Our Noticias: Late-inning controversy, so much shifting, Marlins players to watch, fan feedback

Back below .500

James Hartman takes you through Monday night’s frustrating loss. Caleb Smith looked sharp in his 2019 debut, but the Marlins couldn’t find any offense outside of Starlin Castro and were on the wrong end of a couple umpiring mistakes.

Don Mattingly was pissed afterward:

“It was a rough night for those guys, to be honest with you...I guess I’m not supposed to complain about calls or whatever, but the league needs to look at it. It was shaky tonight.”

Probable starters on Tuesday are Jason Vargas and José Ureña.

Víctor Mesa Jr. moves into Marlins Top 30

There are now two Mesa brothers—three “Víctors” total—in MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 Marlins prospects list. Sandy Alcantara graduated from prospect eligibility over the weekend, clearing space for Víctor Jr.

The 17-year-old outfielder received a $1 million bonus from the Marlins last October. He will be playing in the rookie-level Gulf Coast League in 2019.

Shifty start to the season

Just a few years after the Marlins had one of MLB’s most traditional defensive alignments, Alex Vigderman of Sports Info Solutions finds that they are on pace to shatter league records with the frequency of their infield shifts. During the season-opening series against the Rockies, they shifted on 73 of the first 100 balls in play.

However, like the eye test suggests, this strategy isn’t really working! They entered Monday with zero Shift Runs Saved, according to Vigderman.

Something to monitor moving forward.

What type of fan are you?

Baseball is whatever you want it to be—root for the playing style that entertains you, use the stats that make sense, invest the amount of time that your schedule allows.

Daniel Martinez wants you to tell us what “type” of fan you are.

Walk-off links

• Peter O’Brien has yet to reach base since being recalled from Triple-A on Sunday, but Joe Gentile of Fake Teams sees him as a fantasy sleeper this season
• Not as under the radar, Chris Towers of CBS Sports explains why there is so much to like about Pablo López’s three-pitch mix and Trevor Richards’ changeup
• New episode of the WPLG Local 10 Miami Sports Pod with Will Manso and Clay Ferraro discusses the 2019 Marlins and how the South Florida community feels about them
• Shameless plug: Fish Stripes Night is only a week-and-a-half away! Enjoy discounted tickets and receive a complimentary Marlins watch in select sections for the April 12 matchup with the Phillies.

• Congrats to Five Reasons Sports Network on the launch of their new website