Relive Marsee's clutch debut against the Yankees and discover his journey to prove his early success wasn't a fluke.
Jakob Marsee was the fourth-most valuable position player on the Miami Marlins last season.
Of the three ahead of him, Kyle Stowers played in 117 games.
Otto Lopez played in 143.
Xavier Edwards played 139.
Called up in August, Marsee played in 55.
The small sample might mean Marsee isn't as good as what he showed in 2025.
It's also true that Marsee might only be scratching the surface.
In an interview Wednesday with MLB.com, Marsee remembered his first big-league game.
The Marlins were taking on the New York Yankees on an early August Friday night, playing in front of a rare sellout crowd at loanDepot Park in Miami.
In the seventh inning, Marsee stepped in against two-time All-Star David Bednar.
He doubled and later scored the go-ahead run.
Fast forward to the bottom of the ninth, and New York had re-taken the lead, 12-10.
Marsee drew a walk, scored the tying run, and the Marlins walked it off one batter later.
For Marsee, this was a big confidence boost.
"You get a hit against those teams, you're like, ‘Well, if I can do it against one of the best teams in the game, I can do this against anyone,’” Marsee said. “So it kind of gives you a little bit of confidence moving forward.”
Now, Marsee has to avoid the dreaded sophomore slump.
Recently, the 24-year-old was one of four young Marlins to partake in the Rookie Career Development Program.
For four days last week, Marsee and his teammates were on Zoom to hear from various experts on how to deal with things away from the field that are part of the adjustment to the big league life.
Some former participants spoke, as well, including reigning National League Cy Young winner Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
“There was like 10 of us, and we all kind of talked and just bounced ideas off each other, told each other what we do, and got to hear what everyone else does, and hear how they go about things to help us going forward as well," Marsee said.
If Marsee can prove that the last two months of 2025 were no fluke, the Marlins could have one of the best young outfields in baseball.
Complimenting Marsee in the corners of the outfield are left fielder Stowers -- who was an All-Star and Miami's best player in 2025 -- and right fielder Owen Caissie, who was the Chicago Cubs' No. 1 prospect before the Marlins acquired him earlier this month as the centerpiece of the Edward Cabrera trade.
As the leadoff man, Marsee is expected to pace the Miami lineup.
If he's on his game, it opens the door for the Marlins' offense to be much improved from 2025, where it finished 16th in the league in scoring.
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