It’s on: the Marlins signed a major league caliber player to a guaranteed contract for 2026. Well, they had technically fulfilled their media-stamped promise of signing someone when they handed Christopher Morel 2 million dollars, but fellow former Ray Pete Fairbanks is the first real indication that Bruce Sherman might be ready to pump some change into this nearly good roster. He’s going to be the second highest paid player on the fish this season. A move like this signals a desire to compete or at least bring the payroll up to a grievance-averting level. A move like this necessitates another. So, who’s next?
They could still deal from their starting pitching surplus, which seems less likely with each passing day as their asking price remains high. But I’m going to focus on the remaining free agent hitters, because all they will cost is cash, which will allow the Marlins to retain their starting pitching depth, rather than compromise it and increase the likelihood of having to rush prospects to the big leagues or rely on AAAA arms when one or more of Edward Cabrera, Eury Perez, Ryan Weathers, Sandy Alcantara, Braxton Garrett end up on the IL this season. Sure, Jason Junk was admirable in 2025, but do we really want to see that much more of him in 2026?
I’ve pegged Yoan Moncada, Paul Goldschmidt, Nathaniel Lowe, Rhys Hoskins as the most likely to be signed based on their predicted 2026 value and fit within the one-year-only deal thing that Bendix and Sherman are keen on. All of them are either old or recently injured and looking to re-establish their value. They aren’t signing Alex Bregman or Kyle Tucker, the two loudest bats left on the market. So, which of these bats offer the highest upside in a platoon with Morel at first, or mixed into the DH/Corner infield rotation?
Paul Goldschmidt: 2025 (age 37): 146 G, .274/.328/.403, 10 HR, 104 OPS+, 1.2 BWAR
Yoan Moncada 2025 (age 30): 84 G, .234/.336/.448 12 HR, 116 OPS+, 0.7 BWAR
Nathaniel Lowe 2025 (age 29): 153 G, .228/.307/ .381 18 HR, 94 OPS+, 0.1 BWAR
Rhys Hoskins 2025 (age 32): 90 G, .237/.332/.416, 12 HR, 108 OPS+, 0.9 BWAR
While none of these players jumped off the page, a closer look reveals that Nathaniel Lowe has the highest upside. He’s still in his physical prime at age 29, coming off a serious down year, but was a productive, 3-win player as recently as 2024 with the Texas Rangers.
Once acquired by the Red Sox last August after being cut by the Nationals, he started hitting a lot more fly balls (from 24% up to 37%) and saw a huge uptick in production (88 OPS+ up to 122). 37 games is a very small sample, and although his results with the Nats were so poor, he maintains a career 116 OPS+, which would represent a substantial upgrade over what the Marlins trotted out in 2025 at first base. Whatever the Red Sox unlocked in his swing wasn’t enough to keep them from non-tendering his 10-million-dollar deal for 2026. I’m going to assume he will sign for someone in that neighborhood for one year.
Buying low on his stock for one year would present very little risk to the Marlins, and he seems more likely to regain his form than Christopher Morel.
Morel’s signing makes this move a bit clunkier: The Marlins signed him to play first, a position he has never played, and gave him a major league deal. In this scenario, he could also serve as the club’s fourth outfielder, become a factor in the DH mix, or split time with Lowe at first. Lowe’s biggest knock would be the lack of positional versatility. He has started 7 games at third base in his career. All 826 of his other starts have been at first base and DH.
I don’t think Goldy, Moncada, or Hoskins represent enough upside to force clearing a 40-man spot with the presence of Morel on the roster. Signing one of those guys, who are bargain candidates for a reason, means not getting to see what, if anything, DDLS has to offer the big-league club. Any combination of Griffin Conine, Heriberto Hernandez, Liam Hicks, and Augustin Ramirez is more appealing than any of the other candidates I’ve mentioned outside of Lowe. Missing out on the top-tier sluggers every year means that they will have to bank on finding diamonds in the rough. Might as well cast a wide net.