Miami Palms Blog

 Brian Matusz had transformed into an elite reliever with the Miami Palms, and upon Francisco Rodriguez's departure after the 2017 season, it seemed natural to move Matusz into the closer's role. In turn, Matusz struggled, relative to his performance in previous seasons in a Miami uniform. Matusz won't be the primary closer this season, but rather, the Palms expect to close by committee. Hopefully, Matusz finds the mojo he lost in 2018.

 Chris Martin represents another member of the Palms' revamped bullpen, though Miami has to look through some alarming numbers to get there. Martin has a short track record, but with Texas in 2018, he had good underlying numbers. He was plagued by a rough BABIP, which the Palms hope he can overcome, and his raw numbers work as well as Miami believes they can.

 The Palms have veteran corner outfielders, including former Gold Glover Nick Markakis. Markakis is a patient hitter and still has a little gap power. His left handed bat stands out in the lineup, but with his time spent in the league so far, he will expect to be spelled more often in 2019, and will be a respected voice in the clubhouse if he is in the lineup or not.

 Jarod Lantz has developed into the teams opening day starter for the last two seasons, and will enter his third season with that assignment. Lantz isn't a modern strikeout pitcher, but is an workhorse, who can work by inducing light contact, and confidently works around the strike zone. He doesn't walk many or allow too many homers, and his cast of teammates trusts him to get the job done.