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Staff Shake-up
Yesterday, it was announced that former Marlins manager Fredi González will not be coming back as the team's third-base coach next year, a role which he has held since 2017. The 55-year-old Cuban is keen to manage again, and he could be in luck considering that eight—yes, eight—teams are looking for a new skipper this winter. Given his track record in the NL East, either the Mets or the Phillies could be a possible fit, should they choose not to sign a big-time name like Joe Maddon or Joe Girardi.
It was also reported that Miami has reached an agreement with Mel Stottlemyre Jr. to extend his stay as pitching coach, which is huge news after the promise the rotation displayed in 2019. Trey Hillman was confirmed as returning, too, so there are now four open spots on Mattingly's staff for next season, including bench coach and bullpen coach.
The Marlins have agreed to terms with Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, Jr on a new contract. He will return next season. Easily the best news of this early offseason to date for Miami. Did a great job in 2019.
— Craig Mish (@CraigMish) October 10, 2019
Class is in Session
Minor League Baseball may have wrapped up over a month ago, but some of Miami's top prospects are still hard at work. The Marlins minor league strength and conditioning camp began at Marlins Park yesterday, and among the attendees were Sixto Sánchez and Edward Cabrera, both MLB Pipeline Top-100 prospects. The right-handed pitchers both dominated at High-A and Double-A this season, and have developed a great bond. The pair have their sights set on pitching together in the Marlins rotation in 2020, and could potentially be battling it out to be staff ace for years to come—not a bad problem to have at all.
Big Three
Three of Miami's seven prospects currently playing in the Arizona Fall League have been nominated to the Fall Stars Game, which will take place at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday. Outfielder Víctor Víctor Mesa (.314 AVG over 35 at bats), starter Nick Neidert (1.62 ERA over four starts), and reliever Alex Vesia (0.30 WHIP and 13.49 K/9 over six appearances) have all stood out among their talented peers, and are putting themselves in a great position to build upon this success next season. Outfielder Jerar Encarnacion just missed out on becoming the fourth Marlins (F)All-Star in the final fan vote, but deserves a shout-out nonetheless.
AFL Pitcher of the Week... Chain?
Coming off an injury-hampered regular season, Neidert has been simply dominant over 16 2⁄3 Fall frames, allowing only three runs and producing a 17:2 strikeout-to-walk ratio. After allowing two runs in 2 1⁄3 innings in his first start, Miami's #11 prospect was crowned AFL Pitcher of the Week last week, and his teammates made him a little gift to help him celebrate his latest accolade.
Neidert was nearly awarded the honor again this week, but narrowly lost out to Mariners pitcher Penn Murfee.
More from CRO Adam Jones
Courtesy of Front Office Sports, many of the top executives from around the league took part in a round table discussion this week regarding the state of their respective franchises. Representing the Marlins was CRO, and recent Fish Bites guest, Adam Jones, who highlighted the success of the newly-introduced Marlins Membership program.