Miami Marlins Minors: Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Starting Rotation

As we get ready for 2020 Major League Baseball Spring Training, we can only guess as to what the final version of these teams are going to look like.

For the sake of conversation, we laid out the probable starting rotation of the Miami Marlins. To wit, Sandy Alcantara, Caleb Smith, Pablo Lopez remain from the 2019 Opening Day rotation. Jordan Yamamoto joined it in the middle of last season. For argument’s sake, we put Elieser Hernandez in the number five spot, although it could easily end up being Robert Dugger, Nick Neidert, or Jose Urena.

Adding onto that conversation, and to take a closer look at the next guys probably in the chute, we outlined the Wichita Wind Surge’s likely rotation. The current projection will see Sixto Sanchez, Edward Cabrera, Neidert, Jorge Guzman, and Dugger take their turns with the Triple-A level bunch from the Pacific Coast League.

The logical extension out from that would have us project the starting rotations of the Double-A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, in the Southern League. It’s the 12th season that Jacksonville will be a Marlins affiliate.

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 2020 Opening Day Rotation

Trevor Rogers

Ranked as the Marlins number eight prospect, left-handed starter Trevor Rogers was their first round pick in 2017, with the 13th selection overall. Still just 22-years-old, the six-foot-six Rogers could play his way all the way to the Marlins before the 2020 campaign is over.

Last season, Rogers excelled at the High-A level, with the Florida State League’s Jupiter Hammerheads. In 18 starts, he was 5-8 with a 2.53 ERA in 110 1/3 innings. Despite taking five turns in the Jacksonville rotation near the end of the year, Rogers ranked tied for second in the FSL with 122 strikeouts and finished with a 1.10 WHIP.

As I said, Rogers also made five starts for the Shrimp last season, and performed well enough for a continued look at that level. 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA, he struck out 28 in 26 frames, with a 1.31 WHIP that he’ll no doubt be looking to improve before his next promotion.

Kolton Mahoney

Six-foot right-hander Kolton Mahoney is an Ogden, UT native, and will be entering his fourth season in the Marlins system. Formerly part of the New York Yankees system, Mahoney has slowly worked his way up the system, and has gotten better in each successive season.

Although maybe a “swing starter,” who has more relief appearances than starts in his professional career, he spent his final two collegiate seasons as a starter for BYU, starting in 26 of his 32 appearances.

Now 27-years-old, Mahoney was 6-5 last season between the Shrimp and the Cakes, with a 3.55 ERA. In 31 games, including a dozen starts, he collected 108 K’s in 109 frames, with a 1.239 WHIP to his credit.

Josh Roeder

Josh Roeder, who I profiled at length here, is a six-foot, right-handed, former Nebraska Cornhusker. Like Mahoney, he began his professional career as part of the Yankees organization. He signed on with the Marlins for the 2018 season.

The 27-year-old Roeder went 6-6 with a 3.63 ERA in 15 starts for the Hammerheads that season, and split his 2019 season between them, the Baby Cakes, and the Jumbo Shrimp, spending most of that time with Jacksonville. In 16 appearances for the Shrimp, including six starts, Roeder was 1-4 with a 3.33 ERA and 40 K’s in 48 2/3 innings.

Cody Poteet

Six-one right-hander Cody Poteet was Miami’s fourth round choice in the 2015 MLB Amateur Entry Draft out of UCLA. His final season with the Bruins would see him post a 7-1 record and a 2.45 ERA, starting in 13 of his 27 appearances.

Since then, Poteet has appeared at all six levels of the Marlins stateside minor league system. Splitting last season between New Orleans and Jacksonville, the 25-year-old was 5-3 with a 2.25 ERA for the Shrimp with 58 K’s in 84 innings. More impressive was his 0.98 WHIP while with the Double-A club.

Daniel Castano

Daniel Castano is a six-foot-four right-handed 25-year-old acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals in Miami’s Marcell Ozuna deal. Last season for the Shrimp, he put up a 7-2 record with a 3.35 ERA over 11 starts and seven relief appearances. He whiffed 73 in 86 frames, and held the opposition to 1.14 WHIP.

If Castano makes the majors eventually, he would be the fourth Ozuna acquisition to get here (out of four). Magneuris Sierra, Zac Gallen, and Alcantara have already made their debuts.

EDIT: Braxton Garrett will start the season in the rotation. The 2016 first round pick didn’t pitch until 2017, lasted four games, then underwent TJS, missing 2018 entirely. 2019 would see him strike out 118 in 105 innings for the Hammerheads, then make one appearance with the Jumbo Shrimp.

Other Possibilities

Dustin Beggs & McKenzie Mills could also make starts for the Jumbo Shrimp this season. Check here tomorrow as we continue to dive deeper into the Marlins minor league system with a preview of the Jupiter Hammerheads rotation.

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