Marlins' Agustín Ramírez Just Waiting to Be Replaced By Top Prospect After Slow Start
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Poor Agustín Ramírez.
The 24-year-old catcher is coming off of a season in which he finished sixth in NL Rookie of the Year voting, thanks to a standout offensive campaign in which he hit 21 home runs and 33 doubles while even stealing 16 bases. Based on his production at the plate, the Miami Marlins should be looking forward to many years ahead with the Dominican Republic native serving as a franchise building block.
Unfortunately, the combination of some shaky defense at the catcher position, coupled with formidable internal competition, has turned Ramírez into something of a persona non grata in the organization.
The offseason and spring training saw Ramírez face a push driven by both fans and media to have Marlins prospect Joe Mack overtake his backstop position. An ugly showing this spring (.083/.154/.167) didn't help matters.
Now, with Liam Hicks driving Miami's offense as the club's primary catcher and Mack ready to step in as a defensive upgrade, it already seems like Ramírez could wind up as the odd man out sooner or later.
Ramírez's Role With the Marlins is Under Fire
Ironically, Ramírez is actually off to a solid, if unspectacular, start to the season. While his .250 average doesn't jump off the page, his .365 on-base percentage highlights a level of plate discipline that has led to seven walks, while he has also collected four extra-base hits to date. On Thursday, he went 2-for-5 with a run and two RBI in the Marlins' 8-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds.
Defense, however, remains an area of concern for Ramírez. He has committed one error over seven games spent as backstop, while allowing 10 steals on the year thus far. His defensive numbers are a tick above his 2025 performance, but not substantially so.
Mack, meanwhile, has actually struggled at Triple-A Jacksonville to begin the season. He has slumped out to a .138 average and .527 OPS, amassing more than twice as many strikeouts (nine) as base hits (five). On the defensive end, he's been error-free through eight games, having also picked up five putouts while throwing out four base runners on 13 steal attempts.
So why is the defensively superior but offensively inferior Mack preferable to Ramírez? Because Miami already boasts a strong offensive option at the catching position in Hicks, who is on a tear thus far.
Though not without his own defensive flaws, the 26-year-old Hicks isn't going anywhere after opening the season with a .314 average and .990 OPS, launching three home runs, 13 RBI and nine runs through 12 games while striking out just three times.
Hicks also boasts positional versatility, playing nearly half his games at first base thus far. With him being locked in as an everyday bat in the lineup, Ramírez is neither so potent offensively to be the undisputed DH when Hicks catches nor is he good enough defensively to be entrusted behind the plate when Hicks assumes first base responsibilities.
Ultimately, this is a nice problem to have: three capable big league-caliber catchers, all with their own strengths and all just entering their prime. That being said, there may not be room for all three in the organization, especially if one of them can be used as a valuable trade chip to shore up other areas of weakness for the Marlins.
And as of right now, Ramírez looks like he might eventually be the odd man out.
