JUPITER, Fla. -- Despite coming off a disappointing 2022 season in which they lost 93 games, the Marlins consider themselves in win-now mode. That might seem unbelievable to outsiders, but Miami believes it can compete with anybody.

It won't be an easy task considering how competitive the National League East is expected to be, but Miami already sees a winning culture being built with new manager Skip Schumaker in charge. Plus, no other club boasts the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, MLB stolen base champion and AL batting champion. The Marlins upgraded their deficiencies by acquiring infielder Luis Arraez, reliever JT Chargois, infielder Jean Segura and right-hander Johnny Cueto.

"I think we all want to get out of the gate quickly and basically show people what we think we can do," general manager Kim Ng said. "I think there's a lot of talent on this club."

What needs to go right? Miami showed what it was capable of by opening 2022 with a 12-8 record, but injuries quickly took a toll and exposed the lack of depth. No team can completely avoid injuries. All the Marlins ask for is relative health to have a fighting chance. The Braves, Mets and Phillies have significantly more star power, but the Marlins improved their offense and bullpen in the hopes of seeing an improvement in their one-run losses (MLB-high 40 in '22). If the young rotation continues to progress, Miami will be a tough team to beat on a daily basis.

Great unknown: In order to bolster the lineup, Miami might have sacrificed defense. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is playing center field for the first time and Segura is moving over to third base -- a position where he has limited experience. Arraez split time at first, second, third and designated hitter in 2022 with Minnesota, but he is Miami's second baseman. If Spring Training was any indication, there will be growing pains. The club didn't have much time together, with Segura and Arraez at the World Baseball Classic. Miami relies on its pitching, so having players out of position could have an impact.

Team MVP will be? For the second straight season, I'll go with Chisholm. I was on the right track in 2022 -- which was Chisholm’s first year making the NL All-Star team -- until a stress fracture in his lower back ended his campaign in late June after just 60 games. The arrivals of Segura and Arraez, who hit it off quickly with Chisholm, will allow the Bahamian to bat in a more run-producing spot in the lineup. Early in spring, Chisholm said his goal for 2023 was to win the NL MVP Award. If the 25-year-old can stay on the field, he has all of the tools to make it happen.

Team Cy Young will be? Hear me out: What about the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner? Sandy Alcantara became the first pitcher in franchise history to earn the honor, and he did so unanimously. It will be hard to top what the 27-year-old did in 2022, but he puts in the work to get better. Alcantara serves as a blueprint for the younger pitchers in the organization, in particular his ability to go deeper in games, something Edward Cabrera and Jesús Luzardo worked on in camp. If they can follow suit, Alcantara's impact will be even greater than every five days.

Bold prediction: The Marlins will finish at .500. That would require a 12-win turnaround from 2022, but a few factors could work in their favor. A more balanced schedule means Miami will face division rivals Atlanta, New York and Philadelphia -- clubs expected to secure postseason spots -- 18 fewer times. Plus, nearly every Marlins regular played below their career numbers or missed time with injuries last year. Surely that can't happen again, right? Once the Marlins were out of the race during the second half of last season, they started a bunch of prospects to see what they had moving forward -- to the detriment of their record.