Fish On First: A Miami Marlins podcast

Anthony "Red" Garcia and Alex Contreras return for the second episode of Marlins BBQ. On the menu: Injury scare after Giancarlo Stanton lined a ball off Masahiro Tanaka's head (0:40); Alex's inside look at Sunday's Marlins team workout and COVID-19 issues across the majors (4:30); full breakdown of Miami's 2020 schedule (15:00); why the team should be much improved this season (32:45). Follow Fish...

Alex and Red discuss the consequences of all the 2020 MLB rule changes (0:45), the absence of Víctor Víctor Mesa from the Marlins 60-man player pool (9:30) and the volatility of a shortened regular season (15:20). That's followed by a breakdown of Miami's key roster battles (30:30) and a game of "This or That" (40:00). Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ), Anthony ( @Red__Garcia ) and Alex ( @TheR...

We are back with more Marlins prospect talk! Ely, Ethan and Spencer react to how the club constructed its 60-man player pool for the upcoming season (2:00), breaking down which prospects will spend "Summer Camp" at Marlins Park (9:10) vs. the alternate training site in Jupiter (21:15). We acknowledge some notable minor leaguers who were recently released from the organization (36:15) and look forw...

Major League Baseball is officially back. A roundtable conversation featuring Alex Krutchik, Alex Contreras, Ethan Budowsky, Danilo Santos, Hector Rodriguez and Ely Sussman explores how the Marlins will be affected by the universal designated hitter, which prospects can become immediate big league contributors in 2020, the legitimacy of a 60-game "sprint" and what the Fish must accomplish collecti...

Monday night, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced that the club owners "unanimously voted to proceed with the 2020 season under the terms of the March 26th agreement." Translation: play ball! We are still awaiting full details about the unorthodox competition and safety rules that will be implemented. Also, let's not be naive—the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic could derail everything. In the meantim...

The Marlins took an unorthodox approach to the abbreviated 2020 MLB Draft, exclusively pitchers. On Earning Their Stripes, Spencer Morris, Ian Smith, Ethan Budowsky and Ely Sussman have the full breakdown for you. Scouting reports on Max Meyer, Dax Fulton, Kyle Nicolas, Zach McCambley, Jake Eder and Kyle Hurt, plus looking forward to the undrafted free agent signing period. Enjoy! Follow Fish Stri...

Ely and Alex applaud the Marlins for committing to pay all their prospects through the summer and vent about the ongoing MLB/MLBPA negotiations. Inspired by a tweet, they fill out two full lineups of notable players who came and went after only a single season in South Florida. Pudge Rodríguez! Carlos Delgado! Homer Bush?! Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ), Alex ( @TheRealACoN ) and Ely ( @Real...

Ely and Spencer discuss possible Marlins first-round draft pick LHP Asa Lacy and why this year's unusual circumstances could push them to explore outside-the-box alternatives like prep OF Zac Veen (2:00). During a recent interview, RHP Nick Neidert made some fascinating comments about his curveball development and the state of the Marlins rebuild (22:30). Plus, there are "underdogs" in Miami's far...

Ian Smith and Luis Davila are joined by Baseball America national writer Carlos Collazo! A returning guest to ETS, Carlos dissects the top prospects who'll be available with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft and the many consequences of the league shortening the draft in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Only 160 total players will be selected this year (instead of the usual 1,200-plu...

The Marlins Games of the Decade article series on Fish Stripes concludes this week. Full local television broadcasts of these special games from the 2010-2019 seasons are available on the website. But Ely is presenting them in an alternate format here on the pod, by selecting play-by-play calls of each game's pivotal moment (highly recommend using normal playback speed for the best possible listen...

Ely and Alex Contreras share their optimism about a potential 2020 MLB season and their admiration for how the Marlins have handled the COVID-19 pandemic. Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ), Alex ( @TheRealACoN ) and Ely ( @RealEly ) on Twitter. Full coverage here at FishStripes.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informatio...

Ely is joined by Alex Contreras, Anthony "Red" Garcia, Alex Krutchik and Tyler Wilson to go through the entire 2020 Marlins Hall of Fame ballot. From dominant hitters like Miguel Cabrera and Gary Sheffield (3:00) and beloved aces José Fernández and Dontrelle Willis (21:20) to Marlins figures who made their impact off the field (39:30). Fan balloting is open now through April 19! Follow Fish Stripe...

MLB owners ratified an agreement Friday that details how to proceed with the 2020 MLB season under these difficult circumstances. Ely explains how the Marlins would be affected by expanded active rosters (12:45), lost revenue from television and sponsors (19:25), service time adjustments (28:00) and much more. Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ) and Ely ( @RealEly ) on Twitter. Full coverage here...

The Fish Stripes staff is updating their top prospects list again, and for the first time, Marlins fans can go behind the scenes and hear what goes into that process. This second half of the conference call focuses on the bottom half of the Top 30 list and honorable mentions. Players discussed in the greatest detail include SS José Salas, RHP Evan Fitterer, SS Osiris Johnson, LHP Alex Vesia, RHP J...

The Fish Stripes staff is updating their top prospects list again, and for the first time, Marlins fans can go behind the scenes and hear what goes into that process. This first half of the conference call focuses on the upper half of the Top 30 list. Players discussed in the greatest detail include RHP Sixto Sánchez, SS Jazz Chisholm, RHP Edward Cabrera, OF Jesús Sánchez, 1B Lewin Díaz, OF Jerar...

Entering what should have been MLB Opening Week, Marlins baseball is still nowhere in sight. Ely looks at how several veteran players on the team historically perform in March/April/May of a typical season (2:35), and how to adjust expectations for them considering that the 2020 season won't include those months. On Twitter and Instagram, Fish Stripes asked which Marlins players—past or present—wo...

Even though meaningful MLB games are seemingly months away, an excellent Spring Training for the Marlins should not be forgotten. Ely takes note of the individual players who—for better or worse—made the strongest impressions (6:00), including Lewis Brinson, Jazz Chisholm and Alex Vesia. He also provides a brief introduction to the Marlins Games of the Decade series (28:45), which will be debuting...

With only two weeks until the 2020 Marlins regular season arrives, Ely summarizes the first round of Spring Training cuts (2:35), the consequences of no longer having The Clevelander at the ballpark (5:55) and what to take away from the huge Christian Yelich contract extension (10:10). Our Game of the Week was Friday night’s comeback win over the Nationals (14:40). Great guest on this episode: Mar...

More so than at any other time in recent memory, the Marlins organization is loaded with depth and high-end talent. But for these young players to make it to The Show and stick there, they must further develop their skill sets, succeed on the field, and then adjust again while ascending the minor league ladder. It’s an ongoing battle with opposing teams, your own teammates and your own body and mi...

Ely brings you more coverage of the Grapefruit League-leading Miami Marlins, beginning with a summary of their Game of the Week (3:00). Then, a whip-around of the rest of the NL East division, with individual segments previewing the Atlanta Braves (14:45), New York Mets (21:40), Philadelphia Phillies (32:40) and Washington Nationals (44:00). Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ) and Ely ( @RealEly...

It's been a dream start to the Grapefruit League for the Marlins, defeating both the Mets and Nationals thanks to Monte Harrison, Jazz Chisholm and Co. Ely shares all of his observations from Saturday's spring opener (2:47) and identifies the 2020 debuts that he's most looking forward to witnessing this upcoming week (23:00). Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ) and Ely ( @RealEly ) on Twitter. Fu...

Spring Training full-squad workouts have begun! Ely identifies the Marlins players who have the most to gain/lose between now and the regular season, most notably Lewis Brinson, Jesús Aguilar and Magneuris Sierra. Follow Fish Stripes ( @fishstripes ) and Ely ( @RealEly ) on Twitter. Full coverage at FishStripes.com . Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices See omnystudio.com...

Ely discusses the competition for the final two spots in the Marlins starting rotation (2:45), then is joined by Anthony Garcia for a play-by-play report from Saturday's Marlins FanFest (14:00). Attendance for the event was announced as 17,000, up from 12,000 the previous year. Stick around for interviews with manager Don Mattingly (36:00) and shortstop prospect Jazz Chisholm (46:15). Follow Fish...

Ely reacts to Monday's Marlins roster moves, which completed the Matt Joyce and Brandon Kintzler signings at the expense of Jarlin García and José Quijada. Two more players "inherited" from old ownership are now headed out the door, which begs the question: Who has survived the transition? The final segment of this episode identifies the few veterans and key prospects originally acquired under Jef...

MLB Opening Day can't get here soon enough. The Marlins, one move at a time, have assembled—by far—their most intriguing roster since this rebuild began. Ely rejoices over the pick-up of veteran right-hander Brandon Kintzler (1:10), checks in on some "old friends" remaining on the free agent market like Henderson Alvarez and David Phelps (17:45) and cautions fans not to overreact to preseason Top...