Minor League Season Comes to an End For Marlins Affiliates

The minor league season for the Miami Marlins affiliates has come and gone with a mixed bag of results. 

Overall, a lot of minor league affiliates have been competitive, either making the playoffs or contending late in the second half. The Jupiter Hammerheads won the Florida State League championship with the help of their top draft pick. 

Ironically, the only team that didn’t compete for a spot in the playoffs was Triple-A Jacksonville. The Jumbo Shrimp finished the season half with a 31-42 record, 73-74 overall, and in 10th place in the International League East. 

The Jumbo Shrimp’s season ended in a 6-5 loss against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last Saturday. They built an early 4-0 lead before falling in extra innings in walk-off fashion.

Marlins No. 13 prospect 1B Brandon Compton, who started his season in High-A, hit his third career grand slam in the top of the second inning. He finished the season leading the farm system with 36 home runs.

Marlins No. 10 prospect 3B Brayden Taylor, whom the Marlins traded Liam Hicks for in July, drove in Jacksonville’s final run of the season. 

Matthew Etzel finished the season with the team lead in doubles with 20 on the season.

The Pensacola Blue Wahoos were swept in the Southern League Divisional Series against Biloxi. The Blue Wahoos finished the year with a 79-58 record, the best mark in the Southern League, and reached the playoffs with an eight-game lead in the second half.

The Blue Wahoos made history as the first team in the history of the Southern League with over 300 stolen bases (312). 

Marlins No. 24 prospect Cristian Hernández led the farm system in doubles with 29. He also led the Blue Wahoos with a .253/.337/.412 slash line and 109 hits. 

Marlins No. 30 prospect Eliazar Dishmey led the Blue Wahoos’ pitching staff with 92 strikeouts. 

The Beloit Sky Carp finished the Midwest League season with a 66-65 record.

Marlins No. 29 prospect Dillon Head led the team with a .248 batting average, while Marlins No. 7 prospect Starlyn Caba led with a .389 on-base percentage and .767 OPS.

Marlins No. 16 prospect LHP Nate Payne leads Marlins minor leaguers with 111.0 combined innings pitched and second in strikeouts (147). Julio Mendez led the farm system with 151 strikeouts and a 2.95 ERA across multiple levels.

Despite finishing with a 61-67 record, the Jupiter Hammerheads went on to win the Florida State League championship, their second in four years and first since 2023.

Jupiter first baseman Echedry Vargas was named the Florida State League’s Most Valuable Player and an FSL All-Star after leading the league in hits (121), batting average (.323), home runs (27), RBI (94), SLG (.611), OPS (.983), and extra-base hits (52).

Julio Mendez was named an FSL All-Star as a starting pitcher, after posting a 7-0 record with a 2.89 ERA in 14 starts (17 appearances). Manuel Genao also received an FSL All-Star nod as a starting pitcher after posting a 3.67 ERA in 26 appearances and 21 starts).