Miami Marlins Season in Review: Joseph Gilma

Throughout the 2018/2019 offseason, Marlin Maniac will devote one article each for every player who appeared in the Miami Marlins system for the 2018 season. Every. Single. Player. This is Part three…of 286. Stay tuned.

Joseph Djulmy Gilma is a 5’9″, 145 lb. switch-hitting shortstop from Bani, DR. Born on March 18th, 1999, the Miami Marlins signed him to a minor league deal on October 8th, 2016. Although he’s only 18-years-old, he just completed his second minor league season.

Expectation

Dominican Summer League signings are generally low risk gambles with a very small chance at someday making the major leagues. Gilma is not an exception to this rule.

Despite his natural position at shortstop, Gilma appeared this season instead in left field (two games), first base (five games), second base (three games), and third (seven games). Despite playing all across the field in 2018, he made only one error in 46 chances. In 51 games at shortstop in 2017, he racked up a .948 fielding percentage, making 11 errors in 382 innings of play.

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After his signing, Gilma spent 2017 appearing in a team-fourth 58 games in total, slashing .190/.328/.196. Although no great shakes at the plate, he demonstrated patience beyond his years, drawing a team-fifth 26 walks in 192 plate appearances, a 13.5 percent walk rate while striking out 28 times. He also collected a grand total of one extra base hit, a double amongst his 29 hits. He stole a team-sixth eight bases in nine tries and knocked 17 in.

This year, Gilma was limited to 17 games in total. He went nine-for-32 with no extra base hits. Despite the small sample size, he continued to demonstrate patience at the plate, drawing seven walks over his 39 plate appearances while striking out only four times. His .281 average was a step up, and his .425 OBP ranked second on the team (minimum 40 plate appearances). His best game of the season was on August 18th, when he batted eighth, played third base, and went two-for-four with an RBI in a 5-3 win over the DSL Athletics.

Gilma may get another look next season, due to his switch-hitting ability and his solid OBP. If the Miami Marlins retain him, he should start next year again with the DSL Marlins. Provided he continues through the Marlins system in the future, the earliest we would see him in Miami Marlins Spring Training would likely be 2024.

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