Mesa Jr. among Marlins' first spring cuts

JUPITER, Fla. ¨C The Marlins on Monday morning made their first wave of roster cuts, highlighted by outfield prospect Victor Mesa Jr. Miami also reassigned outfielder Jakob Marsee, left-hander Justin King, right-handers Woo-Suk Go and Freddy Tarnok and catcher Ryan Ignoffo to Minor League camp.

Mesa, who was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville, is the only one on the 40-man roster. Everyone except Ignoffo has been sidelined by an injury this spring.

Ranked No. 27 on MLB Pipeline's new Top 30 Marlins prospects list, Mesa sustained a mild right hamstring strain during a drill on Feb. 21 and never got into a Grapefruit League game. He is expected to miss another three weeks. It was the latest setback for Mesa, who likely would¡¯ve made his Major League debut in 2024 if not for a season-ending back injury in July.

The 23-year-old Mesa was on the outside looking in for an Opening Day roster spot, with fellow lefty outfield bats Jes¨²s S¨¢nchez, Kyle Stowers and Griffin Conine in camp with MLB experience.

¡°He was off to a strong start, even prior to games,¡± manager Clayton McCullough said. ¡°He looked good and was doing some things, and so unfortunate that he and us didn't get to see that out there. But again, we told him in there, ¡®You just get yourself back right, make sure you're healthy, get off to a great start, and then just knock [down] the door. Just go out and perform and go do it, and we'll see you soon.¡¯¡±

Marsee (No. 24 prospect) resumed baseball activities within the past week as part of his rehab from a lower level right oblique strain. Like Mesa, he finished his 2024 at Triple-A and got hurt before the Spring Training schedule began. Acquired in the Luis Arraez trade with the Padres, the 23-year-old Marsee was in his first MLB camp with his new organization.

Tarnok (rolled left ankle), King (left adductor strain) and Go (fractured right index finger) were the other non-roster invitees.

¡°The timing of it was just unfortunate,¡± McCullough said. ¡°In Marsee's case, didn't really get a chance to do a whole lot. That doesn't diminish what we think about Jakob. And with all of them, with their timeline and returns to play, as spring gets deeper, innings become tougher, plate appearances, [too].

¡°It was more, ¡®Get yourself back healthy, stay on your return to play, and then we can get you into what we think is the best spot for each of them, for their return to play and get built back up for the start of the season.¡¯¡±