Miami Marlins' rotation appears 'set'

Miami Marlins Manager Mike Redmond has yet to formally announce his five-man rotation heading into the regular season, but on Monday he referred to the rotation as "probably set." According to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro, the Marlins are likely to open the season with Henderson Alvarez pitching against the Braves on opening night, with Jarred Cosart, Mat Latos, Dan Haren, and Tom Koehler to follow.

Although Alvarez is expected to open the season as Miami's primary front of the rotation arm with Jose Fernandez rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, Redmond has yet to name a starter for the April 6 contest at Marlins Park. The club is confident it will not have to make any changes to its starting five before the start of the season, but an injury could change that. With the exception of Adeiny Hechavarria's sore shoulder, the Marlins have not been plagued by injuries this spring.

Miami may be hesitant to trade its starting pitching depth because of the possibility of an injury. Several of the Marlins' pitchers, including Brad Hand and Rule 5 draft pick Andrew McKirahan, have drawn notable interest over the last few days.

The Marlins sought to add veteran starters this offseason, and did so by acquiring Latos and Haren. However, over the last few days, Miami's rotation has had difficulty throwing strikes. Cosart's Grapefruit League ERA is 8.49, and batters are hitting .360 against him this spring. Alvarez's ERA is sitting at 5.40, with Koehler posting a 4.50 ERA. Haren has been consistent and effective and has posted a 1.93 spring ERA. Latos entered Monday's start against the Mets with a 2.57 ERA, however allowed nine earned runs and two walks over three innings.

Despite the fact the club's starters have had difficulty throwing strikes of late, according to the Miami Herald's Cory Nightingale, Redmond is not concerned:

"Part of Spring Training is not only building up your arm strength and your pitches," Redmond said, "it's working on things you're trying to sharpen up, whether it be Cosart working on his changeup, or guys working on secondary pitches they're trying to lock in for the season.

"I don't get overly excited about Spring Training outings. I look more at how they're executing pitches, whether they are keeping the ball down. We've missed up in the zone probably more than we have all spring, the last couple of starts for guys."