3 questions for Marlins as season draws near
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PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Just under two weeks of Grapefruit League action remain, which means there is still time for the Marlins to decide how to round out the rotation, bench and bullpen ahead of Opening Day.
Below are three things to take into consideration:
How will catcher playing time be divvied up?
Last week, manager Skip Schumaker said he didn¡¯t envision it being a 50/50 split like last year between Jacob Stallings and Nick Fortes. With Stallings now in Colorado, Schumaker has made sure newcomer Christian Bethancourt catches all of the pitchers to familiarize himself with the staff. In 2023, for example, Fortes caught all of lefty Jes¨²s Luzardo¡¯s 32 starts. He has not done so this spring.
¡°I'm pretty confident Nick knows how to catch Luzardo, so I'm just trying to make sure everybody knows each other, and then make a decision maybe a week before camp breaks and to see exactly who's going to get bulk and that type of thing,¡± Schumaker said. ¡°I've got no problem pinch-hitting still, and they're both going to play maybe the same day, whatever. Maybe the offensive profile just takes off. I don't know. But I think to say it's 50-50, I don't know. It's not a good answer for you right now, but it's also [March 9] or whatever it is, so time will tell.¡±
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Schumaker went on to say the catchers¡¯ priority remains on the defensive side, since Miami¡¯s strength lies in its pitching. Bethancourt threw out a pair of runners in Sunday¡¯s split-squad game against the Cardinals.
¡°Yes, absolutely,¡± Schumaker said. ¡°The relationship, getting guys through leverage situations, controlling the running game, all of that I take into account. The relationship is No. 1.¡±
What will be the bullpen makeup?
Just like starters need to build up their pitch count and batters must get a certain number of at-bats in spring, relievers have to pitch in back-to-back outings. Schumaker and the coaching staff are also using the Grapefruit League games to see which arms might be available for four-plus outs as the spring schedule continues.
With eight straight games to open the season, two 13-game stretches from April 12-24 and April 26-May 8 and starting pitchers on shorter leashes early on, relievers that can go multiple innings will be valuable. Pitchers that could fit that bill include righties George Soriano, Bryan Hoeing and Sixto S¨¢nchez.
¡°When you're trying to figure out a bullpen, it's not just like one inning at a time, then a day off,¡± Schumaker said. ¡°There's guys that are going to have to go bulk, there's guys that are going to have to go get someone out of an inning and then go back out there. That's all part of the equation, and when we're trying to figure out a roster, who's flexible enough to do that? Who's healthy enough to do that? If we just have one-inning guys up and down the roster, that's not going to work. So you have to have bulk guys, you have to have situational guys and leverage guys. That's real, true roster construction.¡±
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Many factors will determine how Schumaker¡¯s bullpen looks, and it begins with the number of healthy starters that will be available. Lefty Braxton Garrett and righty Edward Cabrera have dealt with shoulder issues this spring. Without ace Sandy Alcantara, how might Miami replace that workload? Additionally, innings will be monitored for converted starter A.J. Puk and southpaw Trevor Rogers, who was hurt most of 2023.
¡°You might have multiple bulk guys,¡± Schumaker said. ¡°I don't know who's going to be in the rotation yet. It's still a battle. ¡ So when you have that, you have to be prepared in your bullpen to not just absolutely crush guys and throw them every single day. So you're going to have a multiple-inning guy one day, you'll also need one the next day. That's just kind of how it works. So when you're trying to figure out this thing, you have to have that in the back of your mind.¡±
What are the plans for designated hitter?
Without Jorge Soler, DH will likely be a rotation of Josh Bell, Jake Burger, Avisa¨ªl Garc¨ªa and Bryan De La Cruz. In the instance of Bell serving as the DH, 40-man roster players Burger, Luis Arraez and even Dane Myers can cover first base. Burger did so for the first time on Monday.
Schumaker noted the role of DH isn¡¯t for everyone, since it¡¯s quintessentially four pinch-hit appearances. He is using the spring to mix and match and see what works.