Mack offers tantalizing moment for what future could hold. And Marlins nuggets
A six pack of Marlins notes on a Wednesday:
▪ We’ve reached the point of the Marlins rebuild where the gap in fan enthusiasm between the present and the long-term future has closed, at least to a large extent.
Winning 79 games, as the Marlins did last year, raises expectations that Miami can be competitive this season after keeping Sandy Alcantara and adding the Cubs top hitting prospect, outfielder Owie Caissie.
But there’s nothing that stirs fan enthusiasm more than when high-end prospects do something significant.
There was that type of moment Tuesday, when Joe Mack – considered one of the top catching prospects in baseball - smacked a fifth-inning grand slam off Phillies’ minor league pitcher Andrew Walling in a 6-1 Marlins win.
Mack remains an underdog to make the team coming out of camp; per a source, the team prefers he gets a bit more seasoning in Triple A, though it’s not out of the question he could win the job.
Ideally, Miami would like Agustin Ramirez and Liam Hicks to begin the season as their catchers, not only to give Mack more time at Triple A but also to be able to make a determination about whether Ramirez has improved enough defensively to remain a viable catching option.
But Mack - who was selected 31st in the 2021 draft out of an East Amherst, New York high school – conceivably could be summoned to the big leagues fairly early in the season.
He hit 21 homers and 22 doubles with 58 RBI in 112 combined games at Double A and Triple A last season, while hitting .257 with a .338 on base average.
Though his defense is well-regarded, he had 11 errors and 9 passed balls last season.
“Joe has, we believe, the chance to impact on both sides of the ball,” manager Clayton McCullough said. “He’s a terrific thrower, there’s a lot of athleticism and creativity with how he can throw, and the confidence he has back there to do that as well as layering on the type of receiver that he is [is unique].
“Offensively, he [has] power from the left side. [There’s] a lot to like there with Joe. Great for him. Any young player here early in camp to have some success just continues to add to their confidence that they have, that ‘I belong here and can play here.’”
MLB Pipeline rates him 62nd its top 100, noting “he turned his career around in 2024 by deciding to hunt fastballs early in counts, which helped him total 45 homers in the past two years.
“He’s also one of the better defensive catcher prospects in the game and led Jacksonville to International League and Triple-A National Championship titles in 2025.
“Mack is somewhat of a one-dimensional hitter but as long as he’s tapping into his plus raw power from the left side of the plate and providing quality defense, that’s fine. He has an extremely aggressive approach as he looks to drive balls in the air to his pull side, and he chases a lot of pitches out of the zone. That mindset allows him to punish fastballs (1.074 OPS in 2025) but leaves him vulnerable to other types of offerings (.636 OPS).”
Mack, for his part, told MLB.com’s Christina Di Nicola that “with all the confidence I can say, ‘I know I’m ready.’”
▪ The Marlins have shut down third baseman Graham Pauley while he recovers from right forearm tightness. He could be out anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks, but McCullough said “the good news is this is going to be on the shorter end.”
Connor Norby – who had been competing with Pauley - is primarily handling third base in his absence.
▪ The Marlins continue to give Chris Morel every opportunity to win the first base job; Wednesday’s game was his third start at first in five games.
Liam Hicks and Deyvison De Los Santos started the other games at first.
Though Griffin Conine is getting reps at first base during drills, he hasn’t yet started a game there. On Wednesday, he started in left field.
▪ Outfielder Kemp Alderman, who was named the Marlins’ Minor League Player of the Year last season, started at designated hitter on Wednesday, and the Marlins have challenged him to improve defensively in the minors this season.
The 23-year-old Alderman, selected 47th overall by the Marlins out of the University of Mississippi in the 2023 amateur draft, hit .285 with 22 home runs, 70 RBIs, and 22 stolen bases at Double A and Triple A last season.
“He’s going to impact us at some point,” McCullough said. “He has a chance to [hit] for power. He has some real toughness to him. Defense has got to get better.”
He had seven errors in 110 games in the outfield last season, with 98 appearances and all of those errors coming in right field.
▪ Left-hander Braxton Garrett, who missed all of last season after December 2024 elbow surgery, will pitch one inning against Toronto in Dunedin on Thursday, and then “then we’ll get him on a five- or six-day [schedule] and get him to build up,” McCullough said.
“He checked a lot of boxes getting to that point with stamina,” McCullough added. “We will see how he responds to these outings and getting back in game competition.”
The plan is for Garrett to throw 30 to 40 pitches in his second outing.
Garrett and Max Meyer are front-runners to win the fourth and fifth rotation spots, provided they’re healthy and effective this spring. Meyer missed the final 3 ½ months last season because of a hip injury; he struck out two in a scoreless inning in his spring debut.
▪ Left-hander Thomas White, the Marlins’ top prospect and rated 17th among all prospects by MLB Pipeline, will make his spring debut with an inning against the Blue Jays on Thursday.
The 21-year-old White, who was selected 35th overall by the Marlins in the 2023 draft out of a Massachusetts high school, is likely to begin the season in Triple A after producing a 2.31 ERA in 21 starts at Single A, Double A and Triple A last season, with 145 strikeouts in 89 ⅔ innings.
“We know how talented he is,” McCullough said. “We’re looking at this as a big picture view.”
This story was originally published February 25, 2026 at 2:18 PM.
