Our Noticias, 6/8/20: MLB Draft week; No-hitter week

No-Hitter Week on FSFL

On the heels of replaying a handful of past MLB All-Star Games featuring Marlins players, regional sports network FOX Sports Florida turns it attention to no-hitters beginning on Monday. The franchise has had six no-nos in its relatively brief history, started by Al Leiter (1996), Kevin Brown (1997), A.J. Burnett (2001), Aníbal Sánchez (2006), Henderson Alvarez (2013) and Edinson Vólquez (2017).

Each of these games will air in three time slots:

FOX Sports Florida

Fish Sequences

With all due respect to professional broadcasters, their original narration and commentary isn’t always sufficient. Subtle details can get past them in the heat of the moment, and their network’s partnership with the team discourages them from being too critical of players and truly “telling it like it is.”

That is why we are introducing Fish Sequences! I will be guiding fans through feel-good moments in Marlins history, providing full context while hopefully making some valuable observations that you may have missed when watching it live.

First up is Garrett Cooper’s game-winning grand slam against the Tigers.

The Athletic eliminates full-time Marlins beat

The subscription-based digital sports outlet laid off 46 people on Friday, representing about eight percent of its staff. South Florida sports coverage was particularly gutted, including the departures of Andre Fernandez (Marlins/Heat), Chris Perkins (Dolphins) and George Richards (Panthers).

The Athletic rose to prominence on the premise of providing in-depth local sportswriting for all major professional sports franchises in the U.S. and Canada and bundling that with national reporting, columns and podcasts, all for one price. However, that dream was short-lived due to COVID-19 financial pressures and the reality that some beats don’t attract as large an audience as others. Months before the pandemic hit, most of Fernandez’s responsibilities had already shifted to covering the Heat.

Nonetheless, his storytelling was hugely impactful during his Marlins stint. Links to a few of my favorites below:

Andre Fernandez has terrific ethics, interpersonal skills and versatility, and he should be highly sought-after in this industry. Contact him at afernandez0901@gmail.com.

Walk-off links

• Miguel Rojas celebrated the sixth anniversary of his MLB debut on Saturday. He entered as a defensive replacement for old friend Hanley Ramírez, but things didn’t quite go according to script, as he tells it:

“I made an error on the first ever ball that it was hit to me in a big league game, something that I worked my whole life to be ready (for). I felt terrible at the time. I was questioning myself a lot, and that created a lot of pressure.

“But Brian Wilson finished that inning and we came back to the dugout, put his hand on my shoulder and told me, ‘no worries, kid. I got (your) back, and you gonna make a play for me next time.’ And I’ll thank him not just for save the inning but maybe my confidence. So having a guy like him and (Don Mattingly) that gave me the opportunity to start 2 days later and get my first Big League base hit, got me the confidence to take off and forget about that first bad impression.

“So my message is don’t let a bad moment of your life dictate what (your) future could be—keep working on become a better version of (yourself) and help others along the way.”

• Fish On The Farm launched their own podcast, Swimming Upstream, co-hosted by Alex Carver and Daniel De Vivo.
• For Prospects 365, Ian Smith did a FULL mock draft. Yes, selecting prospects for all 160 picks heading into the real thing on Wednesday.

• Marlins pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. describes on Sev & Geff Live how he’s been preparing the club’s young arms while protecting against COVID-19 spread and accounting for the lack of a specific season start date.
• The A to Z series on Marlin Maniac covered letters C, D, E and F last week.
• Ex-Marlins Odrisamer Despaigne, Drew Rucinski and Dan Straily continue to rank among the best qualified starters in the Korea Baseball Organization this season.
• Congratulations to outfield prospect Jerar Encarnación, who announced on Instagram that he has a baby on the way!
• Fellow outfield prospect Víctor Mesa Jr. has bulked up from 158 to 181 pounds over the past two years.