Ng wants to see how 3B Anderson performs in ’21 before pursuing deal
In her first news conference since being introduced as Marlins general manager, Kim Ng explains the club’s offseason to this point and what’s next.
Kim Ng is nearing the end of her “crash course” into the Marlins organization.
It has been nearly three weeks since she was hired as the club’s general manager. She has been surveying the state of the organization as the team attempts to build on its 2020 season that resulted in a playoff berth and a run to the National League Division Series.
The days have been long. Sleep might be optional at this point.
“I can tell you that I got to sleep in until 5:30 this morning, so I’m doing pretty good,” Ng said Thursday. “Not a big coffee drinker, but I’ve had to dip in there a bit these past couple of weeks, so it’s been a lot.”
And the work is just beginning. The Marlins still have several needs to address during the next couple months before spring training begins.
Ng discussed several of those topics in a 25-minute Zoom interview.
AN EXTENSION FOR BRIAN ANDERSON?
While there are many pressing needs, one longterm discussion that has been brought up during the past year is the potential to give third baseman Brian Anderson a long-term contract.
Anderson, 27, is the Marlins’ top homegrown player. He is a career .266 hitter with 42 home runs and 177 RBI and was a Gold Glove Award finalist at third base last year. Anderson was tendered a contract on Wednesday and is projected to make anywhere from
$2.2 million to $4.2 million in his first year of arbitration, according to MLB Trade Rumors projections.
While Ng knows Anderson’s reputation from afar, she said she isn’t ready to move into longterm discussions just yet.
“I would say I personally would like to see how this year goes before we ventured down that road,” Ng said, noting she hasn’t talked with Anderson’s agent yet, “just so I have a better understanding of who he is as a player, and I just get a better sense of the situation.”
REBUILDING THE BULLPEN (AGAIN)
Ng was quick to point out the Marlins’ most glaring spot on the roster to fix is the bullpen, in what seems like an almost annual occurrence.
Brandon Kintzler and Brad Boxberger are free agents after being two of the three primary relievers handling late-inning duties 2020 (Yimi Garcia was the other).
The Marlins’ bullpen had a 5.50 ERA last season, the fifth-worst in baseball.
“We need some help back there,” Ng said.
The Marlins already made one swap in that group this week, acquiring submarine-throwing right-hander Adam Cimber from the Cleveland Indians for cash considerations and opting to not tender a contract to Ryne Stanek.
Cimber has made 152 career appearances over three MLB seasons and has
a 3.89 ERA with 104 strikeouts against 38 walks in 1361⁄ innings of work.
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Cimber, Ng said, will provide the bullpen “a very different look.”
“Very unorthodox delivery,” Ng said. “... He’s just a really difficult guy to prepare for as a hitter. That was one of the very attractive things that we found out about him.
As for Stanek, who had a a 6.03 ERA (21 earned runs allowed in 311⁄ innings)
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with 39 strikeouts against 27 walks and averaging 1.76 walks and hits per inning during his tenure with the
Marlins, Ng said it’s a matter of “trying to balance the different looks as well as allocate our resources as well as just preparing for the future and roster spots.”
But Ng knows there will need to be more improvement, specifically with finding a closer or at least another late-inning reliever or two. And there’s no shortage of candidates, with relievers such as Archie Bradley, Hansel Robles and Miami native Carlos Rodon among the long list of relievers who were nontendered and join an already flooded free agent market that includes names such as Brad Hand, Liam Hendricks, Kirby Yates and Roberto Osuna.
Ng’s approach for closers?
“They come in all shapes and sizes,” she said. “I think one of the more important characteristics of a closer is being able to handle the pressure of knowing that the game is riding and he’s really, you hope, our last stop. ... But that’s not necessarily easily detectable. It doesn’t necessarily show up in numbers. You have to rely on your scouts. You have to rely on your coaches’ evaluations. But that’s what I can tell you at this point again and we’ll have to see how the market evolves.”
TWO FIRST BASEMEN, ONE JOB
Even with the uncertainty of whether the National League will use the designated hitter in 2021 — a holding pattern Ng said is “not a great situation to be in” — the Marlins made sure to protect themselves by signing both of their arbitration-eligible first basemen, Garrett Cooper and Jesus Aguilar, to oneyear deals. The two split time between first base and designated hitter last season and put up similar stat lines (Aguilar .277 batting average, 10 doubles, eight home runs, 34 RBI in 188 at-bats; Cooper .283 batting average, eight doubles, six home runs, 20 RBI in 120 at-bats)
Ng’s thought process for keeping both? It’s better to have both players for the possibility that the DH sticks in the NL next season rather than scramble later this offseason to reconfigure the roster.
“We would like to have some clarity on the matter,” Ng said, “but at this time, we just don’t. It’s better to be over-armed in that area than under-armed.”
‘OPEN COMPETITION’ AT SECOND BASE
Ng said the starting second baseman job is an “open competition” at this point, with Jazz Chisholm and Isan Diaz seemingly the main contenders. Super-utility player Jon Berti is also an option and the Marlins could potentially explore the free agent and trade markets for a veteran.
“We’ll see what we’ve got in spring training,” Ng said.