The Marlins have three catchers on their 40-man roster. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reports that the club would like to open the season with him Agustín Ramírez again Liam Hicks in the main section, with Joe Mack optioned to Triple-A, though it’s possible Mack could win the job.
Ramírez showed great promise with the bat but was arguably the worst catcher in the majors last year. In 605 2/3 innings, he was behind the plate with 19 walks and 36 wild pitches. In terms of passed balls, Ramírez paced the field, with no other shortstop allowing more than nine. Four anglers were there with a large amount of wild game but all had large samples of game time.
Modern statistics also agree. Ramírez was credited with minus-14 Defensive Runs Saved last year. The only bad boy Salvador Perez at minus-15, in a large sample of innings. Fielding Run Value had Ramirez at -12, worse than anyone but him Edgar Quero. Statcast ranked Ramírez as one of the worst catchers in terms of blocking and controlling the run game, although his frame was well regarded.
It seems inevitable that Ramírez will be moved to designated hitter or first base, where he will spend some time in the minors. The Fish don’t exactly have a slam-dunk first down the stretch, as they will enter the season with a hodgepodge lineup that includes Hicks, Christopher Morel, Connor Norby, The Griffin Conine again Graham Pauley. But the Marlins clearly aren’t ready to do that. Jackson reports that they still want to give Ramírez a shot so he can show some development behind the plate and be able to stick as a viable backstop.
That could leave Mack stuck in Triple-A for a while longer, or feel like a long-term answer behind the plate. The 31st overall pick in the 2021 draft, Mack played in 112 games last year, 99 of those at the Triple-A level. His 27.9% strikeout rate at that level was a bit high but he hit 18 home runs and slashed .250/.320/.459 for a 107 wRC+. That’s good production for a catcher, especially one with a strong defensive reputation like Mack. The Marlins added him to their 40-man roster in November to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft.
Going into 2026, Mack is one of the consensus top 100, which means the prospective incentive factor in. If the Marlins were to add him to the roster early enough to get a full year of service time, he could give them an additional opportunity to play well to earn award consideration. If they don’t call him up early, he could earn a full year of service by back-to-back finishes at the top of the Rookie of the Year voting.
If Mack ends the 2026 season with a full year of service, he will be in free agency after the 2031 season. If the Marlins hold him down long enough that he doesn’t get a full year of service and doesn’t get it back and forth, then that plan will continue into the next year.
Turning to the throwing staff, right hand Janson Junk he sprained his right ankle about a week ago and was in a walking boot for a while. It seems to be quickly passing the issue. According to MLB.com’s injury tracker, he was scheduled to throw 15 to 18 pitches on the mound yesterday. There hasn’t been a word about him since then, so it’s possible that he threw without a problem. He posted a 4.17 earned run average for the Marlins in a pinch hitting role last year. Right now, he will likely open the season as a long reliever but could get a rotation job if an injury clears his way.
Photo courtesy of Jim Rassol, Imagn Images
