Our Noticias: Chen must go, minor league games, Dan Jennings reflects on Marlins tenure

I got five on it

Longest winning streak of the spring—and perhaps the longest streak they’ll have all year?—for your Miami Marlins, as José Ureña, Adam Conley and Caleb Smith combined to silence the Cardinals’ bats on Wednesday.

Smith’s first game experience since shoulder surgery last summer exceeded everybody’s expectations. He breezed through four perfect innings, touching the mid-90s with his fastball and showing good control with all of his pitches.

The matchup wasn’t televised, but Fish Stripes had Alex Krutchik on the scene.

Wei-Yin Chen GTFOH

I’m giving them two weeks. Once Opening Day rolls around, this roster should be Wei-Yin Chen-less.

Chen was an adequate placeholder in the 2018 starting rotation, but that role is no longer applicable for an organization well-stocked in major league-ready arms.

The Marlins owe him $42 million regardless. Don’t compound Jeffrey Loria’s bad investment by shoehorning him onto the 25-man where he would be blocking somebody who has a real future with the team.

New Swings and Mishes with Dan Jennings

Really compelling conversation between former Marlins GM and manager Dan Jennings and SiriusXM/Five Reasons Sports Network host Craig Mish. Now working in the Nationals front office, he spent the bulk of his career with the Fish, and spoke candidly on Swings and Mishes about the ups and downs of that tenure.

• On Iván Rodríguez and the rapid teardown of the 2003 World Series team: “When we lost Pudge, it was really the heart of our body left us. He was such the glue and the component of that team...There was a frustration level of this team could be good again and again [with Pudge].”
• On Jeffrey Loria approaching him during the 2015 season about taking off his suit and making the unorthodox transition to interim manager: “I’ve never gone to bed one night in my life going, ‘God, I want to be a major league manager. It’s what I want to do.’”
• He added: “Am I thankful that I got the opportunity? Absolutely...It was the greatest experience that I’ve had in this game...It gave me a deeper and greater appreciation for the coaches, certainly the managers and running a game and all the stuff you need to be aware of.”
• Jennings was kept in the dark about his status heading into the 2015-16 offseason. In hindsight, he would not have stepped into the managerial vacancy had he known they weren’t interested in giving him an opportunity to stick around beyond that.

Plenty of more nuggets in this extra-long episode, including a more light-hearted segment with outfielder Austin Dean and Jeremy Taché.

Minor league schedule

Courtesy of Alex Carver, Fish on the Farm

We’ve seen a handful of top Marlins prospects reassigned to minor league camp this month, but that doesn’t mean they are sitting on the sidelines. Thursday marks the beginning of their 10-game preseason schedule. These are open to the public, taking place on the backfields.

Credit to Alex Carver of Fish on the Farm for the details.

Walk-off links

• In case you missed it, the first-ever Fish Stripes Night is less than one month away
• Easy routine to remember: all 162 regular season games will be on FOX Sports Florida
• The Marlins were featured on MLB Network’s 30 Clubs in 30 Days series

• For more insight from Michael Hill about his career and the current state of the franchise, check out his new interview with the Five Reasons Sports flagship podcast
• Max G. sees Adam Conley as one of the Marlins’ best remaining trade chips and proposes fair deals with the Astros and Yankees
• Congrats to old friend JB! Baby Bour is on the way...