Miami Palms Blog

Oliver Perez was one of the steady forces in the Palms bullpen in 2015, and the best lefty in middle relief. He had a good strikeout rate and suppressed the flyballs he allowe. Most importantly, he was an absolute workhorse, pitching 82 innings, more than any other reliever.

It's a little incredible, given the way his tenure in Miami started, but Manny Parra is on the verge of his first career opening day start on April 3rd. After performing as a capable mid-rotation starter for his first couple of years, Parra went on to be the Palms' closer. The Palms were short on starters last year, so they made the move to add some experienced veteran relievers and moved Parra back to the rotation. He posted a 3.96 ERA while allowing only 26 walks. He could afford to strike out a few more batters, but his ground ball rate is top notch and will be vital for the Palms this season, every 5th day.

TJ McFarland only had a couple of starts before coming to the Palms, but he moved to the rotation and performed admirably for the Palms. He had a 12-9 record over 217 innings, striking out over 6/9. He will need to reduce his home runs and walks a bit, but for the time being, McFarland slots as a very capable mid to top of the rotation starter for 2016.

The Palms sought to solidify their bullpen even further after the departure of Pete Otterloop, and added former Baltimore Oriole Brian Matusz to gobble up innings in the middle stages of games this season. The lefty had his best season last year, striking out 10 per game and posting a sub-3 ERA with the Orioles. It's not hard to see what the Palms hope he can bring to the table.

After making a very strong first impression, with a .331 batting average and hitting 23 home runs, Nick Markakis has struggled the last couple of years in Miami. He will continue to secure his spot in right thanks to his good glove, but he is expected to remain towards the bottom of the order after a season in which he had only 10 home runs and a .246 average. If Pat Grant comes on strong, it seems likely that Markakis could be the first to see his playing time reduced.

The Palms are going to be trying out a new option in the back of their rotation in 2016. Rookie Jarrod Lantz will take over the roll after putting up good numbers in Jackson last season. Never really regarded as a top prospect, as he didn't have the commonly expected stature of a starting pitcher, his numbers in AAA and durability were too much to ignore. The Palms hope he can attain a similar level of success with the Palms in the Majors.

The Palms decided that they wanted to ease Chris Korb into the role at third base slowly, and had him operate out of a platoon with Trevor Plouffe. He will get an opportunity for the full season, which he was inching towards as 2015 wound down. Korb is a natural shortstop, so his arm strength at third will be tested, but he has the bat for a corner infield position, and the Palms have been able to count on Tony Abreu in recent seasons. Korb hit 16 home runs and had an average of .278 in his partial season of 2015, and added 10 more in his rookie season of 2014. He's only getting better, and has good gap power, so he will take on the full role for the first time in 2016.

Blake Johnston will be going into his 4th season as a starter for the Palms, taking and embracing a role as a a workhorse. His win-loss record has been around .500 but that doesn't mean he hasn't been a quality pitcher, but rather that he is often tasked with going against the very best pitchers that other rotations have to offer. He's usually better than his ERA suggests, but he's been able to put together ERAS in the low 4's thanks to a low walk rate and few home runs. This season, he will likely move to the middle of the rotation this year, where he will really excel.

Kelly Johnson still has quite a bit of power in his bat, hitting 19 home runs last season, but his average continues to deteriorate. His defensive skill only continues to wear down as well, and the Palms have reached the determination that it's time to open the competition at 2b between him and Johnny Giavotella. He will have his work cut out for him, as the younger Giavotella has skill in the field and speed -- at least more than Johnson. One way or another though, Johnson still has a role on the team, even if it as a wise veteran with positional flexibility.

The Palms had a very unexpected surprise last season in John Jaso. Signed to replace the departing Steve Drysdale, Jaso stepped into the full time DH role for the first time in his career, and had one of the best offensive performances he's ever had. He hit .298 with a team leading 31 home runs, and his high on base average put him to the top of the lineup. If Jaso puts up a fraction of those numbers in 2016, he will continue to be a vital cog for the Miami Palms.