Four Former Blue Wahoos Part Of New Affiliate Miami Marlins Early Spring Success 

Nearing midpoint of the Grapefruit League, four former Pensacola Blue Wahoos players have been part of the Miami Marlins early success in spring training games.

Shortstop Miguel Rojas, a regular starter on the Blue Wahoos first team in 2012, leads the way as a projected starter in the Marlins’ opening day lineup.

The Marlins lost just once in their first 10 spring training games. Five games have ended in a tie, including Thursday's 1-1 deadlock against the Washington Nationals.

The Marlins pitching has been stellar. Their 26 runs allowed are the fewest runs yielded among all 30 major league teams at this point. It includes three shutouts.

The 32-year-old Rojas has become a team leader. He is joined on the Marlins spring training roster by first baseman Lewin Diaz, part of the Blue Wahoos’ 2019 team as a Minnesota Twins affiliate, now competing to be the Marlins’ opening day starter.

The other two former Wahoos are catchers Chad Wallach and Brian Navarreto, who are competing for a backup spot on the opening roster.

Rojas played a key role in the shortened 2020 season when the Marlins stunned by reaching the playoffs and beating the Chicago Cubs in their divisional series matchup.

Rojas believes the Marlins’ spring training performance, so far, is a carrying over from last fall. He disagrees with baseball anaylsts who see the Marlins battling to stay out of last place in the National League East.

"Personally, I don't like it," said Rojas, speaking to South Florida sports radio station AM 790 The Ticket. "There's nothing I can do but go to the field and prove everyone wrong. We're not bottom feeders anymore. They keep picking us to be last and we're not going to be there."

Diaz, who connected with Blue Wahoos fans with his engaging personality during his 33 games with Pensacola in 2019, had three hits in his first 11 at-bats in spring training games, including two doubles.

“He’s looking more comfortable,” said Marlins manager Don Mattingly, speaking to media covering the team after a recent game. “That’s where I’ll start. He’s had some good swings throughout camp.

“(Diaz) hands are just a touch higher. It’s going to be fun. He’ll get a lot of (at bats) in spring because there’s not a ton of first basemen in camp.”

The Marlins made their first spring training cuts March 10 with 17 players reassigned to the Triple-A workouts. Spring training for the future Blue Wahoos players in Double-A, along with Single-A Beloit Snappers, are expected to begin the first week of April.

All levels of minor leagues will now start seasons on May 4, after the Triple-A season was moved back one month due to concerns with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Here is how things shape up for the four former Blue Wahoos players.

MIGUEL ROJAS – He is set to be an opening day starter when the Marlins face the Tampa Bay Rays on April 1 in the teams’ season opener April 1 in Miami.

The Venezuela native joined the Marlins organization in 2015, after making his MLB debut a year earlier with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He spent the first seven years of his professional career with the Cincinnati Reds organization – the Blue Wahoos Double-A affiliate from 2012 through the 2018 season.

He played 58 games for the Blue Wahoos in 2012, batting .210. Last season with the Marlins, he batted .304 in 40 games with 20 RBI. In 2018, he had his best full season in the big leagues, hitting .284 with 46 RBI.

Rojas has a two-year contract worth $10 million which expires after this season with an option to renew for 2022.

LEWIN DIAZ – He is competing to be Miami’s starting first baseman and part of the team roster for Opening Day. The rest of spring training will determine if it happens.

Diaz, 24, was promoted to the Blue Wahoos on June 19, 2019 from High-A Fort Myers. He played in 32 games, batting .302 with six homers and 26 RBI, before being traded to the Marlins organization on July 27, 2019 as part of a four-player swap for the Twins to get veteran reliever Sergio Romo.

Diaz made his MLB debut Aug. 15, 2020 with the Marlins and played in 19 games last year with six hits in 39 at-bats.

BRIAN NAVARRETO – He’s appeared in seven spring training games before March 11 with one hit in seven at-bats. Navarreto, 26, played in two games for the Marlins last season after making his MLB debut Aug. 23, 2020.

He played in 40 games for the Blue Wahoos in 2019 before a brief stint with the New York Yankees organization, then signed as a free agent with the Marlins in December 2019. He was a non-roster invite to the Marlins big-league spring training camp as is battling with Wallach and three others for a backup role with the Marlins.

CHAD WALLACH – The veteran professional was drafted by the Marlins in 2013 from Cal-State Fullerton. He was traded to the Reds organization where he played for the Blue Wahoos in 69 games during the 2016 season.

The following season he was traded back to the Marlins, where he made his big league debut in 2017.

Wallach, 29, was part of the Marlins’ 40-man roster last year and became a starter in post-season games. He was hitless in his first seven at-bats in spring training. Wallach earned praise for handling Marlins’ pitchers last season and is part of a battle with four catchers for a backup role this season.

SEASON COUNTDOWN

MARCH 28 – Final day of MLB spring training games.

MARCH 29-APRIL 3 – Expected start of minor league spring training.

APRIL 1 – Marlins open season vs. Tampa Bay Rays

MAY 4 – Blue Wahoos open season at Mississippi Braves

MAY 11 – Blue Wahoos home opener vs. Birmingham Barons