Latest news with #PeterBendix
Miami Herald
02-08-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
Marlins rally three times, secure dramatic walk-off win over Yankees
Marlins' president of baseball operations Peter Bendix ultimately believed in this surging ballclub enough not to disassemble it at the trade deadline. Energized by the show of support, Marlins' players validated that vote of confidence by delivering some magic Friday night — first during a surreal seventh inning that left the raucous crowd of 32,299 inside loanDepot park spellbound, then in the bottom of the ninth for a 13-12 walk-off win against the Yankees. Two runs scored on Xavier Edwards' single to right field, knotting the score. Then Edwards slid home safely for the winning run on Agustín Ramírez's dribbler in front of home plate. In the seventh inning, Kyle Stowers crushed a grand slam, Javier Sanoja followed with his second homer of the night, and Ramírez added an RBI single as the Marlins erased a five-run deficit to the Yankees and took a one-run lead. The Bronx Bombers tied it up the next inning on Anthony Volpe's homer off Lake Bachar and took a 12-10 lead with a pair of runs in the ninth against Anthony Bender. Talk about an electric start to this three-game series and six-game homestand. Marlins' fans can only hope it's a preview of the rest of this season with a roster that only lost catcher Nick Fortes and outfielder Jesús Sánchez to trades. For the record, Bendix said he explored numerous options right up to Thursday's 6 p.m. deadline. 'It's constant, especially the last 24 hours before the deadline,' Bendix said before the game. 'It's a phone call, a text message, or a conversation with our group — pretty much nonstop.' In the end, the Marlins decided not to part with several integral pieces under team control, notably starting pitchers Sandy Alcantara and Edward Cabrera. 'We continued to build on the plan that we've had, adding as much talent to this organization as we possibly can, getting the players that we have better, and really just continuing on this path that we're really excited about,' Bendix said. He indicated that the team's success on the field, in part, played a role in the team's decision to mostly stay pat at the deadline. Of the team's surge the past two months, he said, 'I think the progress that we have seen from this group is nothing short of fantastic. It's a testament to our coaches. It's a testament to the players.' He added, 'It's a proof of concept of what we've been saying since day one. It makes me incredibly excited for the future.' Manager Clayton McCullough said his team's 'very excited' to be able to 'keep the majority of things intact.' 'We've been playing well now for the last couple of months,' McCullough said before the game. 'To have this group here right now going forward for the last couple of months, no one wants to see teammates move along. And so I know a lot of them were comfortable here, happy here, and excited for hopefully we can continue to grow and play well as we continue on through the back half of the season.' Alcantara said players wanted to avoid a roster shake-up and see what they can accomplish with their current group. 'Everybody's happy the way we've been competing,' he said. 'The way we've been winning games. Inside there, you can see in the clubhouse, in the dugout, it feels completely different. Personally, Alcantara noted, 'There's nothing I wanted more than to stay in Miami.' Alcantara said he expected to eventually see that he had been traded as he was 'grabbing my phone every two seconds' while watching MLB Network at home with family. 'Yesterday was the hardest day I had ever,' he said. 'I thought I was leaving. But I'm happy to be back in Miami. This is my home. I want to stay here.' Bendix said he wouldn't comment on specific conversations or negotiations regarding Alcantara, but added, 'I just felt really comfortable with that decision.' While Quantrill isn't under team control, the Marlins still chose to hold onto him, Bendix said, because 'he's getting better and better over the course of the season' and 'He's a leader here. 'I think he's a good example for a lot of our young players, especially our young pitchers,' Bendix added, 'and he's been helping us win games.' Jakob Marsee was selected from Triple-A Jacksonville and made his MLB debut, starting in center field and batting ninth. Marsee doubled to center field for his first career hit in the seventh inning. Marsee also drew three walks, joining Quilvio Veras (who had two on April 25, 1995) as the only players in Marlins history to walk multiple times in their MLB debut. 'I got choked up a couple times on the drive here just thinking about the journey to get here, my parents, and everything they've done,' Marsee said before the game. 'As soon as I walked out here, I was like, 'All right, it's time.'' Marlins' starter Janson Junk surrendered six runs on six hits — all in the fourth and fifth innings, including a three-run homer to former Marlin Giancarlo Stanton. Eric Wagaman broke up Yankees starter Carlos Rodón's no-hit bid with a leadoff single to left in the fifth, and Javier Sanoja followed with a two-run homer to right. Right-hander Ryan Gusto, acquired from the Astros as part of the Jesús Sánchez trade, was optioned to Jacksonville. Left-hander Anthony Veneziano was designated for assignment. Shortstop Otto Lopez was named the Sports Info Solution's Co-Defensive Player of the Month for July with the Rangers' Adolis Garcia and Mets' Luis Torrens.
Yahoo
01-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Marlins' Sandy Alcantara talks of emotional roller coaster amid trade deadline uncertainty
MIAMI (AP) — Sandy Alcantara admitted that Thursday was one of the hardest days of his career. It has been thought all season that the Miami Marlins could move on from Alcantara amid their rebuilding project, which has included shipping out established players for prospects. And as Thursday's 6 p.m. trade deadline approached, the Marlins ace could not hide his nerves. He sat in front of his television watching baseball programming with his family for most of the day, repeatedly checking his phone to see if he had been traded. 'It was hard, man,' Alcantara said Friday. 'Every time I get on my phone, I see my name. I thought that I was leaving.' Miami opted not to trade its 2022 NL Cy Young Award winner. In their only trade Thursday, the Marlins sent their longest-tenured position player in outfielder Jesús Sánchez to the Houston Astros for right-hander Ryan Gusto and two prospects, infielder Chase Jaworsky and outfielder Esmil Valencia. The rest of the team, which has won five straight series and went 15-10 in July, remains intact. Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix said Friday that the club's recent success, in part, factored into its approach at the deadline. And manager Clayton McCullough said if there weren't trade scenarios that 'moved the needle for us in the near and the long term," the Marlins were happy to continue competing with the group they have. Amid what was expected to be a season of finding out which of its relatively inexperienced pieces Miami could build around in the future, the Marlins are third in the National League East at 52-55 and entered Friday seven games behind San Diego for the National League's third wild-card spot. Bendix declined to say how close Miami was to finalizing a trade for Alcantara but noted that the team 'felt really comfortable" with its ultimate decision. 'All of the things that go into building a sustainably successful team were taken into consideration,' he said, 'at a deadline where you have all of these decisions in front of you. It's our job to be disciplined. Disciplined means listening, means having conversations, and then means trying to figure out the best decision to make for every decision point that we have.' Alcantara has played most of his eight-year career in Miami, going 47-64 with a 3.64 ERA in 159 starts while becoming the first Miami player to win the Cy Young Award after a 2022 season in which he pitched a league-high 228 innings and six complete games. Alcantara, 29, missed the 2024 season recovering from Tommy John surgery and hasn't yet returned to form in 2025. He is 6-9 with a 6.36 ERA, and despite being known as one of MLB's most durable starters, has only pitched seven innings once. He said it has taken a new level of mental toughness to play through a season not knowing if he would finish the year with the Marlins. 'It was a little hard because everywhere you go, every time you grab your phone, you see your name on the media,' Alcantara said. 'But you (can't) think too much about it. Just stay focused on everything you can do. I just came here, and if something happened, it just happened.' Alcantara's most recent two starts have been his best, an indicator to both the player and the Marlins that he may be close to returning to his All-Star caliber play. He allowed one run and four hits in a season-high seven innings against the San Diego Padres on July 23, then pitched five shutout innings in a win at St. Louis on Tuesday. 'Sandy is continuing to trend,' McCullough said. 'And we're going to continue to be the beneficiaries of having Sandy for the rest of the season, continuing to get back to the pitcher that we all know Sandy is.' ___ AP MLB:
Associated Press
01-08-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
Marlins' Sandy Alcantara talks of emotional roller coaster amid trade deadline uncertainty
MIAMI (AP) — Sandy Alcantara admitted that Thursday was one of the hardest days of his career. It has been thought all season that the Miami Marlins could move on from Alcantara amid their rebuilding project, which has included shipping out established players for prospects. And as Thursday's 6 p.m. trade deadline approached, the Marlins ace could not hide his nerves. He sat in front of his television watching baseball programming with his family for most of the day, repeatedly checking his phone to see if he had been traded. 'It was hard, man,' Alcantara said Friday. 'Every time I get on my phone, I see my name. I thought that I was leaving.' Miami opted not to trade its 2022 NL Cy Young Award winner. In their only trade Thursday, the Marlins sent their longest-tenured position player in outfielder Jesús Sánchez to the Houston Astros for right-hander Ryan Gusto and two prospects, infielder Chase Jaworsky and outfielder Esmil Valencia. The rest of the team, which has won five straight series and went 15-10 in July, remains intact. Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix said Friday that the club's recent success, in part, factored into its approach at the deadline. And manager Clayton McCullough said if there weren't trade scenarios that 'moved the needle for us in the near and the long term,' the Marlins were happy to continue competing with the group they have. Amid what was expected to be a season of finding out which of its relatively inexperienced pieces Miami could build around in the future, the Marlins are third in the National League East at 52-55 and entered Friday seven games behind San Diego for the National League's third wild-card spot. Bendix declined to say how close Miami was to finalizing a trade for Alcantara but noted that the team 'felt really comfortable' with its ultimate decision. 'All of the things that go into building a sustainably successful team were taken into consideration,' he said, 'at a deadline where you have all of these decisions in front of you. It's our job to be disciplined. Disciplined means listening, means having conversations, and then means trying to figure out the best decision to make for every decision point that we have.' Alcantara has played most of his eight-year career in Miami, going 47-64 with a 3.64 ERA in 159 starts while becoming the first Miami player to win the Cy Young Award after a 2022 season in which he pitched a league-high 228 innings and six complete games. Alcantara, 29, missed the 2024 season recovering from Tommy John surgery and hasn't yet returned to form in 2025. He is 6-9 with a 6.36 ERA, and despite being known as one of MLB's most durable starters, has only pitched seven innings once. He said it has taken a new level of mental toughness to play through a season not knowing if he would finish the year with the Marlins. 'It was a little hard because everywhere you go, every time you grab your phone, you see your name on the media,' Alcantara said. 'But you (can't) think too much about it. Just stay focused on everything you can do. I just came here, and if something happened, it just happened.' Alcantara's most recent two starts have been his best, an indicator to both the player and the Marlins that he may be close to returning to his All-Star caliber play. He allowed one run and four hits in a season-high seven innings against the San Diego Padres on July 23, then pitched five shutout innings in a win at St. Louis on Tuesday. 'Sandy is continuing to trend,' McCullough said. 'And we're going to continue to be the beneficiaries of having Sandy for the rest of the season, continuing to get back to the pitcher that we all know Sandy is.' ___ AP MLB:
Miami Herald
16-07-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Cote: Strobe lights? Trajekt Arc? How Marlins' faith in player development is working
Things are looking up for the Miami Marlins. Those eight words alone are a bit of a revelation, an epiphany, a parade of syllables rarely uttered or thought in South Florida — especially by myself, a forefront critic. Or by Marlins fans whose collective frustration is reflected by a ballpark two-thirds empty most games. 'If I were a fan I would be skeptical because they're not seeing it. It's been behind the scenes,' Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix told us Wednesday. 'Now we're starting to see that show up on the field. I hope fans are starting to see the vision. That we have a direction and are going in the right direction.' Marlins history has seen two thoroughly aberrant World Series titles in an otherwise barren landscape, the crowns rented and followed by fire sales and more losing. What Bendix is tasked with building, 'Our fans have never experienced. The Marlins have won 90 games twice in 33 years and never won the division. Our goal is to win the division multiple times — a sustained period of time when we're in the playoffs every year.' A column of mine on March 24 flew under the headline, 'To Bruce Sherman as low-hope Miami Marlins open 33rd season: Spend more or sell team.' I stand behind the broad belief, still, that Sherman, into his eighth season as primary owner after buying the team from Jeffrey Loria, has consistently not spent enough to compete in the big leagues. Fans were distracted from the low player payrolls with something shiny as Sherman partnered with Derek Jeter to have a popular star presence out front. He later broke ground by hiring Kim Ng as the sport's first female general manager. But both are gone because neither could make magic of Sherman's low-spending model that still includes the most penurious payroll in MLB in 2025. Credit where it is due, though. The Marlins in the past month or so prior to the All-Star Break fashioned an eight-game win streak, the club's longest since 2008. They won 11 in a row on the road. They ended on a 14-6 run that saw them vault from last to third in the NL East, vaulting ahead of both Washington (which fired its manager) and nemesis Atlanta. The team of zero expectations, the youngest team in MLB, has lifted to a credible 44-51, with .500 and a run at a wild-card spot no longer laughable. And all of this with ace Sandy Alcantara wallowing in a 7.22 earned run average. Don't get this wrong. I'm not throwing a parade for 44-51. The standard is set high in this busy sports market. It was set by the Dolphins' epic (if distant ) glory days, by the Hurricanes' past football dominance, by the Big 3 Heat, and now on ice by the Florida Panthers. South Florida fans demand a lot and should. May it always be so. That standard is why I don't believe in praising mediocrity. Not when the Dolphins are a wild-card team a couple of years in a row but still fail to end the club's quarter-century drought of no playoffs wins. Not when Heat climbs out of the consolation play-in tournament only to get swept in the first round. Not when Inter Miami has the best regular season record in MLS and sees championship hopes fizzle with an embarrassing quick playoff exit. And not now with a Marlins team improved but still 44-51 as the season's second half begins Friday at home vs. Kansas City. Again, though: Credit where, and when, it is due. The goal always is fairness in criticism so let's exercise that now. Although just at the start of the climb, the Marlins are earning faith by degrees. This was a season mired in last place as expected in the division, a team 16 games under .500. A team swept at home by an historically bad Colorado team that was 9-50. A team going nowhere, with crowds reflecting that. The same ol' same ol' Then something happened. A light begin to flicker in the dark. The team's vision — one of youth, player development, prospects blooming — began to show. Miami's top 30 farm system prospects include 19 obtained in the past year, 13 via trade. Bendix has done this before, succeeded at this before. He made the Tampa Bay rays a winner on a budget. 'I've seen how this works. I know how to do this,' Bendix said. 'I've seen things we can do better, in player development. Innovation. Investing in technology, in culture; behind-the-scenes stuff. We're starting to see it show up. With young players comes inconsistency and sometimes frustrating stretches of play. But young players can turn the page quickly, bounce back. We've seen them get much better.' It wasn't popular when the Marlins traded Jazz Chisholm to the Yankees. But the player Miami got, catcher Agustin Ramirez, has 14 homers at the break and 35 extra-base hits in 71 games, a Marlins rookie record. He seems a future star. Trading away starting pitcher Trevor Rogers seemed dubious. But a player they got in return, left fielder Kyle Stowers, just played in the All-Star Game in Atlanta. Third baseman Connor Norby also came in the trade. The Marlins have seen great improvement in his defensive reaction time at a new position by his wearing goggles with strobe lights in them during practice — an innovation of the Marlins' coaching staff. Miami had two players in the MLB Futures Game this past weekend, including 2023 top draft pick Thomas White, a 6-5, 240-pound lefty pitcher who, at age 20, also is seen as a future star. Starter Eury Perez, 22, is a rising star now, seen as a future rotation ace. The behind-the-scenes stuff Bendix refers to includes millions spent on a 35-acre training academy in the Dominican Republic, and also a major investment in two Trajekt Arc pitching machines, which are leased for $15,000 to $20,000 per month. The machines use a hologram image to exactly replicate the speed and movement of any major-league pitcher — including the one the Marlins will face in their next game. 'George Lucas stuff,' said manager Clayton McCullough with a 'Star Wars' reference. 'Our model and method for getting young players better is working,' said Bendix, indications of tangible proof beginning to show. 'We have less margin for error [than higher-spending teams], but we're all playing the same game, 9-on-9. There's a lot of different ways to be successful.' A harsh reality is that some teams spend big and have a bounteous farm system, the champion Los Angeles Dodgers a prime example. There will come a time when Sherman, the budget owner, needs to strategically open the wallet, whether it be for a big contract extension for a young cornerstone player such as Agustin Ramirez or for a key free agent bat. Meantime, credit where it's due, because those eight words have been a long time coming: Things are looking up for the Miami Marlins.
New York Times
08-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
How All-Star Kyle Stowers caught up to fastballs and became one of baseball's best stories
As the days inched closer to baseball's July 30 trade deadline last summer, it was no secret that the Baltimore Orioles were making outfielder Kyle Stowers available. Stowers knew it. Opposing teams knew it. Scouts from several interested rebuilding clubs frequented Triple-A Norfolk, like lions circling, knowing Baltimore — which was firmly in the buyer category — was thinking about parting with several of its position player prospects who were blocked by a backlog of young bats. Advertisement The Orioles needed starting pitching in a year in which very few impact arms were available midseason. The Miami Marlins, fielding interest from dozens of teams during a trade deadline in which they would make six trades on July 30 alone, didn't have time to go back and forth on every potential deal. President of baseball operations Peter Bendix, handling his first trade deadline, was one of only a few true sellers and used it to his advantage. Bendix set his asking prices high and let interested teams know: this is what it would take to make a deal with the Marlins. The first team to accept his terms would get the player. In the case of left-handed pitcher Trevor Rogers, who had a 4.53 ERA in 21 starts at the time, the price was steep for Baltimore: infielder Connor Norby, who at the time was the fifth-best prospect in a loaded Orioles system, and Stowers. The day after pulling the trigger on numerous deals, Orioles general manager Mike Elias acknowledged he would be haunted by some of the players he had traded away. At the time, people assumed he meant Norby or hard-throwing prospects like pitcher Seth Johnson, who was dealt to the Philadelphia Phillies. But the 27-year-old Stowers is now atop that list after being named a National League All-Star on Sunday. While Rogers has pitched well in an underwhelming first half for Baltimore, Stowers has been one of baseball's best stories. He was a guy who had always been looking over his shoulder, wondering when the Triple-A shuttle would come. But Miami gave him a long runway, and he has rewarded that trust with 16 home runs and 46 RBIs — both team highs — to go with an .866 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage). Entering Monday, Stowers is in baseball's top 10 percent in five Statcast hitting categories, including the 98th percentile in barrel percentage (19.4) and 94th in expected slugging (.552), which evaluates a player's power-hitting skill independent of defensive and ballpark factors. Not bad for a guy who was so worried he wouldn't make the Marlins this spring that he held off on finding a place to live in Miami. Advertisement Who could blame him? Stowers had been brutal in 50 games after the trade, hitting .186/.262/.295 with 61 strikeouts to close the 2024 season. There was a huge hole in his swing. He couldn't hit velocity in the top of the zone. Big-league pitchers exposed it night after night. It was excruciating, failing so often on baseball's biggest stage, going up to the plate with his stats on the JumboTron, knowing he didn't stand a chance against four-seam fastballs. It was also exactly what Stowers needed. 'It became on me,' Stowers said. 'There was no crunch or excuse of, 'Oh, you're not getting enough at-bats' or going up and down. I was getting overpowered by the competition and it forced me to look in the mirror. And I can live with that. I wanted the opportunity to reach my full potential and I knew last year making the change was on me.' The Marlins gave Stowers support and a plan. Stowers spent the offseason and spring training trying to do what he couldn't on the fly last year. He opened his stance and got out of the launch position he was in, closing off his front side more. Stowers says he naturally wants to counter-rotate, and his new setup keeps him from overdoing that. His left-handed power swing has been simplified and tightened. Stowers thinks of it as if he's taken 'the slack out of his swing,' a phrase the Marlins' two hitting coaches have repeated over and over. The initial payoff was slow. Stowers hit below .200, and if you just watched the box scores, slogged through spring. 'Ironically, it felt like he was getting at-bats versus lefties every day, which at the time helped him (keep his swing changes),' first-year manager Clayton McCullough said of Stowers' spring. 'We believed in his ability the entire time and were encouraged with the at-bats independent of the results.' Still, Stowers, a Stanford graduate who has always been incredibly cerebral, started to worry. Why wasn't any of his good work in the cages showing up in games? It was late March on the Marlins' last real spring off day. Stowers and his wife, Emma, had just gotten back from walking their golden retriever, Paxton, on the beach when Stowers saw he had a missed call from assistant hitting coach Derek Shohom. Stowers had assured Shohom after yet another hitless game the day before that he wasn't panicking despite a sub-.150 batting average. Shohom was calling to see if Stowers wanted to come in early and get some extra work in the cage before everyone else. Stowers did. Advertisement 'Alright,' Stowers conceded early that next morning to his coaches, 'I am panicking.' Shohom grinned. He had been waiting for this. 'Good,' he told Stowers, 'if you can name it, you can tame it.' Shohom and hitting coach Pedro Guerrero reiterated to Stowers that he wasn't the first guy to worry about a bad spring. They assured him over a half-hour chat that no one else in the organization was worried about Stowers. Quite the opposite: He was making the team, they said. It was in the bag. Stowers should find a place in Miami. 'It was the biggest pivot point of the year,' Stowers said. 'They just really believed in who I was as a person and a player. This is not to say that the Orioles didn't, but I wasn't playing every day (there). What I realized was that the only person in my life that was telling me that it wouldn't be OK if I didn't have success in baseball was me. It wasn't the people I love or the coaches or anyone else. I was putting too much pressure on myself.' A week after the early cage session, Stowers was down in a 0-2 count on two four-seam fastballs from Pittsburgh closer David Bednar on Opening Day. With the game on the line, Bednar threw a four-seamer up, the exact pitch that had flummoxed Stowers most of his career. This time, he drove it into right field for a walk-off single. A week after that, Stowers won NL Player of the Week, becoming the first Marlins position player to do so since Starling Marte in 2021. On May 3, Stowers — who had already homered earlier in the game — turned around Oakland closer Mason Miller's 101.7 mph fastball up and away for a two-out walk-off grand slam. 'It validated a lot of the work he had put in to get to a fastball like that,' McCullough said of the Miller homer, which was the fastest pitch a Marlin had homered off of in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008). 'That was the hit that opened up so much for him and his belief in himself.' Stowers, in 117 plate appearances against fastballs last year, hit .187 with a .280 slugging percentage. In 184 plate appearances against fastballs this year, he's batting .299 with a .554 slugging percentage. Stowers' fastball whiff rate has gone from 36.1 percent to 31.5 percent entering Monday. Baseball Savant lists run values for players based on a pitch type. Last year, Stowers equated to minus-8 runs against the four-seamer. This year he's plus-6. His greatest weakness has become his greatest strength. 'It's not that I don't care, because I care a lot, but what (clearing expectations) allows me to do is really trust the process when the hits aren't there,' Stowers said, 'I want to be the healthiest person I can be so that I can play the game in a very genuine and authentic way.' When his mind gets overwhelmed, Stowers journals. He has a complex pregame mental routine that includes listening to worship music on the way to the stadium, 10 minutes of meditation and two minutes in the cold tub. He can't control results, but Stowers can control how he prepares and thinks. And when he needs to remind himself that this is just baseball, that this is all he ever wanted — since Stowers rightly deduced he wasn't going to be a pro point guard — he looks at his right wrist, at the black rubber bracelet that says #LyonHearted on one side and Jehovah-Rapha — which translates to 'the Lord who heals' in Hebrew — on the other. Advertisement It's an ode to Jason Lyon, one of Stowers' best friends who died from a rare inoperable brain tumor when the pair were seniors at Christian High School in El Cajon, Calif. Lyon, who was diagnosed with DIPG (diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma), started showing symptoms in March of 2015 and died Oct. 15. Stowers still gets emotional talking about it. 'It brings you back a little bit to look down (at the bracelet),' Stowers said. 'You learn just to be grateful every day, grateful for health. And what's most important is what impact are you having on the people around you? How are you using what you have to make an impact on people? That's what Jason did. The way he handled it was unbelievable.' Stowers wore Lyons' No. 37 his junior year at Stanford as a tribute. He is still close to Jason's parents, Kevin and Alison. They were in Chicago to cheer on Stowers at a Marlins game in May. Stowers used to think he had to develop into a great player before giving back. Now, Stowers — who cites the Bible's Parable of Talents — wants to use what he has to do whatever he can right now. He speaks up in hitters' meetings and has become a leader in the clubhouse. He talks at length about how much he enjoys hanging out with teammates off the field and the peace it brings him, knowing everyone on the field has each other's backs. Ask people who know Stowers well, and the descriptors aren't typically the first things that come to mind for a pro athlete: considerate, thoughtful, kind, loyal. In his All-Star speech in the Marlins clubhouse on Sunday, Stowers — wearing a 'Jesus over Baseball' T-shirt — thanked the media and clubhouse attendants. Stowers has known his agent, Lonnie Murray, since he was 12 and played on a travel team with her son, Tarik, which was coached by her husband, Dave Stewart. Stowers, who isn't arbitration-eligible until 2027 and isn't a free agent until 2030, hopes he can be part of something special in Miami. He saw in Baltimore how a group of young players could come up and revitalize a fan base. He wants to be part of that for the Marlins, a team that has played well in spurts but is expected again to be a seller at the deadline. Stowers should be safe, but he isn't worried either way. A year ago, he was toiling at Triple A, unsure if he would ever get a big-league chance every day. Now Stowers is an All-Star and the poster child for what the Marlins must do if they are going to be successful: develop at the big-league level. 'He realizes the way he's performing is no accident,' McCullough said. 'You have a guy who is very driven to get better, cares about the right things, and so you bet on the person. The upside is there is more there. We're just scratching the surface of his potential. He's a very special person all around.'
