The Miami Marlins should be a playoff contender in 2020

With a roster that is young and inexperienced and full of promise, can the Miami Marlins make the playoffs in 2020?

I don’t feel like this is something where I’m calling my shot, but I do believe the Miami Marlins have just as good a chance to make the playoffs in 2020 as any other team in major league baseball.

That’s not something that should surprise anybody. When you have 60 games to prove how good or how bad you are, and a younger roster that doesn’t know any better, you tend to get excited about your chances. The Miami Marlins have been perpetual underdogs for so many years, that believing they can win in 2020 is almost as good as them actually doing it.

"“On Sunday, the Marlins revealed which players will be part of the 60-man player pool. The Marlins have three additional spots that they are expected to fill either this week or in the upcoming weeks,” MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro writes.More from Marlin ManiacWhy didn’t the Miami Marlins sign JDM?Miami Marlins rejected Boston‘s trade offerMiami Marlins are pursuing Michael ConfortoMiami Marlins need to spend to winMiami Marlins One-Year Wonder 1B“According to MLB’s Operating Manual, all players on a 40-man roster “that the Club anticipates participating” during the season will be part of the player pool, while the rest will be made up of non-40-man roster players under contract. Any 40-man-roster players who are not included in a player pool (for example, maybe a prospect who isn’t deemed ready for the Majors) will still be paid during the season.”"

There is still more than three weeks until the MLB season begins. Teams will be assembling at training facilities preparing for what should prove to be a very exciting race to the finish. I’m just thankful that baseball is beginning again, and I am hopeful these players, who are young and inexperienced, will strike lightning in a bottle and carry it with them over the next two months.

Nothing would be greater than seeing playoff games in Marlins Park for the first time since 2003.

As I look at the 60 players who have been made available for the team’s roster this season, I understand the need by both Derek Jeter and Michael Hill to get a look at the future. But I also wonder whether a more veteran-laced roster would help this team win now.

The Miami Marlins did not bring back Matt Kemp and still have three positions open, one of which will be filled by there first-round draft pick Max Meyer. He is expected to sign a contract on Wednesday. Whether he actually stepped on a mound this year hasn’t been determined, but I have to wonder whether that spot should be filled by another veteran who can actually produce in Miami‘s lineup.

How the roster breaks down will help determine if the front office made the right moves in a sudden wave that was expected once it was determined when the 2020 MLB season would begin.

"“MLB hasn’t officially announced its entire schedule, but the season is scheduled to begin either on July 23 or July 24. Initially, MLB rosters will start off at 30, and after two weeks reduced to 28. Two weeks after that, they will settle at 26,” Frisaro added.“A majority of Miami’s 57 players will be at Marlins Park. Those set to start in Jupiter are prospects who may not fit into the organization’s Big League picture this season. Should there be no Minor League season, they can continue their development.”"

The Marlins are still considered underdogs, a moniker which suits them well, given everything that has happened with this “non-season“ so far. If the national media still believes this is a team that has no chance to make some noise as the season progresses, it falls right into what the front office has done to create a roster of young players, who are full potential with no determination of how things will work out.

It’s the classic case of every sports movie we love. Whether the Miami Marlins become the “Mighty Ducks” or “Major League” or “Rudy”, it does not matter. There is something about this season that makes me believe there will be a storybook ending.

It has been four years with Don Mattingly at the helm. The first two seasons prove semi-successful with players who have gone on to become major stars in the sport. Now, in his third season of the next chapter with younger players who are still learning how to play the game, nothing would be greater than seeing proven success. Many have doubted the skipper’s ability to get the most out of these players once they reach the majors.