Miami Marlins Prospect Jeremy Ovalle Ready to Prove Himself

Jeremy Ovalle is ready for his sixth professional season in the Miami Marlins system.

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 232 of 286.

Jeremy Ovalle is a 6’3″, 185 lb. right-handed relief pitcher from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Santo Domingo has a population of 2,908,607 when counting the suburbs, and has produced 177 major leaguers through history. Included in the group are Jarlin Garcia and Jose Urena, as well as former Miami Marlins Marcell Ozuna, Emilio Bonifacio, and Ronny Paulino.

Ovalle, who was born on January 17th, 1997, signed through free agency with the Miami Marlins on July 23rd, 2013. He reported to the rookie-level, DSL Marlins in 2014, in the Dominican Summer League. Ovalle struck out 52 in 77 innings, going 6-2 with a 3.04 ERA and making the DSL midseason All-Star Team.

2015 would see Ovalle miss all but one game on the DL with a right UCL tear. In 2016, he spent the season at the rookie-level Gulf Coast League, with the GCL Marlins. 19 whiffs in 28 1/3 innings isn’t remarkable by any stretch, but Ovalle’s 0.95 WHIP, .194 opposing batting average, and 1.27 ERA were slightly so. Here’s Ovalle, courtesy of YouTube user Jeremy Ovalle.

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For his efforts, Ovalle got promoted to the short-season-A Batavia Muckdogs in the New York-Penn League in 2017. He came in to relieve in 16 contests for them, and struck out 27 in 24 1/3 innings. Opponents managed a .280 average and a 4.44 ERA.

2018 would start for Ovalle still with Batavia, but after striking out nine over five innings, he was pushed up a level. He would spend the rest of the season with the Greensboro Grasshoppers in the single-A South Atlantic League. Opponents hit .312 through the season against him between the two levels, although he turned in a K/9 level of 12.4 with 37 K’s in 26 2/3 innings. He was worst in his later appearances, allowing 11 runs in his final 9 2/3 innings, on 19 hits and eight walks.

Ovalle has a few things to figure out if the Miami Marlins are expected to retain and promote him past the single-A level. Currently rostered with the Clinton LumberKings in the Midwest League, we can reasonably assume that he’ll remain with them through the 2019 season. Improved numbers could see him soon with the high-A Jupiter Hammerheads in the Florida State League. Stagnancy or regression would see his release before the close of the campaign.

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