has been recognized only once in public: when he was at breakfast with his family. Marsee obliged when a man asked him to take a photo with his children.
“I’m a pretty chill guy,” he said. “I dont necessarily really like the attention. [But being approached] is cool.”
▪ Edward Cabrera has been waiting to see how his elbow responds before determining whether to undergo Tommy John surgery. It’s on the table, but Cabrera and the Marlins want to see how he will respond to progressively more vigorous throwing.
Ultimately, it will be Cabrera’s decision. ▪ In voting by Marlins writers, here were the team’s award winners:
MVP: Outfielder Kyle Stowers, who represented the Marlins in the 2025 MLB All-Star Game in Atlanta and in July became the fifth Marlin all-time to win NL Player of the Month. This season, he joined Detroit’s Ty Cobb (May 5-6, 1925) as second player in MLB history with at least eight hits, five home runs, and 11 RBI in a two-game span.
Rookie of the Year: Ramirez, who leads NL rookies in runs (64), hits (110), doubles (28), home runs (20), XBH (49), and total bases (200).
Charlie Hough “Good Guy” Award: Sandy Alcantara, who leads the Marlins staff in games started (29), wins (9), and innings pitched (161.0).
Jeff Conine Heart and Professionalism Award: Infielder/outfielder Javier Sanoja, who played seven different positions this season in addition to becoming the fourth-youngest Marlin to have produced a five-plus RBI game on April 20 at Philadelphia.