Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Even in spring, Cabrera manages to find heat
JUPITER — Edward Cabrera’s first two pitches in his spring training debut Wednesday summed up what he can do. Pitch 1: 98 mph.
Pitch 2: 99 mph.
The Miami Marlins’ No. 6 overall prospect brought the heat for his two-inning stint against the St. Louis Cardinals at Roger Dean Stadium, consistently hitting the upper-90s while mixing in a changeup that topped out at 94 mph and curveball that sat between 82 and 84 mph.
Of Cabrera’s 32 pitches between the third and fourth innings, 19 went for strikes. Six resulted in swings and misses, including three with the changeup.
“Shoot, he was good for me,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “He’s aggressive. He’s got good arm action on his offspeed stuff. He’s already got a secondary [pitch].
If he can continue to keep his fastball where he wants it, I think he’s pretty much as billed. Big velocity . ... He’s good.”
There were jitters early on, including hitting Harrison Bader with a curveball that leaked inside and then giving up a hard-hit single to Yairo Munoz one pitch later. But Cabrera calmed down after that.
A routine ground ball resulted in an RBI fielder’s choice., but he retired the final four batters he faced after that.
“The first thing is give him a couple chances on the mound so that he can get comfortable and control his emotions,” said veteran catcher Francisco Cervelli, who caught both of Cabrera’s innings in Wednesday’s 8-7 win over the Cardinals. “When he pitches with emotions, it’s not good. He’ll be able to do that later because this is new for him. When it’s the first time, it can be scary, man.”
The Marlins are high on Cabrera, an international free-agent signing in 2015 who had a breakout 2019 in the minor leagues.
Cabrera finished 2019 with Double-A Jacksonville, posting a combined 2.23 ERA with 116 strikeouts over 96 2⁄3 innings between Jupiter and Jacksonville. Opponents hit just .190 against him over his 19 starts.
He had five outings in which he threw at least six shutout innings.
Cabrera will likely start the season in either Jacksonville or Triple-A Wichita.
More Miami Marlins takeaways
■ The Marlins once again posted a lateinning rally to improve to 5-0 at the start of spring training. Miami trailed the Cardinals 7-4 going into the eighth inning when two home runs — a leadoff shot by Lewin Diaz to right field and a three-run homer to left by catcher Chad Wallach — gave the Marlins the lead for good.
■ Pitcher Pablo Lopez’s assessment of his first spring training start: “Get it out of the way.” Lopez showed some positives, including a fastball that touched 96 mph and a new slider, but the 23-year-old also ran into traffic on the base paths both innings he was on the mound. He ultimately gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits, a strikeout and two hit batters. He said the biggest adjustments he needs to make are with timing for his secondary pitches.
■ Most of the Marlins’ veterans got their first hits of spring training. Miguel Rojas singled in the third and homered in the fifth, Brian Anderson doubled in the fifth, Matt Joyce singled in the fourth and Cervelli singled in the fifth.