SAN FRANCISCO – The Marlins made upgrading the catcher position their priority over the offseason, and they wasted no time addressing it when they acquired Jacob Stallings from the Pirates on Nov. 29.

Extremely early returns are in, and the move already is paying off. Stallings drove in three runs and threw out a pair of runners in Miami’s 6-5 Opening Day walk-off loss in 10 innings at Oracle Park.

“Everything he does behind the plate you like,” manager Don Mattingly said. “This guy's going to be ready for games, he's going to block, he's going to throw. He's not going to have that same cannon-type arm, but it's going to be quick. It's going to be accurate. He's going to be good for us. We can already see that. You see instantly in the first game that this guy is going to be a difference maker for us.”

Twice the reigning Gold Glove winner helped out ace Sandy Alcantara, who was uncharacteristically wild in his third consecutive Opening Day start. He walked five batters -- most in a start since July 31, 2019 -- in five innings.

After consecutive two-out, full-count free passes in the first, Stallings caught Darin Ruf straying too far off second base for the final out of the inning. His 81.8 mph pickoff throw would rank in the 95th percentile, and he flashed a 1.94 second pop time on the play. Stallings wouldn’t reveal who called for the play, though he did say it was nice having shortstop Miguel Rojas and second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. In the fifth, Stallings caught Mike Yastrzemski trying to steal. The call stood on a replay review.

“Having Stallings behind the plate, that was great today,” Alcantara said. “He's got a great arm. He called some great pitches today. He tried to help me in any way he can.”

Miami expected as much from the defensive-minded Stallings, who is being asked to elevate the talented pitching staff to another level. He called it the No. 1 job of a backstop. Any production at the plate would be a bonus. In 2021, the 32-year-old Stallings posted subpar Statcast metrics across the board -- from barrel percentage to average exit velocity – to go with a 92 OPS+. Entering Friday, eight of his 17 career homers had come last season. But Stallings didn’t become a primary catcher until '20, and Mattingly has seen him getting better.

For a club whose other offseason objective was to bolster one of the Majors’ weakest lineups, Stallings putting the Marlins on the scoreboard came as an unexpected surprise. Down 3-0 in the seventh with one out, Stallings deposited reliever Dominic Leone’s 96.2 mph inside four-seamer over the left-field wall for a two-run homer. Stallings became the 16th player in franchise history to go deep in his first career game with the Marlins.

Stallings delivered again in the ninth, sending an RBI single to center against closer Camilo Doval to trim the deficit to 4-3. Chisholm followed with a go-ahead two-run homer that didn’t hold, as Anthony Bender surrendered a game-tying leadoff shot to Thairo Estrada.

“Hitting has never come easy to me at all, and it's definitely been something I've worked at a lot,” Stallings said. “I felt like I made an adjustment towards the end of the year last year that is really going to help me going forward, just being on time more consistently and that sort of thing. Just worked really hard on that in the offseason. Everybody wants to hit. [You can] be the best defender in the league, it's not fun going out there and not helping your team win offensively. So to get us back in the game and help the team -- we've got a really good lineup -- so anything I can contribute is going to be helpful.”

Miami’s other position-player additions had mixed results at the plate. Jorge Soler went hitless in five at-bats, while Joey Wendle and Avisaíl García combined to reach three times with a pair of infield hits and a walk.

Like any newcomer, does Stallings feel the need to prove himself since the club actively sought him out?

“I guess I would say it's more just wanting to do well for the guys and help these guys do as well as they can, pitchers specifically,” Stallings said. “So I guess in that aspect, I want to prove to them that I'm going to work no matter what the score is. It's always an important outing for a guy. Moreso just earning their trust, I guess, than proving myself.”