Notes: Reining in kids; Anderson goes oppo

JUPITER, Fla. -- The Marlins' 2020 Draft selections in big league camp, including MLB Pipeline's No. 28 overall prospect Max Meyer, will not pitch in Grapefruit League games this spring, according to manager Don Mattingly.

Meyer, chosen third overall by Miami, was part of the team's 60-man player pool last summer, when there was no Minor League season. He, fellow right-handers Kyle Nicolas (Miami's No. 21 prospect in 2020) and Zach McCambley (No. 22) and lefty Jake Eder (No. 23) also saw time in the instructional league last fall. All four had their collegiate careers cut short last spring because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"This is about them getting comfortable in big league camp," Mattingly said during a Zoom call on Friday. "Obviously, we like those guys and we wanted them to experience this. But we don't want Max coming over to an 'A' game and trying to throw 100 [mph]. We want him to get ready to pitch this season, continue his development, and we think there's a real risk with those young guys kind of trying to impress and doing too much too early. It's a danger in camp, and that's something we're going to stay away from them."

Anderson goes oppo taco
Brian Anderson's solo homer in the second proved to be the difference in Miami's 1-0, seven-inning win over Houston on Friday afternoon at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Of Anderson's 42 career homers, 11 have gone to the opposite field.

"For me, that's usually a good sign," Anderson said during a Zoom call. "I'm a taller guy, longer arms, so any time I get that ball out over and get some extension on it, that's usually whenever I'm going to do damage. So that was a good time for me today, going opposite field, kind of cutting the wind there."

Latest audition
Nick Neidert, who piggybacked for the second time this spring, pitched two scoreless innings after Trevor Rogers' start. Neidert, Miami's No. 11 prospect, has thrown four shutout frames with three hits, one walk, one hit batter and four strikeouts.

A candidate to round out the rotation, Neidert recorded a perfect third before escaping a bases-loaded, two-out jam in the fourth by inducing a groundout to second base.

"Still crispening some stuff up," Neidert said during a Zoom call. "I think fastball command has been been pretty good. The life on it's been really good. Now it's about dialing those secondary pitches in. Last time, I threw a couple good curveballs; not many today. They had a lot sharper bite to them, the cutter was playing a lot better. Same thing with the changeup. So [I'm] just getting those dialed in kind of, every outing, in between outings, working on them."

Veteran relievers
Anthony Bass and Ross Detwiler each threw a scoreless frame in their second outings of the spring. Bass is projected for late-inning situations, while the left-handed Detwiler will be crucial in retiring the National League East's lefty sluggers.

Eveld update
Non-roster invitee Tommy Eveld, who exited Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Nationals in the eighth inning, was diagnosed with right biceps nerve irritation. The right-handed reliever had faced two batters in the seventh before retiring the first two in the eighth. The coaching staff then caught him grabbing his arm after recording a strikeout and took him out of the game.

"His strength was good in all areas," Mattingly said. "I guess [it] could be good or bad, but it seemed like it was a pretty good prognosis for him. We'll just kind of watch him day to day to see where that goes."

305 Day
Single-game tickets for games from April 1 to June 30 at Marlins Park went on sale Friday. Due to limited capacity, a minimum of two tickets are required for advance purchase. Single tickets will be available only on gameday, subject to availability. For more information, visit here.

He said it
"It's really about getting him his innings and getting him built up. And he'll get starts, too. [Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. has] looked at getting all these guys starts. We know we're piggybacking some, but he'll get his chance to be the first guy that starts the game. But more than anything, we're just trying to get these guys' innings built, the best way we can get them all ready. I know there's a competition -- we look at it for a spot or two in the rotation -- but really for us, it's getting them all ready. We're going to need them all. That's what it's about. We'll let it play out who it ends up being that starts the season in Miami." -- Mattingly, on Neidert

Up next
Righty Sandy Alcantara will make his second spring start at 1:05 p.m. ET on Saturday against the Nationals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium.