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.

Happy Halloween! With the World Series underway, Hot Stove season is drawing closer.

Here’s an offseason FAQ to get you ready:

Which Marlins are free agents?
Shortstop Joey Wendle (50 OPS+), reliever David Robertson (90 ERA+) and first baseman Yuli Gurriel (79 OPS+) are free agents and unlikely to return.

Which players have options?
DH/OF Jorge Soler declined his $9 million option and became a free agent, while 1B/DH Josh Bell exercised his $16.5 million option and will return to the Marlins in 2024.

RHP Matt Barnes ($8 million or $2.25 million buyout), RHP Johnny Cueto ($10.5 million or $2.5 million buyout) and UTIL Jon Berti ($3.5 million, could increase by up to $625,000 based on 2023 PA or $25,000 buyout) have team options.

Last week, I discussed what Soler and Bell will take into consideration before choosing whether to return. When it comes to Barnes and Cueto, expect Miami to go the buyout route.

An All-Star closer in 2021, Barnes was hoping to bounce back after a disappointing '22 with a change of scenery. The 33-year-old posted a 5.48 ERA and didn't pitch after June 1 due to a season-ending hip procedure. Anthony Bender's expected return from Tommy John surgery will give Miami a controllable late-inning right-handed option with more upside. When the Marlins signed Cueto, the hope was he could eat up innings for an inexperienced rotation. The 37-year-old appeared in just 13 games (10 starts), compiling a 6.02 ERA in 52 1/3 innings, and the Marlins left him off the National League Wild Card Series roster.

And then there's Berti, who is a similar type of utility player as Garrett Hampson, except the latter is younger (29 vs. 33), cheaper and grades out better defensively at shortstop (3 vs. 1 DRS). Berti did start both games of the NL Wild Card Series, though he and Hampson split reps down the stretch. Should Miami decline the team option, Berti would still be up for his final year of arbitration ... or he could be a non-tender candidate.

Decisions must be made within five days after the World Series ends.

Who is eligible for salary arbitration?
Bender, Hampson, 2B Luis Arraez, LHP Jesús Luzardo, LHP Tanner Scott, C Jacob Stallings, CF Jazz Chisholm Jr., RHP JT Chargois, LHP A.J. Puk, LHP Steven Okert, LHP Trevor Rogers, OF Jesús Sánchez, OF Jonathan Davis

Jan. 12 is the deadline for teams to agree on one-year contracts with arbitration-eligible players.

Who might be an extension candidate?
Arraez, Luzardo, Chisholm and Scott are possibilities. Arraez, who won his second consecutive batting title in 2023, has two more years of arbitration. He won his hearing in February, earning himself $6.1 million. Luzardo ($2.45 million in '23) and Scott ($2.825 million) are coming off career years, while Chisholm has been productive but unable to play a full season due to injuries. Luzardo and Chisholm have three more years of club control; Scott can be a free agent after '24.

What about non-tender candidates?
Should the Marlins look to upgrade at catcher (second-lowest OPS in MLB in 2023), Stallings would likely be the odd man out. He has a 61 OPS+ in two seasons with Miami, and his framing and pop time metrics are well below average. Stallings was Sandy Alcantara's personal catcher, but with the Marlins' ace sidelined in 2024 due to Tommy John surgery, it would make the decision an easier one. Stallings, who has one final year of arbitration remaining, made $3.35 million in '23.

Non-tender decisions must be made before the Nov. 17 deadline.

Who needs to be added to the 40-man roster to avoid the Rule 5 Draft?
OF Victor Mesa Jr. (Miami's No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline), SS Nasim Nuñez (No. 17), SS Javier Sanoja (No. 18), 1B/OF Troy Johnston (No. 22), RHP Anthony Maldonado (No. 25), RHP Evan Fitterer (No. 26), C Will Banfield (No. 28), 2B/3B Ian Lewis (No. 29)

Johnston, 26, wasn't protected last December, then became the Marlins' Minor League Player of the Year after belting 26 homers and leading MiLB with 116 RBIs between Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Jacksonville. Even with Bell returning, Johnston should be considered a first-base option. Remember that Gurriel, a backup, will be a free agent.

Nuñez, who received the 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game MVP Award, is competing in the Arizona Fall League. While the 23-year-old hit just .225 for Pensacola, he stole 52 bases and provided elite defense at shortstop.

The organization is thin in center field (Mesa) and catcher depth (Banfield), so those two might be protected especially for that reason. Though Sanoja is a two-time affiliate MVP, he has played just 30 games at High-A. Lewis hasn't advanced past Single-A and Fitterer struggled at Pensacola upon his promotion. Maldonado thrived out of Jacksonville's bullpen (1.76 ERA).

Is there a roster crunch? How might that be resolved?
Players who ended the year on the 60-day injured list must be reinstated to the 40-man roster no more than five days after the conclusion of the World Series.

If you include the six on the 60-day IL (Barnes, Bender, Davis, Rogers, Max Meyer and Tommy Nance), there are 45 players on the 40-man roster.

Wendle, Robertson and Gurriel becoming free agents will take care of three spots. Cueto and Barnes being bought out would open up another two. Jeff Lindgren and Enmanuel De Jesus, both of whom had their contract selected late in the season, are next to free up space. Nance is out of options and missed significant time due to a right shoulder strain, so he could be another.

Then there's the question of what to do with former top prospect Sixto Sánchez, who is out of Minor League options and continues to experience setbacks with his twice-surgically repaired right shoulder.