Fast-Rising Marlins Prospect Made His Case for MLB Promotion Last Season
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The Miami Marlins are in a very fascinating position when it comes to building their roster for the 2026 season.
With the team not particularly being one that spends big in free agency historically, they have had to improve the roster via trades and prospect development instead. While it has worked at times, supplementing the roster with signings would certainly help the franchise move forward heading into next year.
The positive is that the Marlins have an exceptional amount of young talent in their minor league pipeline to work with, and a few players who are preparing to make their MLB debuts in the near future.
One such player is Miami's No. 10 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, Kemp Alderman. The 2023 second-round pick has been rising rather quickly through the ranks of the farm system, and now, he is only one step away from being promoted to the Major League level.
His production is something that the Marlins could use in the outfield alongside Jakob Marsee and Kyle Stowers, who both look to be franchise cornerstone-type players long-term.
How Did Alderman Perform During the 2025 Season?
One thing that is abundantly clear about Alderman is that his ability to generate power and exit velocity is truly astounding. While his home run numbers do not signify this yet, it is abundantly clear by the ones that he does hit that he has the capability to get more power out of his game.
Another day, another Kemp Alderman home run! pic.twitter.com/OBoJsfEMCt
— Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (@JaxShrimp) September 6, 2025
He started off the 2025 season in Double-A, and it was clear rather quickly that he was going to overmatch his competition. In 110 games, he slashed .282/.337/.447 with 56 runs, 53 RBI, 20 stolen bases, 15 home runs, 102 strikeouts and 34 walks.
Once promoted to Triple-A, the power came a little more naturally, as in 20 games he slashed .303/.341/.671 with 17 RBI, 13 runs, seven home runs, two stolen bases, 22 strikeouts and five walks.
The .671 slugging percentage is absolutely astounding at any level, as was his 1.013 OPS that resulted from it in that short span of playing time. He rapidly adjusted to Triple-A and even took his game up another level, which is extremely impressive.
All of his playing time in the field this year came in the corner outfield spots, and despite some misplays, he was starting to figure things out after the promotion. In 845.2 innings in right field across both levels this year, he had 145 putouts, three assists and seven errors, adding up to a .955 fielding rate. As for left field, he had 86 innings of work, posting 11 putouts with no errors.
However, every error he accrued was in Double-A, so he may have turned a corner a bit by the end of 2025, which should help his chances at an MLB promotion early on in 2026 if a spot opens up.
