Miami Marlins Prospects: Spotlight on Seventh Round Pick Cason Sherrod

The Miami Marlins went pretty heavy on high-school talent for the draft class of 2018, with prep ballplayers being selected four times in the first six rounds.

This includes first rounder LHP Connor Scott, second rounder SS Osiris Johnson, and competitive draft selection C Will Banfield. All three are now signed with the Miami Marlins.

Through his first three Longhorn seasons, Cason Sherrod put up a 5-1 record in 49 relief appearances. He had a 3.34 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 64 2/3 innings, with a 1.314 WHIP.

His efforts paid off in the 2017 draft, when the Kansas City Royals selected him in the 13th round. Chosen 390th overall, the 6’4″, 204 lb. native of Dallas, Texas had a choice to make.

Sherrod gave up some bargaining power in the process of returning to college for his senior season. Soon after, he proposed to now fiancee Chandler.

Betting on himself only increased Cason’s draft stock. In 25 relief appearances in 2018, Sherrod was 5-2 with a 3.98 ERA, a 1.35 WHIP, and 40 whiffs in 40 2/3 innings. The Miami Marlins selected him in the seventh round, 207th overall off the draft board.

READ: Spotlight on Davis Bradshaw

Sherrod signed for the Miami Marlins at well below his slot value of $210,200, for just $20,000. As a pitcher, he’s been touching 96MPH since he was a senior in high school. Sherrod is hearing impaired, but it’s been addressed according to baseballamerica.com:

"Sherrod’s baseball took off after he got better hearing aids to help him with his hearing impariment. Sherrod has varied his arm slot. He can sink it more when he’s using a low three-quarter release point, but his velo tails off."

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Born on June 25th, 1996, Sherrod’s hearing disability is due to nerve damage from being born two months premature. He states that he has 53 percent hearing loss in both ears. He got away from using hearing aids in high school because he was embarrassed by their bulkiness. Later on, he got a pair of digital hearing aids. According to ESPN.COM:

"I remember the first thing I heard was the birds chirp. I thought that was the coolest thing ever. – Sherrod"

In addition to his fastball, which now gets up to 97 MPH, Sherrod boasts a well-developed slider that’s been described as “nasty.” His curveball is largely considered unfinished, so he reported to the GCL Marlins after signing, on June 18th.

Sherrod made his professional debut for GCL one day later, allowing an unearned run on a hit and a walk over two innings. His next outing wasn’t as clean. In 2/3 of an inning, he gave up four hits, hit two batters and walked one. He also struck out two, but all seven baserunners eventually crossed the plate, blowing up his ERA above 20.

The ERA will come down, in fact it already has. In a 1 2/3 inning appearance yesterday morning (June 28th), Sherrod whiffed two and didn’t allow a baserunner.

Sherrod projects as a mid-inning reliever at the major league level, with a possible shot at setup man. With normal career progression, he may make an appearance in Miami around 2022.

Next: Miami Marlins Prospects: Spotlight on Zack Leban

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