How Marlins built a key component of team. And personnel, prospect nuggets
A six-pack of Marlins notes on a Thursday, as the team takes flight to New York for a three-game series against the Yankees (beginning at 1:35 p.m. Friday):
▪ Yes, the early season competition (the dreadful White Sox and Rockies) has been less that formidable. But that doesn’t detract from the wonderful stories of this 5-1 start — Sandy Alcantara’s dominance, Liam Hicks’ blazing start (MLB-leading 12 RBI, .467 average and three homers), Owen Caissie’s immediate impact and more.
And then there’s the bullpen, which ranks first in MLB with a 0.51 ERA (one earned run in 17 2/3 innings) and hits allowed (six).
Yes, it’s early, but the decision to spend $13 million on Peter Fairbanks looks like a wise investment. He has been excellent in three appearances, and it’s vital for young teams, in particular, to not have their confidence shaken by blown leads.
If you look at how the bullpen was built, it’s a case study of how smart decisions are being made.
President baseball operations Peter Bendix smartly claimed Lake Bachar off waivers from the Padres in September 2024.
Ex-GM Michael Hill drafted Andrew Nardi in the 16th round in 2019, while Kim Ng signed Anthony Bender to a minor-league contract in 2020. Bendix wisely kept both around.
In one of his first moves with the Marlins, Bendix acquired Calvin Faucher (with infielder Vidal Bruján) from Tampa for Erick Lara, Andrew Lindsey and a player to be named later. Bendix smartly claimed Michael Peterson off waivers in September 2024 and acquired Tyler Phillips from the Phillies late last March for cash.
All of these arms — Fairbanks, value free agent pickup John King, Bachar, Nardi, Faucher, Phillips and Peterson — have comprised a bullpen that required resourcefulness and ingenuity to build. Credit the players, Bendix, Hill, the Marlins’ pitching coaches and in Fairbanks’ case, Bruce Sherman and his wallet.
▪ Bendix’s first two first-round draft choices as the Marlins’ chief baseball executive already have faced a decent amount of adversity in their young careers.
For PJ Morlando (picked 16th overall in 2024) and Aiva Arquette (seventh in 2025), they’re learning what most other first-rounders invariably learn: The road to the big leagues is usually paved with speed bumps.
After signing in 2024, Morlando appeared in just one game — and had just a single at-bat — before sustaining a lumbar stress reaction that sidelined him for the remainder of the season.
During 2025 spring training, he underwent a nerve transplant in his nonthrowing elbow and didn’t appear in a game until June. He struggled after the long layoff, hitting .226 with five homers, 30 RBI in 52 games at Jupiter, but with a strong .361 on-base average.
But he went just 8 for 59 (.156) in the Arizona Fall League this past offseason.
MLB Pipeline dropped him from 18th to 27th among Marlins prospects, which is as much a reflection of doubts about Morlando as improvements in the Marlins’ farm system under Bendix. (The Marlins’ system is now universally rated in the top 12 by several prominent evaluators.)
Morlando got on base more than 60% of his plate appearances as a senior in Summerville High in South Carolina. But he was drafted higher than many projected.
He will begin the season at Single A Jupiter.
▪ Arquette, who was considered one of the most polished hitters in the 2025 draft, underwent core muscle surgery in early March and won’t be ready to play until some point in April. The injury came when he sustained a groin strain working out last offseason in Hawaii, where he grew up.
Arquette — who received a $7.2 million deal and the largest signing bonus in Marlins draft history — has had injury misfortune; he missed time in college with a broken hand and knee surgery.
He had growing pains, which isn’t uncommon even for great college hitters, in his debut at High A Beloit last season, hitting .242 with one homer in 27 games. But like Morlando, his on-base average wasn’t bad (.350). He played only shortstop at Beloit but potentially could play shortstop or third base in the big leagues.
Bendix has called him the best position player in last year’s amateur draft.
“We know this guy can hit; we know a lot of things this guy can do,” said director of amateur scouting Frankie Piliere, “but I think the ability to play shortstop — with his physical size and all the other things that come with it — that’s what kind of makes him so rare. He’s got a lot of tools that really stand out. There’s not many things we think he can’t do.”
MLB Pipeline ranks Arquette the Marlins’ No. 4 prospect and 47th-best prospect in baseball.
▪ Outfielder Dillon Head, who was acquired with Jakob Marsee, Nathan Martorella and since-released Woo-suk Go in the May 2024 Luis Arraez trade with the Padres, took the biggest slide among position players in MLB Pipeline’s ranking of Marlins prospects. He dropped from 13th to 26th.
A skilled defender, Head hit .224 (.336 on base) with four homers, 39 RBI and 47 steals in 58 games in 97 games at two levels of A ball last season.
Dax Fulton took the biggest fall among pitchers (17th to unranked). He’s now at Triple A Jacksonville and was bombed in his first start last week.
Right-hander Karson Milbrandt took the biggest jump, from 21 to 10, after posting a 3.00 ERA with 113 strikeouts in 90 innings in 22 starts — 20 at two levels of A ball and one at Double A Pensacola.
MLB Pipeline’s top five Marlins prospects are all rated among the top 62 overall prospects: pitchers Thomas White (17) and Robby Snelling (39), outfielder Owen Caissie (42), Arquette (47) and catcher Joe Mack (62).
▪ Quick stuff part 1: Kudos to manager Clayton McCullough, who has now won as many games as he has lost 168 games into his tenure, despite having one of the two lowest payrolls in baseball.... The Marlins will simulcast 10 games (the most permitted by MLB) on CBS 4 or sister station WBFS 33, beginning with Friday’s 1:30 p.m. game at the Yankees, which will air on CBS 4.... One negative of the opening homestand: Only 19,687 attended the three-game series against the White Sox.
▪ Quick stuff part 2: First baseman Deyvison De Los Santos sandwiched his weekend with the Marlins by hitting two home runs in Triple A Jacksonville... Braxton Garrett and Snelling pitched well in their first starts at Triple A. Chris Paddack will get a fairly long leash, but he probably needs to be pitching consistently well by May or the Marlins face an interesting rotation decision.
This story was originally published April 2, 2026 at 12:51 PM.
