Offishial news, 5/23/22: All hail Alcantara; appreciation for Mel Stottlemyre Jr.

Marlins Game Coverage

Fish Stripes Podcast Episode

• Sunday’s minor league scores: Triple-A Jacksonville won, 6-3, and lost, 3-2; Double-A Pensacola was postponed (healthy and safety protocols); High-A Beloit lost, 5-1; Low-A Jupiter won twice, 3-0 and 13-7. Richard Bleier (COVID IL) pitched a scoreless 1 ¹⁄₃ innings for Jacksonville and is expected to be reinstated from the IL on Tuesday. Piggybacking Bleier, right-hander George Soriano made his Triple-A debut (3.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 1 HR on 66 pitches). Soriano is my 29th-ranked Marlins prospect.
• Jon Berti and Joey Wendle are seemingly on similar return-to-play timelines coming off a COVID case and a right hamstring strain, respectively. Christina De Nicola of MLB.com spotted both of them going through baserunning drills on Sunday. The best-case scenario would be having them activated by the end of this week after completing brief minor league rehab assignments.
• We are holding our breath for more details about Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s hamstring injury. The Prince missed 16 games last season due to a hamstring strain, though for the moment, the Marlins are describing this as “tightness” (which might not require an IL stint).
• Stadium Custom Kicks has collaborated with Jazz on new Kool Aid-themed cleats.
• Sandy Alcantara (59.2 IP) has worked five more innings than the next-closest MLB pitcher. The gap between Alcantara and No. 2 Robbie Ray (54.2 IP) is the same as the gap between Ray and No. 12 Max Scherzer/Kyle Hendricks (49.2 IP).
• The Marlins currently have 13.2% odds of making the 2022 playoffs, 2.4% odds of winning the NL East division and 0.6% odds of a World Series title, according to FanGraphs. At this time a week ago, those percentages were 12.9%, 2.5% and 0.5%, respectively.
• Revisiting our Fish Stripes LIVE Marlins vs. Braves series predictions, Alex Carver and I were the only ones who correctly foresaw the Braves taking two of the three games. Carver picked up an additional point for choosing Ronald Acuña Jr. as his series MVP.
• On his Swimming Upstream podcast, Carver spoke with Beloit Sky Carp broadcaster Larry Larson about notable Marlins prospects and Larson’s career path.
• Among the six Fish Stripes staffers who have provided credentialed coverage from the press box this season, Kevin Barral has coincided with the most team success. Here is Kevin’s updated ranking of top Marlins prospects.
• FanGraphs gives the Marlins a 45.9% chance to win their series opener against the Rays.
• Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald has a fun anecdote that illustrates how much members of the Marlins starting rotation adore their pitching coach, Mel Stottlemyre Jr.
• Recent posts on the Marlins Foundation Instagram account show the wide range of events that were associated with 2022 Impact Week, focusing on wellness, empowerment and youth baseball and softball.