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Players to be excited and nervous about on the 2023 Miami Marlins

Opening Day is a week away and Marlins fans have some things to look forward and some things to worry about

MIAMI — We’re now just a week away from the Opening Day of the 2023 Major League Baseball season. And while teams are finishing up Spring Training and trying to finalize their rosters to begin the season, fans are getting excited (and nervous) about their teams’ chances this upcoming regular season.

Some teams made major changes by signing highly coveted free agents or making trades during the offseason. The Miami Marlins are one of those teams. 

They acquired 2022’s American League batting champ Luis Arraez in a trade for starter Pablo Lopez and two minor league prospects. But let’s face it, even with that addition; the 2023 Miami Marlins don’t have a lot of expectations heaped upon them as we approach Opening Day. 

They’re in the National League East with the likes of the New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, and Philadelphia Phillies, battling it out for the division title. Still, Marlins fans do have some things to look forward to (and be nervous about), like every other fanbase in baseball.

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Locked On Marlins host Peter Pratt spoke to his guest Chase or, as he’s better known to his fellow Miami fans, Loud Marlins Fan, on the latest episode of his show, about some of the players to be excited about and nervous about in 2023.

The hitter to be excited about:

The previously mentioned Luis Arraez. It was quite a shock when the Marlins traded for Arraez, mainly because everyone was surprised the Twins let him go after such a strong performance in 2022. As Chase/Loud Marlins Fan noted, “The base of the Marlins fans haven’t seen Luis Arraez play (until now). We didn’t watch Twins baseball. Watching him in the WBC lit a fire. A two-home run game in his new ballpark? That’s a start. That’s how you sell tickets.”

Arraez took home the AL batting title after hitting .316/.375.420 in 144 games with the Twins. He’s not usually a power guy and only hit eight home runs in 2022, but he’s a spark in the lineup and will probably be slotted into the one or two spot.

The hitters to be nervous about:

Both Pratt and Chase were in agreement about Jorge Soler and Avisail Garcia. They are hoping for bounce-back seasons for the two outfielders but were especially worried about Soler. 

Soler hit 13 home runs in 2022, but his batting line was .207/.295/.400, which is not something you want to see from a guy who is batting in the middle of the lineup. Garcia also had a rough 2022, only playing in 98 games and batting .224/.266/.317. That works out to only a .582 slugging percentage which was way down from his .820 in 2021.

Chase also mentioned Garrett Cooper and Bryan De La Cruz as hitters to be nervous about in 2023. He hopes that Cooper can replicate his 2022 first-half numbers in 2023 and keep them going—he batted .283 in the first half of 2022 and only .210 in the second half. As for De La Cruz, Chase thinks he could be the odd man out in the Marlins outfield if he doesn’t improve.

Pratt said he’s nervous about Joey Wendle on both the offensive and defensive sides in 2023. He was an All-Star in 2021 with the Tampa Bay Rays but fell off a bit with the Marlins in 2022.

The pitchers to be excited about:

The first one is obvious. It’s the reigning National League Cy Young award holder, Sandy Alcantara. Both Pratt and Chase are excited to see what he can do to follow up his incredible 2022 season in which he finished 14-9 with a 2.28 ERA in 32 starts. 

He led the majors in innings pitched (228.2), batters faced (886), and complete games (6). Pratt is also excited to see what Jesus Lazardo and Trevor Rogers can do as well. He thinks the rotation can be strong if everyone stays healthy.

The pitcher to be nervous about:

The answer to this one is Johnny Cueto. He has been battling some health issues (general arm soreness) so far in spring training, and both Pratt and Chase are nervous about that. Cueto is also 37 years old, and the Marlins are asking for a lot from him in the absence of Pablo Lopez, who went to the Twins n the Arraez trade. 

And this brings up the last thing Pratt is nervous about for the 2023 Marlins: the overall health of the starting rotation. If everyone stays healthy, the rotation should be as good as last year, but if one or two guys were to get hurt, he’s not sure if the Marlins can recover.

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