Cannarella, Matheus earn Marlins’ Player & Student of the Year

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp outfielder Cam Cannarella and infielder Juan Matheus have earned the Miami Marlins’ Minor League Player and Student of the Year awards, respectively, the Marlins announced Friday. Outfielder Matthew Etzel was named the Jacksonville Team MVP, with current Jumbo Shrimp outfielder Brandon Compton earning the same honor for Double-A Pensacola.

Cannarella began the 2026 campaign with High-A Beloit, batting .394/.439/.577/1.039 in 19 games before earning a June 2 promotion to Pensacola. The Hartsville, S.C., native continued to excel with the Blue Wahoos, hitting .344/.453/.607/1.060 in 34 games prior to earning a promotion a month and a half later to Jacksonville.

The Marlins’ supplemental first round pick (43rd overall) out of Clemson in 2025, Cannarella reached base in 41 of the 45 games he played with the Jumbo Shrimp, slashing .282/.393/.420/.813 with 15 doubles, three home runs, 12 RBIs, 29 walks, 29 runs scored and 11 stolen bases. He put together a 26-game on-base streak from July 22-August 27, the longest for a Jumbo Shrimp since Dane Myers’ 26-game roll in 2024, and tied for the sixth-longest in recorded club history (2005-present).

Matheus also began the 2026 season with Beloit, batting .261/.352/.471/.823 in 42 games before earning a May 26 promotion to Pensacola. He posted a .279/.338/.420/.758 line in 78 contests with the Blue Wahoos before receiving another promotion, this time on September 2 to Jacksonville. Matheus concluded the campaign by hitting 10-for-49 (.204) with three doubles, five RBIs, nine walks, eight runs and six steals in 15 games with the Jumbo Shrimp.

A native of Lara in Venezuela, Matheus was originally signed by the New York Yankees on January 27, 2022 as an international free agent. He was traded on January 13, 2026 to the Marlins as part of the package for left-handed pitcher Ryan Weathers.

Etzel spent the entirety of the 2026 with the Jumbo Shrimp, leading the team in runs (74), doubles (20) and walks (67) while finishing second in hits (104) and stolen bases (25), tied for second in home runs (19) and third in RBIs (62). The League City, Texas native slashed .241/.344/.428/.772 in a team-high 120 games.

Originally selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the 10th round of the 2023 draft out of the University of Southern Mississippi, Etzel was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays on July 26, 2024 as part of the package for right-hander Zach Eflin. The Rays sent him to the Marlins on July 29, 2025 in exchange for catcher Nick Fortes.

Compton finished the 2026 season ranking seventh in the minor leagues in home runs (36) and OPS (.907), tied for seventh in extra-base hits (65), tied for eighth in walks (104), ninth in slugging (.576) and tied for 14th in RBIs (103). The Buckeye, Ariz., native’s 36 bombs tied former Jumbo Shrimp and current Marlin Griffin Conine (2021) for the fifth-most ever by a Marlins minor leaguer.

Miami’s second-round pick out of Arizona State in 2025, Compton played in 125 games between Beloit, Pensacola (promoted from High-A on June 30) and Jacksonville (promoted from Double-A on September 2). In 15 games with the Jumbo Shrimp, Compton hit .246/.348/.456/.805 with three doubles, three home runs, nine RBIs, nine walks, 10 runs and five stolen bases. His four stolen bases on September 3 at Norfolk tied a Jumbo Shrimp era (2017-present) single-game team record (Brian Miller, May 13, 2021 at Durham).

ABOUT THE JUMBO SHRIMP: The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins and compete in the International League. The 2025 International League and Triple-A National Champions, the Jumbo Shrimp call VyStar Ballpark home for baseball but also a wide variety of additional community focused events with a goal of providing Affordable, Family, FUN to Northeast Florida. Winners of many marketing and sales awards and recognition since the team was rebranded prior to the 2017 season, the Jumbo Shrimp continually lead the state of Florida in attendance across all minor league professional sports organizations.