Miami Marlins Past 10 Drafts: Breaking Down #37

What goodies have the Marlins historically unearthed from the 37th round?

The Florida / Miami Marlins have selected 430 players over the past 10 years. That’s 40 picks in 10 years each from each round and a competitive balance pick each year. Prior to 2012, the draft was 50 rounds, accounting for the other 20 players.

The Marlins have had 28 37th round selections, but only two have made the majors. Their 1993 pick was Brandon Villafuerte, who eventually pitched in 91 games for four different teams not named “Marlins.” In 1995, they chose Brian Dallimore, who went 13-for-50 in the majors for the San Francisco Giants.

We’ve already looked at #38, #39, & #40, but we still have a way to go. Let’s jump right in with 2010.

2010

A six-foot-two righty from Fort Wayne, IN, pitcher Chris Squires was Florida’s 37th pick in 2010, 1,127th overall off the board off Indiana University. In four seasons with the Hoosiers, Squires was 11-6 with a 4.55 ERA and 143 K’s in 151 innings.

Squires pitched in Florida’s system for three seasons, peaking in 2012 with the Double-A Jacksonville Suns. He was 6-7 with a 3.73 ERA and 107 whiffs in 125 frames. He later appeared in independent league ball, with the Traverse City Beach Bums and the Florence Freedom in the Frontier League and with the Kansas City T-Bones in the American Association.

2011

RHP Jake Ehret is a six-foot-three righty out of San Dimas, CA, first chosen in the 37th round by the Marlins back in 2011. He instead matriculated to the UCLA Bruins, where he pitched 28 games in relief over two seasons. The Cincinnati Reds signed him after drafting him in the 14th round in 2014 for $135,000.

Ehret played in the Reds’ system for four seasons, going 9-10 with a 4.65 ERA and 163 K’s over 187 2/3 innings. He last appeared with the Vallejo Admirals in the Pacific Association, pitching in 14 games in 2019.

2012

The Marlins chose outfielder Edward Sappelt with the 1,127th overall choice in 2012, and successfully convinced him to sign out of Southern Alamance HS in his hometown of Graham, NC.

Sappelt went on to go nine-for-34 in 22 contests over two seasons with the Rookie-level GCL Marlins in the Gulf Coast League.

2013

SS Mike Bell was Miami’s 37th round choice in 2013, 1,102nd off the board overall out of Langston Hughes HS in Fairburn, GA. He never appeared professionally, playing four seasons of collegiate ball, the first three with the Georgia Bulldogs. He hit .262/.343/.423 in 147 contests overall.

2014

A lot of different teams spent a lot of time trying to get RHP Chase Williams through the draft. He turned down the Colorado Rockies in the 39th round in 2011, the Marlins in the 37th round in 2014, and the San Diego Padres in the 25th round in 2015. He instead pitched in Division I for the Wichita State Shockers in 2014 and 2015, where he was 5-10 with an ERA of 5.84.

The Milwaukee Brewers took Williams in the 35th round in 2016, and he signed. He pitched three seasons in the Brewers system, peaking with the Carolina Mudcats in the High-A Carolina League. He was 3-5 with a 4.06 ERA in 35 games overall, with 43 K’s in as many innings.

2015

Ruben Cardenas is a six-foot-two center fielder from Los Angeles, CA. The Marlins took him in the 37th round in 2015 out of Bishop Alemany HS, but instead he committed to Cal State Fullerton, hitting .274/.339/.444 in 120 games over three years.

The Cleveland Indians chose Cardenas in the 16th round of the 2018 draft. After slashing .308/.414/.455 between the Rookie-level Arizona Indians and the Short-season-A Mahoning Valley Scrappers to close out the year, he joined the Lake County Captains in the Single-A Midwest League (MWL) for the 2019 campaign. At the trade deadline, the Indians traded hi to the Tampa Bay Rays for Hunter Wood and Christian Arroyo.

In 156 professional games, Cardenas has hit .280/.357/.451 with 13 home runs and 100 RBI. He’s currently rostered with the Bowling Green Hot Rods in the MWL.

2016

Left-handed hitter and fielder Zach Daly is a six-foot-three center fielder from Gastonia, NC. Taken in round 37 out of Lander University in 2016, 1,103rd off the board, he signed with the Marlins and hit .183 with GCL to close out that year.

2017 would start for Daly with the Short-season-A New York-Penn League for the Batavia Muckdogs, where he went five-for-25. The Marlins released him on July 5th.

2017

Jared Price is a six-foot-three left-handed pitcher from Mohnton, PA. The New York Mets chose him in the 33rd round back in 2012, but he joined the Maryland Terrapins for Division I ball instead.

In five collegiate seasons, Price went 4-4 with a 5.53 ERA over 71 appearances. He struck out 101 in 85 frames, with a 1.67 WHIP. In 2017, the Marlins took him 1,109th overall. He didn’t sign, and later surfaced with the Ottawa Champions in the Canadian American League, where he posted a 3.50 ERA and whiffed 18 in 18 innings.

2018

Robby Martin is a six-foot-three righty from Tampa, FL. The Marlins picked him with the 1,107th overall choice in 2018 out of Thomas Jefferson HS, but he joined the Florida State Seminoles for their 2019 season. In 60 games, he hit .332/.414/.473 with four home runs and 54 RBI.

2019

Six-foot-six lefty-batting shortstop Tyler Causey was taken in the 37th round this past June, 1,101st overall out of Nation Ford HS. A Spartanburg, SC native, Causey didn’t sign, and has since committed to join the University of North Carolina Tar Heels.