Marlins Make $21 Million Decision on Sandy Alcantara's Future
In this story:
The Miami Marlins have made a big offseason decision regarding one of their stars.
The Marlins announced on Friday that they have exercised Sandy Alcantara’s $21 million club option for the 2027 season. This keeps the face of their rotation and the former National League Cy Young Award winner under contract for one more year.
Miami could have opted to pay Alcantara a $2 million buyout which would have allowed him the opportunity to become a free agent. Clearly, they did not want to do that.
There wasn’t a lot of speculation as to whether or not the Marlins would exercise their option on the most stable pitcher they have on the roster. He was absolutely impressive over the 2026 season.
Now the questions will start to swirl about what the veteran’s long-term future looks like.
Alcantara Earned The Extension
Alcantara returned in 2025 after having Tommy John surgery, and the journey wasn’t easy. He struggled. But at 31 years old, he found his groove again in the 2026 campaign.
The right-hander went 13-11 on the season with a 3.87 ERA and 153 strikeouts across 214 innings. You read that right: 214 innings. That was the league-leading for a pitcher.
During 2026, Alcantara started 33 games, which tied for second in MLB. Of those, he recorded 21 quality starts. He didn’t stop there. He went on to fill in as the closer late in the season, where he earned the first three saves of his 10-year MLB career.
During the season ending press conference, president of baseball operations Peter Bendix made it clear how much the organization values Alcantara.
“With Sandy in particular, he is so meaningful to this organization,” Bendix said according to MLB.com.
He also went on to praise Alcantara’s leadership and the example he sets for the younger players on the team. That makes his presence in the clubhouse especially important.
Looking to the Future for Alcantara
Alcantara is secured for 2027, but in all honesty, that doesn’t mean he will stay the full season.
He has had a lot of trade talk surrounding him in the past, and that certainly won’t be contained this year, especially after the successful campaign he had in 2026.
Alcantara is entering the final year of his contract, and he could be a hot commodity on the market with teams looking for veteran pitchers.
Of course, Miami could choose to start the conversation about a contract extension with him. But, for now, the Marlins have at least secured him to start and lead the rotation into 2027 alongside Eury Perez and Max Meyer.
Miami finished the 2026 year with an 80-82 record, much short of their desired outcome. It was significant progress, but they still did not get to participate in the postseason.
Keeping Alcantara is essential as they continue to try to make strides with younger players on the roster.
Whether or not this is just the beginning of further negotiations or their last season together is yet to be seen. One thing seems to be true: both sides are pleased with the outcome.
“I just want to keep myself here with the Marlins,” Alcantara said after the season finished.
Goal achieved.
Add us as a preferred source on Google