Liam Hicks is hitting well for the Marlins, but his struggles controlling the running game are becoming a growing concern behind the plate.
The Miami Marlins (5-3) can live with a lot of things right now. They can live with some growing pains. They can live with a young roster learning on the fly. They can even live with a catcher who is still figuring out the finer points of handling a big-league staff.
What they cannot live with is a catcher turning the running game into open season.
Catcher Liam Hicks has been one of the best early surprises on Miami’s roster from an offensive standpoint. Through his first six games of 2026, according to Baseball Reference, he is slashing .368/.435/.895 with three home runs, 12 RBI, and a ridiculous 1.330 OPS. For a team that badly needs impact bats, that kind of production matters. It is the kind of start that forces people to pay attention and gives the Marlins a reason to keep penciling him into the lineup.
But Friday’s loss to the New York Yankees (7-1) was a reminder that offense does not erase everything for a catcher.
Allowing five stolen bases in one game is ugly on its own. When it comes attached to a bigger trend, it becomes alarming. According to a count by the Associated Press, Hicks has not thrown out a runner in nine attempts against him this season, and his career caught-stealing rate sits at just 10 percent after going 6-for-66 overall. That is not just below average. That is the kind of number opposing teams notice immediately and circle before first pitch.
And once teams know they can run on you, it changes the entire shape of a game.
It puts more pressure on pitchers. It creates more scoring chances. It turns singles and walks into instant threats. It also makes the defense look reactive instead of in control.
Even if Clayton McCullough is right that the Yankees got excellent jumps and even if the Marlins’ pitchers did Hicks no favors with 11 walks, there is still no way around the truth: this is part of Hicks’ job, and right now he is not doing it well enough.
That does not mean the Marlins should panic. It does mean they need to treat this as more than a footnote.
Because if Hicks is going to be a real long-term answer behind the plate, he cannot be a catcher whose hot bat comes with a green light for every baserunner in the league. The offense has been great. No one should deny that. But for a catcher, defense is not optional. And right now, it is the part of Hicks’ game that looks the most dangerous to Miami.
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