Marlins Setup Role Could Be Decided by Spring Training Battle
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The Miami Marlins are in a great position of having an elite closer in Pete Fairbanks. Now, they hope someone will step up to become an elite setup man.
Which of the Three Relievers Can Succeed as Setup Man?
Calvin Faucher
Florida teams have been a part of his career so far. Faucher spent his first two seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays and is now entering his third season with the Marlins.
The 30-year-old reliever is mainly known for using his curveball and breaking balls. His tenure with the Marlins hasn't been remarkable, and hasn’t been bad either. It’s in the middle. The numbers he produced in 2024 and 2025 are almost identical. Although this production in 2024 is slightly better than that in 2025.
During the 2024 season, he went 2-3 with a 3.19 ERA and gave up no home runs. In addition, he had a career-high 68 strikeouts in 53 games. In 2025, he posted a 4-4 record with a 3.28 ERA and a career-high 15 saves in 60 innings pitched. That’s the upside. Now, the downside was that he gave up a career-high 8 home runs along with 53 hits.
He’s definitely a strong contender for the setup man role. Anthony Bender is another option, but we’re still not sure how he will bounce back after suffering a right tibia injury that ended his 2025 season. Bender, also 30, has a history of injuries.
Andrew Nardi
When Nardi is healthy, he’s a valuable pitcher for the Marlins. Just like Bender, Nardi has problems staying on the field.
What makes him an essential piece to the Marlins is that he’s a left-handed pitcher, and the Marlins will need him for the new season. Nardi could return sometime in 2026. He’s currently battling with lower back inflammation and is still rehabbing.
At 27, the receiver experienced success with the Marlins in 2023. In that year, he went 8-1 with a 2.67 ERA with 73 strikeouts, 3 saves in 63 games. He hasn’t been in the baseball field since 2024, since he missed the entire 2025 due to his back injury.
The Marlins are hoping they can get the same version of him from 2023 and stay healthy on the mound. At first, it didn’t look like Nardi and the Marlins would stay together, but both sides of the party avoided arbitration, and the Marlins signed him for a one-year deal in January.
Josh White
The 25-year-old could be the biggest surprise to become the number one set up for the Marlins.
White enjoyed great success in the minors during the 2025 season. He finished the season with a perfect 6-0 record with a 1.27 ERA with 50 strikeouts, allowing just 12 hits, 12 walks, 4 runs, and zero home runs in 18 games in the Double A Southern League at Pensacola.
Spending three seasons in college at the University of California and four seasons in the minors has made him become a better reliever, and he’s learning from those years of experience.
The minor league journey has worked for him better than his days in college. During his years with the Golden Bears, he went 7-9 with a 4.14 ERA in 36 games and allowed 11 home runs. In the minors, his record is 14-9 with a 2.97 ERA and 268 strikeouts in 124 games.
If there’s anyone in the Marlins bullpen who has a legitimate chance to become the realizable setup man to Fairbanks, it would be White.
After graduating from City College of New York in 2014, Miguel created his own blog. Since 2021, he has written for FanSided, where he covered the Toronto Blue Jays, College Football and Utah Mammoth hockey team. He also wrote for Miami Heat on SI and Cleveland Sports Talk. Miguel is the creator and host of his podcast, Baseball Heat Podcast with Mike.