The secret to this Marlins star stealing

This story was excerpted from Christina De Nicola’s Marlins Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

What's the secret to basestealing?

"Being confident and not being scared to run," Marlins first-base/outfield coach Jon Jay said.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. certainly isn't lacking in either, so no wonder he is turning into one of the Majors' top threats on the basepaths. Though Chisholm didn't swipe a base until his 10th game of the season, he entered Sunday tied for second in MLB with 11 steals. That total matches Luis Castillo (1997) for most stolen bases in April in franchise history.

"He's running at the right time, which I think he's become a really good basestealer," manager Skip Schumaker said. "Sometimes you can just outrun the ball, because he's just kind of a freak athlete, but he's actually like gameplanning the pitcher, and Jon Jay is helping out a lot with that and some big stolen bases."

In Friday's 3-2 victory over the Cubs at loanDepot park, Chisholm nabbed second and third in the sixth inning to put the pressure on right-hander Marcus Stroman. It marked the third time in 2023 that he had recorded multiple steals in a game, tied with three other Major Leaguers for the most such instances. Garrett Cooper would line into an inning-ending double play, but Chisholm's aggressiveness on the basepaths is an element of the club's game that will lead to runs.

And Chisholm isn't just running for the sake of running. He has been studying with help from Jay and quality assurance coach Griffin Benedict. Over the past few years, Chisholm has leaned on Juan Pierre, who led the Majors in stolen bases three times during his 14-year career.

If Chisholm stays hot at the plate, he will have even more opportunities to run, especially as the leadoff batter. He is 9-for-21 (.429) over his last five games.

"When it comes to baseball, you're not just going out there and running," said Chisholm, who has been caught once in 2023. "If you're going out there and running, I could have 20 stolen bases with 20 caught stealing right now, but that's not the way to do it. You've got to go out there, pick your spots, know what the pitcher's got, know what they're going to do, especially knowing that you're a fast baserunner, knowing that they're not going to try to give it to you easily.

"Knowing the game and knowing what positions you're in and knowing if you should go and steal this bag right now knowing who's at the plate. It's a lot that goes into basestealing that a lot of people don't recognize, because that's why a lot of guys that are super-fast don't steal 40 or 50 bags because they're going in counts where guys need to hit, and they're trying to get their pitch."