Will Miami Marlins Catcher Rodrigo Vigil Open 2019 in Miami?

Rodrigo Vigil is a Miami Marlins catcher entering his 10th season in the organization.

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 190 of 286. For the first 100, click here.

Rodrigo Abdel Vigil is a 6′, 165 lb. catcher from David, Panama. Five players have made the majors out of David, including current major leaguers Javier Guerra and Breyvic Valera.

Vigil was born on January 3rd, 1993, and signed on with the Florida Marlins through international free agency on May 27th, 2010, while still just 17-years-old. He joined the rookie-level DSL Marlins in the Dominican Summer League to hit .134/.250/.195 in 30 games. He was also perfect in 64 innings at second base on 36 fielding chances. Vigil also played 22 innings at shortstop and three at third base without an error. You can follow Vigil on Twitter @rodrigovigil.

In 2011, Vigil remained with the DSL squad, playing 24 games at shortstop and 20 at second base. He improved his slashline to a more-decent .247/.321/.310 mark, and racked up 13 RBI in 46 games.

Vigil totaled a .952 fielding percentage in 87 innings at second base for DSL in 2012, and hit .268/.354/.341. On July 30th, he was laterally promoted to the GCL Marlins in the Florida-based, rookie-level Gulf Coast League. He hit .200/.238/.250 in 11 games, and played second and third base.

Starting in 2013, Vigil made a permanent move to catcher, and played in 24 games for GCL behind the plate. He threw out 26 percent of basestealers and earned a .985 fielding percentage in 194 chances. At the bat, Vigil slashed out .282/.349/.372 with only four extra base hits and two RBI.

2014 would see Vigil join the short-season-A Batavia Muckdogs in the New York-Penn League, and get into 32 games behind the plate. He had another .985 fielding percentage, and threw out 55 percent of basestealers. Vigil also had a solid season at the dish, slashing .280/.330/.374 with 10 RBI. He was named to the NYPL mid-season All-Star team.

Vigil split his 2015 season between the single-A Greensboro Grasshoppers in the South Atlantic League and the high-A Jupiter Hammerheads in the Florida State League. He hit .300 with Greensboro in 39 games, and totaled a .247/.275/.284 slash in 76 games combined between the two clubs, with a career best 33 RBI. Vigil also racked up a .995 fielding percentage in 638 1/3 innings at catcher.

In 2016, Vigil was slowed by injury, but still finished with a .996 fielding percentage in 33 games at catcher, between GCL, Greensboro, and Jupiter. His slashline rose to .261/.303/.365.

In 2017, Vigil got to the double-A level for the first time, with the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp in the Southern League. He played 65 games between them and the Hammerheads, but in Jacksonville, he slashed .306/.352/.341. After the regular season, he hit .417 in nine games with the Salt River Rafters in the Arizona Fall League. Here he is, courtesy of Baseball Census.

Vigil’s 2018 campaign would begin and end for him with the Jumbo Shrimp. Over his first eight seasons, Vigil totaled three home runs. For Jacksonville last season, he had five, with 22 RBI. In 83 games, he hit .245/.289/.343, with 37 strikeouts in 313 plate appearances. He threw out 38 percent of basestealers and posted a .994 fielding percentage in 705 2/3 innings. For the second time, Vigil earned a spot on the midseason all-star team.

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Vigil had multiple hits in 17 of his 83 appearances in 2018, including two three-hit games. On June 13th, he hit two singles and a double with a run and an RBI as the Shrimp dropped an 11-3 decision to the Jackson Generals.

Vigil enters his 10th season in the Miami Marlins organization in 2019, as a non-roster Spring Training invitee. With J.T. Realmuto likely to be traded to points unknown before the start of it, Vigil has an outside shot at sticking with the team. I say “outside shot,” because Vigil is far more likely to open the season at the triple-A level with the New Orleans Baby Cakes in the Pacific Coast League.

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