Marlins No. 9 prospect Mack nabs Minors' GG Award

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Marlins No. 9 prospect Joe Mack has received one final accolade for his breakout campaign.

On Monday morning, Minor League Baseball and Rawlings Sporting Goods Company, Inc. announced Mack as one of the nine recipients of the 2024 Minor League Gold Glove Award for defensive excellence. The winners at each position were selected from players in the 11 full-season Minor Leagues.

Modeled after the iconic award given to Major League Baseball’s top defensive players, Mack will be presented his during the 2025 season.

Mack, who turns 22 on Dec. 27, is the organization’s first Minor League Gold Glover since right fielder Jesús Sánchez and center fielder Victor Victor Mesa were honored in 2019 while playing for Triple-A New Orleans.

“I think obviously the tools are there, and what we love to see [is that] Joe's such a mature, hardworking guy as is, but he's still young, which is incredible,” director of player development Rachel Balkovec said in late September. “To do what he's done at such a young age, I think, just to continue to mature and knowing the game better. But honestly, we love him where he's at, and I think that overall, in general, he's just maturing at the position.”

After 13 games at High-A Beloit to start the season, Mack joined Double-A Pensacola and went on to become the team MVP. He led the Blue Wahoos in home runs (22), runs (63) and runs batted in (65). In his 688 1/3 innings at catcher across the two Minor League levels, Mack threw out 33 of 96 runners attempting to steal (34 percent) and posted a .999 fielding percentage. For context, Major League backstops threw out 21 percent of would-be basestealers and recorded a .993 fielding percentage in 2024.

According to MLB Pipeline’s scouting report, Mack has a 60-grade arm and a 55-grade fielding tool on the 20-80 scale. When the Marlins selected Mack 31st overall in the 2021 MLB Draft out of Williamsville East High School in East Amherst, N.Y., he was considered one of the top catching prospects.

A three-sport prep star, Mack’s athleticism has translated as a backstop. Not only does he move well behind the plate, but he also has improved his receiving and his focus to combat the running game with his plus arm strength.

“I made a couple adjustments with glove loading and transfer work and different setups, too,” Mack said in late September about last offseason. “Setting up in different positions allowed me to receive better and to also throw better as well. So just getting that work in, and doing all that stuff, and just improving on those things little by little is just going to help so much.”