Rule 5 pick has solid spring debut. Where could he fit in Marlins’ pitching plans?
Paul Campbell’s spring training debut with the Miami Marlins was delayed until Tuesday after he missed a few days of spring training to deal with a personal issue.
It was worth the wait.
Campbell, a Rule 5 selection ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Marlins’ No. 25 overall prospect, threw two perfect innings against the Washington Nationals at the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. The 25-year-old right-handed pitcher struck out four of the six batters he faced. He ended the eighth inning by getting Luis Garcia to line out to left field and ended the game with Tres Barrera hitting a ground ball to Eddy Alvarez at shortstop.
“It feels awesome just to get the opportunity,” said Campbell, who was drafted in the 21st round of the 2017 MLB Draft out of Clemson by the Tampa Bay Rays and was in the Rays organization the first four years of his pro ball career before the Marlins chose him in December’s Rule 5 Draft. “It was a lot of fun being back out there.”
Time is of the essence, though. The Marlins have 10 more spring training games left and 16 days until they begin the 2021 season.
As a player with Rule 5 restrictions, Campbell has to make the Marlins’ active roster and stay on the active roster for the duration of the 2021 season or else he will be sent back to the Rays.
There’s also a number crunch happening with the bullpen, where Campbell would most likely serve as a long reliever.
Barring injuries or roster moves, seven relief pitchers appear to have spots set on the active roster: Anthony Bass, Yimi Garcia, Dylan Floro, John Curtiss, Adam Cimber, Richard Bleier and Ross Detwiler. Campbell, fellow Rule 5 pick Zach Pop and James Hoyt are in the mix for one or two spots depending on how many pitchers the Marlins choose to carry. Non-roster invite Anthony Bender also has an outside chance of making the roster.
Campbell’s attention, however, is on his preparation.
“I’m just treating it like any other year,” Campbell said. “I try to work hard and stay consistent, control what I can control and let the rest take care of itself.”
Marlins manager Don Mattingly was impressed with Campbell’s outing on Tuesday — “His stuff was good. ... Everything was really good” — but also acknowledged that he wasn’t facing the Nationals’ regulars by the time he entered the game in the eighth. The plan moving forward is to get Campbell as many opportunities as he can to make his case.
“You don’t want to get fooled or make a decision based on one or two outings,” Mattingly said. “Unfortunately, he had a little personal thing going on and he missed some time, but we’re going to get him back out there and get as good a look as we can. I’m sure everyone within the organization and our front office and everything’s looking at him, evaluating everything and we’ll make a good decision hopefully.”
Campbell has a career 3.12 ERA through 233 1/3 innings spanning three minor-league seasons. He finished 2019 in Double A, where he compiled an 8-4 record with a 3.36 ERA and 63 strikeouts against 20 walks over 85 2/3 innings in 16 games (11 starts).
His scouting report, per MLB Pipeline:
“A good athlete with a clean delivery and quick right arm, Campbell showed four Major League-caliber pitches during his breakout campaign [in 2019]. He can exploit hitters’ weaknesses with his fastball command, sitting 92-95 mph and reaching back for more when needed, while his 89-90-mph cutter gives him a complementary above-average weapon. Campbell’s changeup is a swing-and-miss pitch against left-handed hitters and his curveball can be at times as well, but he struggled to get them out consistently in 2019 (.279/.337/.425), albeit while handling righties with aplomb (.207/.258/.313). An above-average strike-thrower, he doesn’t get a ton of whiffs but does induce a lot of weak contact from poorly timed swings.”
This story was originally published March 17, 2021 at 1:00 PM.
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