Marlins News & Rumors

Our Noticias, 6/21/19: Gallen impresses in debut, roster moves galore

After pitching five innings and only allowing one run in his MLB debut, Zac Gallen did more than enough to showcase his potential. Plus, links on another injury and a slew of internal transactions.

By DGSmith96 Jun 21, 2019, 6:00am EDT

Game Recap

Zac Gallen didn’t quite reach the heights that Jordan Yamamoto did in his major league debut, but five innings of one-run ball along with six strikeouts on 99 pitches justified his promotion. Gallen was in line for the win until Tayron Guerrero blew the lead in the eighth inning, but dingers from Brian Anderson and then a big one from JT Riddle in the 11th frame led Miami to a 7-6 victory and a four-game series split in St. Louis.

That concludes the season series between the Marlins and Cardinals—the Fish went 3-4 against them.

IL Becoming Crowded

After making it through almost the entire first half of the season without any major injury setbacks, Miami’s luck has turned dramatically. Pablo López, Caleb Smith, and José Ureña are among those who have landed on the shelf.

Now, Garrett Cooper may be set to join them. He was removed from last night’s game with left triceps tightness.

Good News for Pablo

Speaking of López, he was diagnosed yesterday with a mild right (throwing) shoulder strain, leading to him being placed on the 10-day IL. Although López missed time with a similar injury at the end of last season, no structural damage has been reported, which is positive news for the young hurler.

Savvy Move

Again signaling that they value athletic players who play up the middle of the field, the Marlins acquired outfielder Cesar Puello from the Angels for cash this week. The 28-year-old Dominican has hit at a .290 clip over his minor league career, and .303 at the major league level, although that is only over 30 games. Primarily known as a speedster, Puello effectively replaced Rosell Herrera on the roster, as he was DFA’d in a corresponding move.

He received his first start last night, reaching base safely three times and driving in a run with a hit by pitch.

End of the Line for O’Brien

Well, it was a good story while it lasted.

The offseason “Our Colores” marketing campaign painted Peter O’Brien as a bilingual local kid who went to UM and grew up a Marlins fan, potentially setting him up as a face of the franchise. However, he was not able to tap into his enormous power potential on a consistent basis in 2019, and has now been DFA’d after hitting .167 over 14 games.

New Farm System Assignments

This week was a busy one for Miami organizationally. While the headline move was the call-up of Zac Gallen to the major league roster, the Marlins finalized 18 other promotions and demotions.

In addition, there are (unconfirmed) rumblings about No. 1 arm Sixto Sánchez being involved as we well.

Up Next

The road trip moves onto the City of Brotherly Love tonight. The Marlins will send Sandy Alcantara (3-6, 3.73 ERA) to the mound to battle against Aaron Nola (6-1, 4.89 ERA) and the Phillies at 7:05 ET.