The Miami Marlins understand the need for a turnaround after ‘swallowing bad seasons’
No more excuses.
No more what ifs.
No more what’s coming in the future.
The Miami Marlins, from the front office to the clubhouse, know they need to turn the corner. Set a new standard. Start looking like a club that, at the very least, can be competitive for 162 games.
They’ve gone through their lumps during the first two seasons of their rebuild under the Bruce Sherman and Derek Jeter ownership group, posting a 120-203 record in that span.
The times, the Marlins hope, are changing.
And, at least on the first full-squad practice of spring training, the confidence, the moxie, the swagger was there.
But so is the outside noise saying that this Marlins team, once again, is going to be one of the worst in baseball. Most preseason projections have the Marlins winning between 62 and 70 games.
The Marlins will let the outsiders do the talking. Their goal is to channel their energy into preparing for the season, a season they hope sparks the run of success the franchise has rarely seen over the past 15 years.
“I’m pretty sure nobody out there thinks we can win. It’s about us, that we think we can turn the corner right now,” shortstop Miguel Rojas said. “That’s the thing. We’ve been here together swallowing bad seasons for a couple years now. We’re not going to do that anymore. It’s up to us to put the work in and show everybody that we can do it and believing ourselves. We can’t pay attention to what people say in the streets or outside of this clubhouse. The confidence has to be in this clubhouse.”
The front office has shown that confidence in the team.
Sherman wholeheartedly declared the Marlins are “in this for the long haul” and are “going to be better this year.”
The former is the sentiment Sherman and Jeter had from the start. They tore the roster down one by one, shipping off the franchise’s faces for a stockpile of prospects and stopgap major leaguers.
The latter is the conviction they need as they transition from “rebuild” to “hopeful contender,” as they attempt to make the future the present.
And the organization has done its part, on paper, to at least field a more competitive team at the major-league level than the one that went 57-105 and finished last in the National League just a season ago.
They have a new left fielder in Corey Dickerson. A new first baseman in Jesus Aguilar. A new closer in Brandon Kintzler. A new leadoff hitter in Jonathan Villar, who could play in center field or at second base, shortstop or third base.
They have a consensus top-10 minor-league system. Most of their top prospects — outfielders Monte Harrison and Jesus Sanchez; pitchers Sixto Sanchez, Edward Cabrera and Nick Neidert; shortstop Jazz Chisholm; and first baseman Lewin Diaz to name a few — on the cusp of major-league debuts either this season or next.
“Derek and ownership have been very clear of where we want to go,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “The organization that we want to build. It just felt like it’s time to get this thing to the hill, where we’re not always fighting upstream. It’s time we started going downhill a little bit.”
Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill added: “The one thing I do know is that talent plays, and that’s a message that we’re going to continue to preach to our guys. There’s a ton of talent in this camp, a ton of talent that’s going to be running around the field, a ton of talent that’s going to take the mound every day to compete. There’s no limitations when you have that type of talent on what the future may hold.”
There is, however, a time limit for how long the Marlins have until this uphill climb has to start.
That’s March 26, when they open the 2020 season against the Philadelphia Phillies. That gives them just over five weeks to figure out the logistics of their roster.
“The message is always the same: Go out there and compete,” Dickerson said. “I’m holding myself to a certain standard. I expect to win and do my best to prepare every single day to put my best foot forward. We expect every guy around here to do that.”
The clock started ticking Monday.
“This is the time to start getting some W’s,” Rojas said. “For me, it’s a great opportunity for everyone in this clubhouse — older guys and younger guys, veterans and rookies — to have the opportunity to be part of something special.”
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