Prospect Sanoja working to become Marlins' Swiss Army Knife
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JUPITER, Fla. -- Every club could use a Human Swiss Army Knife.
Marlins No. 15 prospect Javier Sanoja is that for manager Clayton McCullough, who envisions the 5-foot-7 utility player appearing everywhere but backstop and first base in 2025.
Although¡
¡°As a kid, I started as a catcher,¡± Sanoja said via interpreter Luis Dorante Jr. ¡°Imagine: My manager actually moved me because I was too small, and then he started putting me in different positions. I never asked or demanded to be in a specific position. I was always more thankful to be on the roster or in the lineup, and that's something that gets you better.
¡°But you see even players like Jose Altuve. He was willing to move to the outfield. You always have to look for the better of the team. It doesn't matter. Some things that you have to do, you¡¯ve got to do for the best of the team.¡±
Four gloves, including one Sanoja has ready on the back fields, can be found in his collection. He has put them all to use so far this spring.
Here¡¯s a breakdown of Sanoja¡¯s Grapefruit League starts:
Second base: Five
Shortstop: One (plus an in-game defensive replacement)
Left field: One
Center field: One
According to MLB Pipeline¡¯s scouting report, Sanoja is average at shortstop and solid at second and center due to his speed, average-to-solid arm strength, reliable hands and internal clock. On the 20-80 scale, he has the following grades: run (60), arm (50) and field (50).
¡°The beautiful part about someone like Sanoja is it gives me a lot of chances to pick and choose to give a guy a blow like he has,¡± McCullough said. ¡°There's a lot of ways to get yourself into the starting lineup, because you have that positional versatility and also within a game and how things go, hitting and making some maneuvers.
¡°You know you have a piece that is able to kind of go plug and fill a lot of different places. Real advantageous for him that he does have a skill set that allows the opportunity to get in the lineup in a lot of different spots.¡±
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The 22-year-old enters his second big league camp in a much different place. In 2024, Sanoja spent just 15 games at Double-A Pensacola before being promoted to Triple-A Jacksonville. Across 111 games with the Jumbo Shrimp, he hit .291/.354/.431. His strikeout rate (7 percent) was the best in the Minors.
Sanoja would finish the season with the big league club, collecting an RBI in his Major League debut and two hits in his first start. He also earned organizational Player of the Year and Triple-A MVP honors.
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When ¡°Chiquito,¡± as McCullough endearingly calls him, returned home to Maracay, Venezuela, for the offseason, a mural was painted in his likeness to celebrate his accomplishments.
¡°I believe it's a really big boost of confidence when you get all those stuff,¡± Sanoja said of his accolades. ¡°I actually trusted more about my routine. I gained more trust there, just seeing the results. Sometimes in this type of game, you don't see the results right away, so consistency was something that helped me. I'm thankful for [coach] Jose Ceballos. He played a really good role for me to be focused on that part. I want to continue with that.¡±
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Battling elements
In Monday¡¯s matinee of a split-squad day, the Marlins had to deal with 19 mph winds from right to left at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.
Ace Sandy Alcantara permitted two runs (none earned) on four hits, including a ball that dropped between center fielder Jes¨²s S¨¢nchez, shortstop Xavier Edwards and second baseman Sanoja. Alcantara struck out three over 2 2/3 innings, reaching 57 pitches (33 strikes).
¡°It was very windy,¡± McCullough said after the club's 9-9 tie in the matinee. ¡°I think it had some effect on the movement of the pitches and how they were responding. A lot of the misses were really close. He threw a lot of high-quality pitches that just missed. Overall, for him to get out there in the third again, get up around close to 60 pitches. The stuff looked really good. We're not worried at all about the strike throwing with him. Again, the misses were so quality, just a little edgy and off today.¡±
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He's back
Catcher Nick Fortes returned to game action for the first time since last Wednesday, when he sustained a groin contusion on a foul tip.