Marlins: Is Nick Neidert the next big thing on the mound?

With his most recent showing in the Arizona Fall League, is it time to talk about Nick Neidert as the Marlins next pitcher of the future.

Nick Neidert is once again mowing down opposing hitters. This time, it’s in the Arizona Fall League. One of the Miami Marlins top pitching prospects is making a name for himself against some of the best rising talents in Minor League Baseball this offseason in preparation for Spring Training in February.

Neidert, like other Marlins pitching prospects, hopes the 2020 season is the one where he makes his MLB debut and stays on the parent club’s roster as the next big thing in Miami. It’s been tough for others – just as Jordan Yamamoto, Robert Dugger, and Zac Gallen.

But as a starter who had a slim chance at making the starting five out of camp last season, Neidert will try to take what he has faced this past season at Triple-A New Orleans and build on it for the better.

"“This wasn’t the season Nick Neidert had envisioned. The Miami Marlins pitching prospect entered spring training with the possibility of getting a major-league call-up at some point during the season,” Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald wrote.“And then, three starts into his season with the Triple-A New Orleans Baby Cakes, he tears his meniscus. Surgery. Two months off the mound and then another month of rehab assignments. He threw just 54 innings in the 2019 minor-league season and just 41 at the Triple-A level.”"

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Playing in Arizona gives Neidert a chance to make up for lost time and an opportunity for Marlins scouts to see his progression. Judging by his first few starts on the mound, he hasn’t lost a step. He was the Marlins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2018 in Jacksonville. The Marlins Double-A affiliate resides in the Southern League where both Yamamoto and Dugger started their 2018 campaigns. Yamamoto moved right to the Majors prior to the All-Star break.

Dugger got there after a promotion from New Orleans.

The Marlins have other pitchers they will watch closely this spring as well. Top prospect Sixto Sanchez and Edward Cabrera top the list. Jorge Guzman is another arm the organization will watch closely.

Where Neidert fits in the Marlins plans is up in the air right now. The only guarantees in the rotation right now are Sandy Alcantara and Caleb Smith. Yamamoto has a solid chance to become the team’s third arm. Pablo Lopez is also a factor.

Where Dugger fits is still a big question. More will be known once pitchers start throwing in February in Jupiter.