Robby Snelling May Force Marlins to Promote Him After Scorching Start

The Miami Marlins are flush with young pitching. One of those options may force them to make a move soon.

Left-hander Robby Snelling didn't make the opening day roster coming out of spring training. To be fair, that really wasn't the expectation for the No. 2 prospect in the organization. Even though he was coming off a fine season at Triple-A Jacksonville, Miami saw him as a pitcher that could help them late this year or in 2027.

The way Snelling has performed of late, he's pitching like someone who wants to accelerate that timeline.

Robby Snelling’s Red Hot Start

Another gem for Robby Snelling 💎

The @Marlins' No. 2 prospect strikes out 9 over 6 scoreless innings, lowering his ERA to 1.89 and WHIP to 0.95 across four starts for the Triple-A @JaxShrimp. pic.twitter.com/8lIqfKZmyk
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 18, 2026

In four starts with Jacksonville, Snelling is 1-1 with a 1.89 ERA. He has struck out 31 and walked nine in 19 innings, as he's given up just nine hits and four earned runs. He's also allowed one home run. Batters are hitting .138 against them and he has a 0.95 WHIP. In other words, he's dominating.

He's also gotten better as he's built up his pitch count this season. He's been incredibly sharp in his last two starts. Facing Norfolk on April 10, he went five innings and allowed two hits. He struck out 12, walked four and didn't give up a run.

Then, on Friday against Jacksonville, he shut the Knights down for six innings, as he allowed two hits and one walk. He struck out nine. He hasn't given up a run since his April 3 performance against Sugar Land, as he gave up four hits and three earned runs in four innings.

The Marlins have seen this show before. When Snelling was promoted to Jacksonville last year he made 11 starts for the Jumbo Shrimp and went 6-2 with a 1.27 ERA. He struck out 81 and walked 17 in 63.2 innings and gave up just nine earned runs. It was his most dominant stretch of a season in which he went 9-7 with a 2.51 ERA as he started the campaign with Double-A Pensacola.

If Snelling pitches another month like this, the Marlins may be forced to make a move. While the Major League starting rotation has avoided injury, there are vulnerabilities.

Chris Paddack is 0-3 with a 5.59 ERA in four games, including three starts. Janson Junk is 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in four starts. If one or both are unable to turn it around, that could open the door for the Marlins to make room for their future star.

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