Marlins Place Janson Junk On 15-Day IL, Recall Josh White
The Marlins are placing starter Janson Junk on the 15-day injured list with right shin inflammation, per Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. He’s expected to be out for two to three weeks. Right-hander Josh White is being recalled from Triple-A in a corresponding move. When White gets into a game, he’ll be making his major league debut.
More to come.
Eury Pérez To Miss Eight Weeks With Gracilis Strain
The Marlins announced that right-hander Eury Pérez has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 28th, with a right gracilis strain. His recovery will last eight weeks, per Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. Fellow righty Josh Ekness has been recalled to take his roster spot. The Fish also reinstated infielder Leo Jimenez from the seven-day concussion-related IL and optioned infielder Graham Pauley.
Pérez tossed four shutout innings against the Blue Jays in Toronto on Wednesday but did not come out for the fifth. As seen in this video from MLB.com, he was stretching in the dugout when he suddenly became visibly overwhelmed with pain. He had to be helped down into the tunnel. After the game, he told De Nicola that his pain was initially a ten out of ten, but had dropped to a seven. He was set to undergo imaging, which apparently found this strain of his gracilis, which is part of the thigh.
It’s the latest blow to the Miami rotation, which has seen its once-vaunted starting depth evaporate. The Marlins felt good enough about their stock of starters that they traded both Edward Cabrera and Ryan Weathers in the offseason. Those moves allowed the Fish to acquire Owen Caissie and various prospects. The hope was that they would still have plenty of arms. They began the season with Pérez, Sandy Alcantara, Max Meyer, Chris Paddack and Janson Junk in the rotation, with Braxton Garrett, Robby Snelling, Thomas White and others in Triple-A.
In early May, they gave up on Paddack. He was designated for assignment and landed with the Reds. Snelling was called up to take his rotation spot but then Snelling suffered a sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament after just one start in the big leagues. He underwent internal brace surgery and will miss the rest of the year. Garrett was then called up to replace Snelling but Garrett’s two starts resulted in just 4 1/3 innings with seven earned runs allowed. He was optioned back down to the minors after that. White hasn’t been an option because he landed on the minor league IL a couple of weeks ago.
With Pérez now out, the Fish are basically down to Alcantara, Meyer and Junk from their season-opening group. Tyler Phillips, who has been working a multi-inning relief role, made a start on Sunday. He went 3 2/3 innings and is listed as the probable starter for tomorrow’s game, so perhaps he’ll stick in the rotation for now. Meyer is taking the ball tonight and Junk on Sunday, followed by Alcantara on Monday. By Tuesday, they’ll need to figure something else out, whether that’s a spot starter or bullpen game.
Garrett was only optioned nine days ago. Pitchers need to wait 15 days after being optioned before they can be recalled, unless they directly replace someone else going on the IL. Dax Fulton, Ryan Gusto and Bradley Blalock are on the 40-man roster and pitching in Triple-A, though Fulton has a 6.17 ERA in Triple-A this year and Blalock is at 5.44. Gusto has a more palatable 4.01 at Triple-A this year, though he has a 5.61 ERA in his big league career.
Time will tell how the Marlins proceed but it’s a rough situation for them. They are 26-31 on the year, putting them five games back of a playoff spot. There’s still lots of time to climb in the standings but that will be hard to do with the pitching staff so banged up.
Photo courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images
Marlins, Amos Willingham Agree To Minor League Deal
The Marlins and right-hander Amos Willingham have agreed to a minor league contract, per Ari Alexander of 7News. The Gaeta Sports Management client is headed to Triple-A Jacksonville for the time being.
Willingham, 27, has pitched in parts of two big league seasons, both with the division-rival Nationals. He’s been tagged for 20 runs on 37 hits and nine walks with 16 strikeouts in 25 1/3 frames, resulting in a 7.11 earned run average. Nine of those 37 knocks against him have been home runs.
Willingham began the season with the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate. He posted a quality 3.38 ERA in 13 1/3 frames but did so while walking more batters (11) than he struck out (nine). With the Astros organization, he was working at 94 mph with his heater — down from his career average of 95.9 mph in the majors — and had increased the use of his changeup at the expense of his cutter and slider.
Despite the lack of big league success, Willingham has an accomplished track record in Triple-A. He’s pitched parts of four seasons there and carries a career 3.59 ERA with a 22.1% strikeout rate, an 11.3% walk rate and a 43.8% ground-ball rate that’s a bit better than the major league average. He also has a minor league option remaining, so if the Marlins select Willingham’s contract and call him to the majors at any point, they can send him back down to Jacksonville without needing to expose him to waivers.
Robby Snelling Undergoes Internal Brace Surgery
May 22nd: The Marlins announced today that Snelling underwent a UCL repair surgery with an internal brace. They listed his return timeline as 10 to 12 months, so it seems he could have a shot at returning in the first half of the 2027 season.
May 21st: The Marlins announced to reporters, including Craig Mish of SportsGrid, that left-hander Robby Snelling will undergo Tommy John surgery. He was transferred to the 60-day injured list earlier today and will stay there for the rest of the year. He’ll likely be out until around the 2027 All-Star break.
It’s obviously awful news for any pitcher when a Tommy John surgery is required but it’s particularly bitter timing for Snelling. He has spent the past few years working his way through the minor leagues and became one of the top pitching prospects in the game. Miami called him up to the majors earlier this month and he made his big league debut. But he experienced some discomfort after his first start and was diagnosed with a sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament, the ligament that is replaced in Tommy John surgery.
Instead of building up his major league track record, Snelling is now going to be rehabbing for quite a while with just one game on his stat sheet. TJS usually requires 14 months or more of recovery time, so Snelling will miss the rest of the 2026 season and probably at least half of 2027.
For Snelling personally, the one silver lining is that this injury occurred just after his promotion. Since he is on the major league IL, he will collect big league pay and service time throughout his rehab process. If the injury occurred a few weeks earlier while he was still in the minors, that would not have been the case.
That’s a small positive for Snelling but a negative for the Marlins. They called up Snelling in May, so he wasn’t in position to get to a full year of service this season. That means his window of club control would include this year and six additional seasons. He could have been a Marlins rotation mainstay for that time. Or even if he eventually wound up on the trade block, as many Miami pitchers do, that window of control was going to be part of his eventual trade appeal.
Instead, he’s now going to be on the shelf for most of the first two years of that seven-year window. He will still have lots of time to get back on track and establish himself as a viable big league arm, but this is going to take a big bite out of the club’s control window.
The Marlins will also now have to proceed without Snelling in their plans for quite a while. Not too long ago, they were overflowing with rotation depth. They felt good enough about their stable of arms to trade Edward Cabrera and Ryan Weathers in the offseason, allowing them to add some offense and prospects. Even with those trades, they came into the season with a rotation consisting of Sandy Alcantara, Eury Pérez, Max Meyer, Chris Paddack and Janson Junk. Their minor league depth included Braxton Garrett, Snelling and fellow prospect Thomas White.
But has so often happens, the surplus has evaporated. The Fish designated Paddack for assignment to open a spot for Snelling. Once Snelling hit the IL, they called up Garrett, but Garrett made two poor starts and was optioned back to the minors. White was placed on the minor league IL on Tuesday, so he’s not a short-term option.
Junk started for the Marlins yesterday. They have Alcantara, Pérez and Meyer slated to start the next three games. By Sunday, they will need some kind of plan, whether that’s a bullpen game or a spot starter. Tyler Phillips has been pitching multiple innings out of the bullpen and could be part of the solution. In addition to Garrett, they have Dax Fulton, Ryan Gusto and Bradley Blalock on optional assignment. Those three all have ERAs north of 4.40 in Triple-A this year.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Marlins Acquire Rece Hinds
The Marlins and Reds announced that they have made a trade sending outfielder Rece Hinds from Cincinnati to Miami. The Marlins optioned him to Triple-A Jacksonville and transferred left-hander Robby Snelling to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot. The Reds, who designated Hinds for assignment a few days ago, receive minor league right-hander Zach McCambley in return. The Marlins also recalled infielder Graham Pauley and placed infielder Leo Jiménez on the seven-day injured list with concussion symptoms.
Hinds, 25, has shown the potential to be a masher but hasn’t yet done that in a major league setting. In 131 big league plate appearances, he has a .172/.221/.426 line. But he hit five home runs in spring training this year, leading to a ridiculous .410/.465/.949 line. In Triple-A, dating back to the start of 2025, he has 31 home runs in 540 plate appearances a .303/.371/.576 line.
There is clearly some power there but the concern is when he doesn’t connect. Hinds has generally struck out in about a third of his plate appearances throughout his minor league career. In his brief big league action, he has a massive 42% strikeout rate.
There is a small hint of optimism in that department. At Triple-A, again dating back to the start of 2025, his strikeout rate is just 26.3%. That’s still above average but not as bad as his earlier minor league numbers, as he had a 35% strikeout rate from 2021 to 2024. He’s got some wheels and a good arm for right field, so he could be a real asset if he can get the strikeouts under control.
Hinds is in his final option year. The Marlins can keep him at Jacksonville for now and get a close-up look at his offensive approach. If there’s an injury in the big league outfield or he shows notable improvement, he could be called up.
The Reds moved on from Hinds but are able to turn him into some extra pitching depth. McCambley, 27, is a reliever who has shown some promise in the minors. The Phillies grabbed him in the Rule 5 draft in November but returned him to the Marlins at the end of spring training.
McCambley has a mid-90s four-seamer but that’s only his third pitch in terms of usage. He primarily throws his high-80s cutter and mid-80s slider, throwing each of those pitches about a third of the time. Four-seamers, sinkers, curveballs and changeups make up the other third.
Between last year and this year, he has thrown 67 1/3 Triple-A innings thus far, allowing 2.94 earned runs per nine. His 11.6% walk rate in that time is too high but he has punched out 30.3% of batters faced and induced a good amount of grounders as well. He is not on the 40-man roster but the Reds could call him up at some point down the line if they need a fresh arm or want to shake up their bullpen mix.
Snelling was diagnosed with a sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament last week. It’s not yet clear if he will undergo surgery but it’s not a surprise to see him transferred to the 60-day IL. Even the non-surgical paths back from a UCL sprain require lengthy recovery periods. He will technically be eligible for reinstatement in July but time will tell what a realistic timeline is for his return.
As for Jiménez, he exited yesterday’s game with an apparent injury. As Ronald Acuña Jr. was sliding into third base, Jiménez tried to tag him and the two collided, as seen in this clip from MLB.com. As Jiménez recovers, Pauley will get another shot in the big leagues. Pauley is a strong defender at third base but his offense is more questionable. He hit .173/.225/.293 for the Fish earlier this year before getting optioned to Jacksonville. He hit three homers in nine games for the Jumbo Shrimp and will now try to produce more offense in the big leagues.
Pauley has one option year remaining. A player burns an option year once they spend 20 days on optional assignment. It was two weeks ago that Pauley was sent down, so he still has a chance to carry that option into 2027 if he stays up from here on out.
The Hinds/McCambley trade and Pauley’s recall were first reflected in the transactions tracker at MLB.com. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald first reported that Jiménez would go on the IL. The Snelling move came from the official team announcement.
2026-27 Club Options: NL East
In recent weeks, MLBTR has looked forward to next winter’s option classes. We’ll move now to the NL East, where a former MVP and Cy Young winner are the most notable names.
Previous: AL East, AL Central, AL West
Atlanta Braves
- Ronald Acuña Jr., RF: $17MM club option ($10MM buyout)
This is as easy as they get. The Braves will exercise their $17MM option for 2027 and have a matching provision for the ’28 season. The first comes with a $10MM buyout, while the second has no buyout. It’s highly likely the Braves are going to pick them both up anyway, but it could be a moderately closer call for Atlanta after 2027 if Acuña has a bad or injury-riddled year.
The Braves have remarkably raced to the second-best start in MLB despite relatively underwhelming work from the five-time All-Star. Acuña has only connected on two home runs with a .252/.367/.382 slash line through his first 35 games. He missed a couple weeks with a Grade 1 strain of his left hamstring and returned to the lineup yesterday.
- Ozzie Albies, 2B: $7MM club option (no buyout)
Albies agreed to a pair of $7MM team options on his exceedingly club-friendly 2019 extension. He signed away up to four free agent years for a $35MM guarantee that’d max out at $45MM if the Braves exercised the options — the first of which contained a $4MM buyout.
For a few years, it was among the biggest bargain contracts in the league. A pair of down seasons in 2024-25 reduced the surplus value somewhat, though Atlanta still had an easy call to exercise the first option last winter. Picking up the second should require even less deliberation.
Albies has rebounded to hit .271/.329/.441 and is third among second basemen with eight home runs. The NL second base field is crowded, but Albies is putting together a strong case for his fourth All-Star selection while playing on a salary just above what Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Miguel Rojas commanded as free agents.
- Tyler Kinley, RHP: $5.5MM club option ($1.25MM buyout)
Atlanta acquired Kinley from the Rockies last summer. He pitched brilliantly down the stretch, but they nevertheless declined his $5.5MM option for 2026 in favor of a $750K buyout. They re-signed Kinley two months later on a $4.25MM free agent deal. He’s making $3MM this season and will be paid either a $1.25MM buyout or stick around for next season via $5.5MM team option.
Kinley, a slider specialist, has had a somewhat shaky start this season. His 23% strikeout rate is virtually unchanged from last year, but his walks have ticked up and he has been victimized by the home run ball. Kinley has given up a longball in four of his last eight times out. He’s up to 10 runs allowed (nine earned) across 20 2/3 innings.
The Braves have still used Kinley in a decent number of leverage situations. He’s tied for second on the team behind Dylan Lee with six holds. This one could go either way, but he’ll need to get on track to remain in skipper Walt Weiss’ circle of trust.
Miami Marlins
- Sandy Alcantara, RHP: $21MM club option ($2MM buyout)
The Marlins’ deadline will hinge largely on what to do with Alcantara. He’s making $17MM in the final guaranteed season of the $56MM extension he signed in 2021. Alcantara has rebounded from an abysmal first half of the ’25 campaign, as he clearly had trouble dialing in his command when he initially returned from a Tommy John procedure.
Alcantara carries a 3.53 ERA with an above-average 49% grounder rate over his first 10 starts. He has allowed 3.47 earned runs per nine in 23 starts going back to last summer’s All-Star Break. The Cy Young form probably isn’t coming back, but Alcantara would be a lock for a team’s playoff rotation. He’s still sitting in the 97-98 mph range with his four-seamer and sinker, albeit with a slight drop in strikeouts.
Miami’s only guaranteed money for the 2027 season is the $10MM they’ll send to the Yankees on the Giancarlo Stanton contract. None of their arbitration-eligible players would cost more than a few million dollars. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic wrote earlier this month that Alcantara is a favorite of owner Bruce Sherman.
It would take another major injury or an atrocious second half for Alcantara’s option not to get picked up. The bigger question is whether that’ll be by the Marlins. They’re 22-27 and fourth from the bottom in a competitive National League. FanGraphs has their postseason chances below 5%. The prospect return would be higher this summer than it’d be at the 2027 deadline given the extra playoff run they’re marketing to a contender. Will the Fish keep Alcantara as a veteran rotation anchor or shop him as one of the best available arms?
New York Mets
- Luis Robert Jr., CF: $20MM club option ($2MM buyout)
The Mets took on Robert’s $20MM salary for the 2026 season in last winter’s trade with the White Sox. They didn’t surrender a whole lot in terms of young talent — Luisangel Acuña’s stock has tumbled over the past couple seasons — but it was still a sizable financial bet on Robert staying healthy and rebounding from two straight subpar offensive years.
Robert hit well for the first two weeks before falling into a slump in the middle of April. He had a .224/.327/.329 slash over 98 plate appearances when he landed on the injured list with lumbar disc inflammation. Initial hopes that it’d be close to a minimal stint haven’t panned out. He’s coming up on a monthlong absence without a clear timeline for when he’ll ramp up baseball activities.
The bet on Robert’s tools and early-career success hasn’t panned out so far. They’ve needed to call upon prospect A.J. Ewing earlier than expected. Ewing has shown a very disciplined approach through his first eight MLB games after an excellent start to the year in Triple-A. It’s too early to simply lock Ewing into the 2027 center field job, but the Mets would be better for it if he nails down the position with a strong rookie season. That’d solidify the increasingly probable chance that Robert gets bought out.
Philadelphia Phillies
- None.
Washington Nationals
- Zack Littell, RHP: $12MM mutual option ($4MM buyout)
Washington added Littell on a one-year, $7MM free agent deal. They included a $12MM mutual option that comes with a $4MM buyout. That’s an accounting mechanism that allows them to pay Littell more than half the money at the end of the season rather than throughout the summer in salary. They presumably hoped to shed some of the buyout responsibility by flipping Littell at the deadline, though the backloaded nature meant they’d have needed to cover some of it to find a trade partner.
That’s probably a moot point, as Littell hasn’t pitched well enough to merit much attention. He owns a 6.10 ERA with a career-low 10.6% strikeout rate while giving up 14 home runs in just 41 1/3 innings. He’s the only pitcher with 40+ frames who is allowing a homer once in every three innings pitched. Most of that damage came in April, but Littell has only recorded four strikeouts in 12 1/3 frames this month. If the Nationals didn’t have one of the worst rotations in MLB, they’d probably have given more consideration to moving on from Littell already.
Note: The Nationals hold respective club options on Cade Cavalli ($4MM) and Max Kranick ($850K). Both players would remain eligible for arbitration if Washington declines.
Marlins Notes: Garrett, Snelling, Alderman
The Marlins are optioning lefty Braxton Garrett back to Triple-A Jacksonville, reports Christina De Nicola of MLB.com. They’ll make a corresponding move tomorrow.
Garrett was recalled to step into the rotation last week. His season debut could hardly have gone worse. He allowed five runs on four hits and five walks while recording just four outs in a road loss to the Twins. Garrett took the ball again today against the Braves. He required 65 pitches to complete three innings of two-run ball, allowing three hits and walks apiece with a pair of strikeouts.
The 28-year-old Garrett was a capable mid-rotation starter between 2022-23. He lost most of the ’24 season to a flexor strain and underwent UCL surgery in January 2025. That wiped out all of last year. The Marlins optioned him out of Spring Training to allow him to build up in Triple-A. Garrett has a 2.30 ERA and 26% strikeout rate through six starts with Jacksonville, but his command has been a work in progress in the minors as well (12.3% walk rate).
Miami only recalled Garrett last week due to an unfortunate injury to rookie southpaw Robby Snelling. The 22-year-old made his MLB debut on May 8. He reported elbow discomfort during a between starts throwing session and was diagnosed with a UCL sprain. That’ll keep him down for a while, with a specific timeline to be determined after he goes for further testing.
The team announced yesterday that Snelling will see Dr. Keith Meister on Thursday (relayed by Kevin Barral of Fish On First). They should have a better idea by the weekend whether Snelling will require an operation or can proceed with a non-surgical route.
In either case, the Marlins will need to figure out the fifth rotation spot this weekend. Janson Junk and Sandy Alcantara will go for the final two games of the Atlanta series. Miami hasn’t announced pitching plans for their weekend set against the Mets. Eury Pérez and Max Meyer would be on regular rest for the first two games.
Ryan Gusto, Bradley Blalock and Dax Fulton are all on the 40-man roster and in the Jacksonville rotation. Fulton pitched tonight, while Blalock has struggled his last two times out. Gusto scuffled a bit early in the season but has turned in strong outings in three of his last four appearances. He struck out 10 over seven innings of two-run ball over the weekend.
Top prospect Thomas White isn’t on the 40-man but also looms in Triple-A. The 6’5″ southpaw has made five starts since returning from a season-opening injured list stint due to an oblique strain. He has yet to complete five innings in a start and has given up eight runs (six earned) over six combined frames in his past two outings. It’d be an odd time to call him up, but White ranks as the #4 pitching prospect in the sport at Baseball America. He’d been scheduled to start for Jacksonville tomorrow, but they now list reliever Zach McCambley for that game. It’s unclear if that’s related to a potential promotion or due to some kind of health question.
An injury probably will delay the debut for another of Miami’s better prospects. Triple-A slugger Kemp Alderman was placed on the minor league injured list after a collision at first base over the weekend. A natural outfielder, Alderman had recently begun getting some first base reps.
Alderman is out to a .303/.376/.526 start with nine homers in 40 games for Jacksonville. He’s striking out at a concerning 31% clip but obliterating the ball when he makes contact. Alderman has made hard contact on 64% of his batted balls while posting a 96 mph average exit velocity. That’s comparable to what James Wood, Munetaka Murakami and Oneil Cruz are doing at the MLB level. Alderman is obviously facing far lesser pitching than he’d see in the Majors, but he clearly has immense raw power.
Miami could certainly have used a jolt at first base. Christopher Morel, signed to a $2MM free agent deal to handle the position, missed most of April with an oblique injury. He has hit .152 without a home run in 15 games since returning. Connor Norby has a league average .231/.335/.378 slash line between the corner infield spots and designated hitter.
MLBTR Podcast: Patrick Bailey To Cleveland, The Struggling Astros, And Arizona’s Outfield Changes
The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.
This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Giants trading Patrick Bailey to the Guardians (1:25)
- The Astros losing Carlos Correa to season-ending ankle surgery (18:40)
- The Diamondbacks calling up Ryan Waldschmidt and trading Alek Thomas to the Dodgers (28:05)
- The Mets calling up A.J. Ewing (38:25)
- The Marlins calling up Robby Snelling (42:55)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- Are the Tigers struggling due to injuries and will be fine as guys get healthy? Or should fans be more worried? (49:30)
- Which starting pitchers can the Cubs pursue? (53:25)
- When will the Yankees realize they need to upgrade on David Bednar as the closer? (58:20)
Check out our past episodes!
- Skubal’s Injury, The Marlins’ Catchers, Eldridge Called Up, And Volpe Sent Down – listen here
- The Alex Cora Situation, Lucas Giolito Signs, And The Phillies Fire Rob Thomson – listen here
- Kevin McGonigle, The Padres’ Franchise Valuation, And Edwin Díaz To Miss Time – listen here
The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!
Photo courtesy of David Dermer, Imagn Images
Marlins Place Robby Snelling On IL With UCL Sprain
The Marlins announced that left-hander Robby Snelling has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow. Right-hander Pete Fairbanks has been reinstated from the IL in a corresponding move. Snelling had been scheduled to start Thursday’s game. Lefty Braxton Garrett will be recalled to start for the Fish on Thursday.
It’s brutal timing for Snelling and the Marlins. The lefty is one of the top pitching prospects in the league. He started the season in the minors but the club recently decided to shake up their rotation. Just over a week ago, Chris Paddack was designated for assignment. Snelling then came up to take Paddack’s rotation spot. Snelling made his major league debut on Friday, allowing three earned runs over five innings.
Prior to today, there wasn’t any indication that anything was wrong. Manager Clayton McCullough spoke with reporters, including Marlins broadcaster Kyle Sielaff, and said Snelling experienced some discomfort after throwing a between-starts bullpen session. The skipper confirmed that Garrett, who was scratched from his minor league start, would be called up to take the mound in the majors on Thursday.
McCullough didn’t have any more information about Snelling’s status, apart from the fact that the southpaw would be undergoing more testing. UCL sprains are often precursors to major surgeries, such as Tommy John. That’s not always the case, as some pitchers are able to return without surgery, though even those cases involve months of rehab.
It’s obviously very poor timing. Both Snelling and the Marlins hoped his promotion would be the start of a blossoming major league career. Instead, he’s facing a significant injury and potentially a lengthy absence, though time will tell on the specifics. For Snelling personally, the one silver lining is that this injury occurred after his promotion. That means he’ll collect major league pay and service time while he’s on the IL. That would not have been the case if he were injured while still in the minors.
If Snelling does end up requiring surgery, it could be a bitter development for the club. A lengthy surgery rehab could wipe out most of his 2026 and part of his 2027 as well, which would be a decent chunk of the club’s window of control over the lefty. That could also potentially impact the club’s trade plans this summer or in the coming offseason. The club’s knack for developing pitchers has allowed them to continually trade starters for bats and then replace the arms internally. Subtracting Snelling from their rotation depth chart could make that less likely.
For the short term, they will turn to Garrett. It’s unclear if this will be a spot start or if Garrett will stick around, as Marlins could also turn to another prospect in Thomas White. At least for tomorrow, it will be Garrett.
Garrett already has some major league experience under his belt, though it’s been a while. His best season was 2023, when he tossed 159 2/3 innings with a 3.66 earned run average, 23.7% strikeout rate, 4.4% walk rate and 49.1% ground ball rate. Shoulder and forearm injuries limited him to just seven starts in 2024, then UCL surgery wiped out his 2025 campaign entirely.
He has been healthy here in 2026 but the Marlins have been cautious with him. They optioned Garrett to Triple-A Jacksonville at the end of spring training, opting to start the season with Janson Junk in the final rotation spot behind Sandy Alcantara, Eury Pérez, Max Meyer and Paddack.
The Fish have given Garrett a lighter workload, giving him at least six days of rest between each start. He has pitched well with the kid gloves on, tossing 31 1/3 innings over his six outings this year with a 2.30 ERA. His 12.3% walk rate is high but some rust isn’t too surprising after almost two whole missed seasons. He has struck out 26.2% of batters faced while inducing grounders on 53% of balls in play.
The Marlins are one game into a stretch of playing 16 days in a row. If the plan is to keep Garrett in the majors, he’ll need to pitch on a more traditional five-man rotation, unless they try to get creative. They could go for a six-man rotation, deploy some bullpen games or have some other guys make spot starts.
If this isn’t just a one-and-done for Garrett, it will be notable for him from a career perspective. He came into 2026 with his service time count at three years and 168 days, which is just four days shy of the four-year mark. If he had spent all of 2026 on optional assignment, his path to free agency would have been delayed, but even a very brief stint in the majors will keep him on track for free agency after 2028.
As mentioned, it’s possible the Marlins consider involving White in some way. Snelling perhaps got the call first because he’s a bit older and has more Triple-A experience, and because White had been slowed by an oblique strain in spring training, but prospect evaluators rank White ahead of Snelling in terms of his potential future impact. White has recovered from that oblique issue and has been in the Triple-A rotation of late. It’s unclear if he’ll be called up in the immediate future but Snelling’s injury surely increases the odds of him getting the call at some point this year.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Marlins Outright Stephen Jones
Right-hander Stephen Jones has been sent outright to Triple-A Jacksonville, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week.
It’s been a strange week for Jones, who started the season with Double-A Pensacola after signing a minor league deal with the Marlins. Miami added him to the big league roster on May 7th. He explained to members of the media, including Kevin Barral of Fish on First, that he had just been promoted to Triple-A. He sat in the bullpen for one game without being used by the Jumbo Shrimp before being told he was going to the big leagues. He didn’t pitch for the Marlins that night and was designated for assignment the next day.
It appears that Jones was nothing more than an emergency arm. The Fish had designated Chris Paddack for assignment on May 5th and would eventually give his rotation spot to Robby Snelling on the 8th. In the interim, they had an extra bullpen spot to use. They first recalled William Kempner for Paddack. After Kempner tossed on inning on the 5th, they optioned him out for Dax Fulton. Then Fulton tossed four innings on the 6th. Since he wasn’t going to be available for a few days, they swapped him out for Jones. They didn’t use Jones and then bumped him off the roster for Snelling.
The end result of all that shuffling is that Jones is now in position to potentially be a phantom player, one who makes a major league roster but never appears in a game. This is his first outright and he has less than three years of service time, so he has to accept the assignment.
He started this year with 16 2/3 innings at Double-A with a 3.24 earned run average. His 25.7% strikeout rate and 46.3% ground ball rates were good but he walked 17.6% of hitters who came to the plate. His previous stints in Triple-A have not gone well, with a 12.60 ERA in 60 innings at the top minor league level. He’ll look to post better results going forward in order to get back onto the roster.
Photo courtesy of Jim Rassol, Imagn Images