The Best Strategy for the Marlins at the MLB Draft Is Clear

The Miami Marlins' long-term success depends on accumulating talent, regardless of position.

Miami Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The MLB Draft is a totally different beast than other drafts in North American sports. While positioning matters a ton in the NFL, NBA and NHL, that's less the case in MLB. In the words of Miami Marlins vice president of amateur forecasting and player evaluation initiatives Frankie Piliere, "There's really good players available, no matter where you pick."

The Marlins have the No. 14 overall selection in the first round. Where they go with that pick is up in the air. Quality college bats such as Justin Lebron, Sawyer Strosnider and Ace Reese could be on the board, as could pitchers like Cameron Flukey and Tegan Kuhns. Pretty much everything is on the table at that point in the draft. What direction the Marlins choose to go is a question none of us can answer at the moment.

Another aspect of baseball that makes drafting difficult is positional need. Do teams attempt to fill holes on the big league roster through the draft, or is that too lofty of an expectation to place on a young high school or college prospect? After all, there's absolutely no guarantee that any draftee will ever pan out in MLB, let alone reach the major leagues.

The best way to approach the draft is to select the best player available with each pick. There are other ways to supplement the roster — free agency and trades being chief among them — leaving the draft as the premier place to find young talent that can be developed into future stars at the big league level.

The Marlins Should Prioritize Talent Above All Else

Blue Wahoos Aiva Arquette makes the play to first. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

There is no guarantee that the Marlins will operate in that fashion, however. Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix has long worked outside the lines. While that doesn't mean he'll make out-of-the-box selections for Miami, it does mean forecasting what he and his staff will do is tricky.

The Marlins selected Oregon State infielder Aiva Arquette — arguably the best college hitter in last year's draft — with the No. 7 overall selection in 2025. That was a case of a good player falling into a team's lap and the organization jumping at the opportunity. The same thing could happen again in 2026. Will the Marlins pounce again, or will they try to fill positional needs within the farm system?

They should take the best player available. That's the strategy that gives the Marlins the best chance of building a sustainable winner. Bendix and company have strayed from conventional wisdom before, and they could certainly do it again. But if Miami wants to maximize the value of the No. 14 pick, talent — not positional need — should be the deciding factor.

The 2026 MLB Draft will take place Saturday, July 11, and Sunday, July 12, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia. The first round will begin at 1 p.m. EDT.