MLB Draft 2014: Miami Marlins draft primer

The 2014 MLB Draft is here tonight at 7 pm EST, and the Miami Marlins play a pivotal role in the evening's proceedings. Even after trading one of their draft picks for reliever Bryan Morris, Miami still holds a huge draft bonus pool and three picks within the first 43 selections of the draft. The team's pick will help determine the future of the organization and may send ripples down the rest of the draft as well. Miami needs a good haul to build depth in an organization that constantly promotes its top players in a hurry, and this season's draft may be the right time to do it.

With all of the storylines coming about tonight, you know Fish Stripes will be here to cover it all for you! Here is everything that you need to know in preparation for tonight's draft.

Storylines to Watch

The Selection: Obviously, the biggest story for the Marlins will be whom they pick with the second pick of the draft. The Houston Astros pick ahead of them, and their decision is shrouded in mystery. Miami will have to be prepared for any number of situations in which any of the top three pitching prospects and some of the interesting position players would be available at the second pick. As of now, there still is no consensus on the mock drafts as to whom Miami will draft, though Carlos Rodon's name seems more prominent. All we know is that Miami loves Rodon's marketability, Tyler Kolek's fastball and prep upside, and Alex Jackson for being the best position player in the draft. We may not know whom the team will select until the pick is in.

You can read profiles on Carlos Rodon, Alex Jackson, and Tyler Kolek in our MLB Draft coverage stream!

Pool Dip: The Marlins traded one of their competitive balance picks, the 36th selection in the draft, away to the Pittsburgh Pirates for reliever Bryan Morris. It was more than a questionable deal, and its impact can be seen in tonight's proceedings. Previously, Miami was pegged to potentially go cheaper with the second pick by striking a deal with a lower-level talent, which would allow them to pursue a better player who fell in the draft due to bonus demands. Miami can still do that, but now their resources are lower; they went from having the highest budget pool to the second-highest at $12.741 million, according to Baseball America.

Sandwich Picks: Miami has the 39th pick in the draft as a competitive balance choice and the team has an extra third round pick for losing Ben Deluzio last season. Miami's bonus selections helped it get its large draft bonus pool, but what the Fish do with those picks is also important. The 36th and 43rd (second round, second pick) draft choices may hold crucial talent that Miami may need to contend.

Draft Day Coverage at Fish Stripes

Never fear, Fish Stripes is here for all of your draft day coverage. About half an hour before the draft, we will post the 2014 MLB Draft Open Thread, which is a forum for everyone to discuss what is happening in tonight's draft. I will be there alongside some of the site's prospect contributors, and we will be there to discuss all that happens in the draft. Stick around for our pick, watch a few more selections, and just generally have fun with us as we try to make the MLB Draft interesting for a change!

When the Marlins make a selection, you can expect us to be on top of our coverage. After every pick, we will report the draft choice and tell you a little more about the player who just became the newest member of the Marlins. I'll be here to provide some tidbits, and one of our prospect mavens will show off a quick profile of just who this new guy is. You can be sure Fish Stripes will be on top of our draft analysis game starting tonight!

Then, at the end of the day, we will have one of our prospect mavens provide us the recap of the day's draft picks, with a little more commentary on each player. Our prospect guys will decipher who has a future, who was a reach, and who was just right for Miami.

Finally, our Fish Bites team, led by Scott Gelman, will provide a recap of the day's reactions to the draft, including articles, Tweets, and other posts on the Marlins' draft choices. We will also provide you the players' Twitter accounts so you can start following our newest Marlins there!

You can expect this type of coverage for Day 1 of the draft. Day 2 will also have a recap and reactions along with follow-along on the live thread, if you're inclined to hang out in the middle of the afternoon for some draft business. Our prospect team will determine which players will receive profiles by Day 2 and beyond.

Draft Day Resources

Picks

Round 1, Pick #2
Comp Balance Round, Pick #36
Round 2, Pick #43
Round 3, Pick #76
Supplemental Round, Pick #103
Second pick in rounds 4-40

Draft Bonus: $12.741M ($6.8M in round 1, pick #2)

MLB.com Preview: Marlins enter draft with quality and quantity

Mock Draft Results

Keith Law, ESPN Insider: Carlos Rodon
Perfect Game: Rodon
Jim Callis, MLB,com: Rodon
John Manuel, Baseball America: Alex Jackson
Jonathan Mayo, MLB Pipeline: Jackson
College Baseball Central: Brady Aiken
Ryan Fagan, Sporting News: Rodon