Spring opener sees launch of rotation competition

JUPITER, Fla. -- Let the rotation competition begin.

First up was Marlins left-hander Ryan Weathers in Saturday afternoon’s 9-8 victory over the Cardinals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in the Grapefruit League opener.

Weathers entered his start hoping to pound the zone with first-pitch strikes. He did not accomplish that in his two-inning outing, getting ahead in the count to just two of the nine batters he faced -- a theme from his short stint in the Majors with the Marlins following his acquisition ahead of last season’s Trade Deadline. Weathers went on to permit two runs on three hits with one walk and one strikeout. Of his 38 pitches, 20 were strikes.

“Threw some pretty good two-seamers, threw some really good changeups,” Weathers said. “I think a lot of it was just getting back into it, just some first-game jitters. Just got behind a few hitters, but any time I was ahead, it was really good. Got a lot of swings and misses today, so that was definitely a positive. There's a definite change in the stuff, so now it's just kind of perfecting the craft a little bit.”

Barring injuries, lefties Jesús Luzardo and Braxton Garrett and righty Eury Pérez appear to be locks for the Opening Day rotation. Roster pitchers in the mix for the remaining two spots are Weathers, Edward Cabrera, Trevor Rogers, A.J. Puk, George Soriano, No. 3 prospect Max Meyer and Sixto Sánchez.

The 24-year-old Weathers started Miami’s 2023 regular-season finale and made the postseason roster, though he didn’t appear in a game. He added a two-seamer while working with TrackMan over the offseason to improve his game.

“He looked good,” catcher Nick Fortes said. “His changeup looked really, really good. [He] had some really good action. [The] fastball was getting on guys, it looked like. His sinker had some good action as well. We were kind of pushing his changeup a little bit more, because he's been working on it. It looked pretty good.”

Control the ground game
The Marlins struggled to contain opposing baserunners in 2023 with the implementation of the new rules, so that has become a target for improvement in ’24.

With two outs in the bottom of the first, Fortes caught Nolan Arenado straying too far off the base on a throw to first for the final out of the inning.

“It's something I've been working on, and it's just picking your spots,” Fortes said. “If it's open, then you take it. At that time, he was just pretty far off, and so just take a chance, especially in spring, just try to work on it. Try to do new things. It's definitely something that we've been working on.”

Practice makes perfect
During pregame drills on the back fields, the Marlins spent time working on relays.

It paid off in the second inning, when José Fermín doubled down the left-field line. Bryan De La Cruz retrieved the ball and threw it to shortstop Xavier Edwards, who fired to Fortes, retiring Alec Burleson at the plate.

De La Cruz, who finished with -9 defensive runs saved and -8 outs above average in left field last season, had made his defense an offseason priority.

“I was very happy to see the results, things I'm working on specifically,” De La Cruz said via interpreter Luis Dorante Jr. “And then I had the opportunity to show that today. Having those results has made me very happy.”

Prospect watch

• Jacob Amaya (No. 5 prospect) collected a hit in three at-bats.
• Victor Mesa Jr. (No. 6 prospect) doubled twice.
• Javier Sanoja (No. 16 prospect) was hitless in one at-bat.
• Troy Johnston (No. 20 prospect) went 0-for-2 with a walk and a run.
• Left-hander Josh Simpson (No. 25 prospect) allowed three runs on two hits with one walk and two hit batters while recording just two outs in the fifth.
• Will Banfield (No. 26 prospect) finished 1-for-3.

Up next
Luzardo starts Sunday’s game against the Nationals at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET.