Will the Miami Marlins Play Baseball in 2020?

With not much happening in the world’s sporting community, there has been little in the way of “fresh takes” over the past month.

That holds true for the United States and all of North America, including Major League Baseball and all of its member clubs. That includes the Miami Marlins, their sordid history, and their motley assortment of fans who for whatever reason haven’t bailed on the team yet. It’s for those fans that I’m most thankful, and those fans are the reason I continue to write.

We love the Miami Marlins here at Marlin Maniac. I would hope that’s readily apparent to anyone who has even a passing glimmer of recognition when it comes to Marlins news. Despite a lack of access to “inside” information, we here at Marlin Maniac nonetheless continue to strive to bring you our best take on important developments within the organization.

Will there be a 2020 MLB season? It’s something that MLB really wants to do, but a clear path hasn’t been very apparent. Until the Coronavirus curve is “flattened” all over the country, it would seem to be counterproductive to attempt anything resembling a conventional baseball season.

Miami Marlins baseball-reference.com Simulation

In lieu of an actual baseball season, the folks over at baseball-reference.com have decided to simulate a season, and publish the results as if they’re the “real thing.” The Miami Marlins, incidentally, are sitting at 11-7, 1.5 games behind the division leading Atlanta Braves. The two clubs are the only above-.500 teams in the National League East, but of course that’s really all pretend.

A lot of the pseudo-Marlins success seems to be coming from unlikely power-source Miguel Rojas. The mighty “not-“Rojas is slashing .371/.413/.571 with three homers, 16 RBI, and three stolen bases. His 1.2 WAR is triple that of any other hitter on the team.

The phantom-dimension rotation also seems to be a consistent source of strength. Top three starters Caleb Smith, Pablo Lopez, and Jose Urena have combined for a pitching line of 6-2 with a 3.42 ERA, 63 K’s in 73 2/3 innings over 12 starts, and a combined WHIP of 0.950. A closer-by-committee within the bullpen has six saves, with three from Drew Steckenrider, two from Brandon Kintzler, and one from Adam Conley.

Grapefruit East

More from Marlins News

• Miami Marlins news: Another target gone
• Why didn’t the Miami Marlins sign JDM?
• Miami Marlins rejected Boston‘s trade offer
• Miami Marlins are pursuing Michael Conforto
• Miami Marlins need to spend to win

With one of several possible plans to make the 2020 season happen, a two-state realignment was reported by USA Today. It’s a plan that’s based more on proximity than on existing rivalries. It’s also a plan that leaves the Marlins in an even tougher division than their current version of the NL East.

In the proposal, the Mets, Marlins, and Nationals remain, joined by the Houston Astros and the St. Louis Cardinals — well, that hardly seems fair, especially a team such as Miami, who were largely expected to struggle but also to improve on last-season’s 57-win total.

Regardless, it could all just amount to that much hot air in the end if our collective efforts to control the spread of COVID-19 don’t go as well as we hope it will. But we’ll light a candle here at Marlin Maniac. Keep yourselves and your families safe, and when it’s possible, we’ll enjoy live baseball again. Thanks for reading.