Transcript of The Miami Marlins: The Hottest Team In MLB | Pitch Clock (feat. Kelly Saco) New

You gonna tell me the record? What our records are?

I have a baseball here.

Doesn't really answer my question.

Yeah, we'll do that to start. Okay, cool. But you don't, you don't care about this at all? It says practice on it.

Nice.

I thought you were gonna do like, talk about practice.

No.

Is this Danny B bit?

My bad, were we doing a cold open? I'm sorry.

No, that is the cold open. That was the cold open the whole time.

Oh.

Welcome to the Pitch Clock. Here's the pitch, a two-part baseball segment combining a nostalgic baseball trivia game and an interview with an expert. This is The Pitch Clock. The Pitch Clock is back.

Hi, everybody.

Hey, so it's a new episode of The Pitch Clock, and I've been promising for weeks that we would update what our records are against each other thus far this season. I had Gabe, our editor extraordinaire, run the numbers. So here's where things stand. Head to head, Chris and I are 5-5.

Hmm.

Thus far this season. But there was a week in which I squared off against Lewis and I won. So what's my record?

5-5. Moving on.

That—

6-5.

6-5, right?

But Cody's is 5-5.

Well, no, but it's the amount of wins you gather over the course of the year, right? There's gonna be— Well, if there's gonna be less games, So here's where we're going to be winning percentage. You say that, but there, there is a week late in the year where I'll be at Camp Fiesta. I would love it if you guys did an episode. We'll do it around the trade deadline.

I'll host. I'll ask the questions.

Okay.

Yeah, you'll be great.

Great idea.

And you could do a Jeremy impression.

Yeah.

And you can also play a game that week.

That's perfect.

And that can catch up.

Adnan, which of these 3 stories do you find most interesting? How'd I do?

He's not going to like that one. What's our game for this week?

All right, guys, I'm glad we settled that. College World Series is in in full swing. College World Series final starts on Saturday.

This is bad news for us.

So I want you guys to open up your folders there. In it, you will find a sheet with years and names.

Pfft.

So based on these names, now some of these players were on the team that won the national championship. However, some of the national champions from these years did not have recognizable Major League Baseball players on those teams. So I have given a baseball player that went to that school to clue you in on what university won the national championship that year.

So, so just to be clear.

Correct.

This player may not have been on that team that season. Correct.

But he went to that school.

And that is the national champion from that season.

Correct.

Okay. I got you. So we have you from 2007 to last year, 2025.

I will let the audio audience know each name and each year that's there.

Yes, please do. 2007, Darwin Aaron Judge.

2009, DJ LeMahieu. 2010, Jackie Bradley Jr. 2011, Christian Walker. 2012, Cody Bellinger. 2013, Garrett Cole. 2014, Dansby Swanson. 2015, Pavin Smith. 2016, Tommy La Stella. 2017, Brady Singer. 2018, Adley Rushman. 2019, Kumar Rocker. 2021, Will Clark. 2022, Jacob Gonzalez. 2023, Dylan Cruz. 2024, Garrett Crochet. 2025, Alex Bregman.

Any relation to John Rocker?

No.

No.

If you said to me, what in sports trivia are you worst at? I probably would have said what college baseball players went to.

Well, let's find out.

I don't think I'm going to get a single one here.

Really? It's going to be impressive. All right, folks, the Marlins are playing good baseball. We don't know how this series ended with Philadelphia at the time of this recording, but because the Marlins are playing great, it gave me an opportunity to do a Pitch Clock Marlins themed episode. And with that being said, I brought in one of my very best friends in this business, one of my favorite people on television, period, let alone baseball television. It is the one and only sideline reporter extraordinaire, color commentator on the radio, TV host Kelly Sacco of Marlins.TV. Kelly, welcome to the Pitch Clock and thank you for doing this Marlins-themed episode with me.

Thank you so much for having me and for that beautiful intro.

Of course. And thank you, Kelly, because I have you here for a combination of reasons. Yes, you know, obviously the Marlins stuff, they're playing well, but I have been advocating all week long for Otto Lopez to be an All-Star. So Kelly, I'd love if you can explain to me how Otto has emerged into this All-Star caliber player this season and what is his case to be the starting shortstop in the National League.

Absolutely. I think for Otto Lopez, first and foremost, you have to give a lot of credit to Peter Bendix because Peter Bendix saw the talent and saw that Otto was a guy with so much that he could give and didn't have the opportunity to do that in the organizations that he was with prior. So first and foremost, you have to give a lot of credit to Peter Bendix for recognizing that talent. Second of all, I think you start to see the emergence of Otto Lopez when he started to get that regular playing time. Moving over to shortstop, when they flipped X and Otto to their natural positions, I think both of them just completely blossomed in their own right. And we will talk about Xavier Edwards a little later because I believe both of these guys should be All-Stars in 2026. But once they got to their natural positions and they were playing every single day, that's when you started to see them get comfortable and start to work on the nuances of their game. And for Otto Lopez, we saw what he could do defensively last year. This year offensively, it took a completely different step.

He got into his legs more. He learned to hit it to all parts of the field. And he was basically doing— is he's hitting what the pitchers give him. And you've seen his confidence grow as well. So I think that Otto Lopez 100% deserves to be here in Philadelphia in July. And you mentioned— Fifth in All-Star voting. All the All-Star voting needs to change completely. It just needs to. This is just— the All-Star Game needs to be the best players in Major League Baseball, not the most popular.

And that's exactly why we're trying to do our part right here on this show.

Exactly.

I've been advocating on the Levitard Show all week long to get Otto Lopez, and really it should include Xavier Edwards and Liam Hicks. But we'll talk about those guys in a second, like you said. Right. But we got to get Otto Lopez to the All-Star Game. And I hope that fans watching this go vote 5 times a day like they should. But this is in part because. He has been such a key to the success for the Marlins this season. And in this month of June, the Marlins have really started to right the ship, Kelly. So what's been the biggest thing that's, that sort of changed that's led to this success as a team?

It all starts with pitching. Pitching sets the tone. And what makes it even more impressive is that for the Marlins, they have 4 big arms on the IL. They're down 2 starting pitchers. They still are able to lead Major League Baseball— with like a 2.93 ERA as of today. And it's just, it's incredible that they're doing this, and it's a total team effort. Yuri, the good news is we got a couple days ago that he is going to be hopefully back sooner rather than later. He's got a rehab start on Thursday. He's expected to pitch about 3 to 4 innings, around 50 pitches. He was hitting 97 miles per hour. So fingers crossed that Yuri Perez will be back in this rotation because he was fantastic. He was just on pace to to set some records in Toronto the last time out when he came down with that injury. So they've been able to do it as a total team effort. Tyler Phillips had made a really good point. He had said that all the pitchers got together and they said, okay, our goal every week is to win 4 games.

Yep.

If you win 4 games— now, granted, you'll want to win every one. It's just not realistic. So they said, hey, if we win 4 games a week, we're generally winning series. And if we can continue to get series and we're able to pile on the series wins, then we are going to slowly but surely start making our way up in the standings and you're going to see that record start to even out. You'll see us get back to 500, get over 500. So I think that this whole team is just— they're working as a unit and you love to see it.

Chris Cote, you are coming off a dominant performance in last week's edition of Who He Play For. So you have the board.

All right, I'm going to go with 2023 Rice.

Rice University is your guess.

Oh, dang.

This is going to be tough. This might be a first to 5 situation.

So you went 2023, Dylan Cruz went to Rice.

Rice never won. I feel like I've seen them in the—

No, not in this time period at least.

Strike one.

So that is a strike for Chris Cody. What's going on? We'll leave that one on the board there. Jeremy, would you like to take a stab at that one?

I'm not going to take a stab at that one. I am going to go ahead and take a stab after, after one of the names we've already named. 2019, Kumar Rocker. That's Vanderbilt.

That is correct, sir.

2015, Pavin Smith, Cal State Fullerton.

It's not a bad guess because Fullerton has a great college program.

I'm just like picking random baseball programs that I can think of.

All right. So I think what we're gonna do here is we're gonna go first to 5.

Yeah.

I mean, this is—

Okay. Because Crotee's gonna take a lot of swings and misses. Lots of hits and strikes. Yes. Okay. So we're gonna go to first to 5 here.

All right. I'm gonna stick with the same university. 2014 Dansby Swanson, Vanderbilt.

That is also correct. Jeremy, would you like to name another player that was on that team?

On the 2014 Vanderbilt team?

Yes.

You should be able to do this. This is one of your favorite players.

Whoa.

One of your favorite pitchers.

David Price.

Walker Buehler.

Oh, Walker Buehler was on that team that year.

David Price did pitch for Vanderbilt, but much earlier.

Of course, much earlier. I appreciate you bringing Walker Buehler back into my life. Thank you for that.

You're welcome. Chris Cody, is there anywhere you would like to go?

Of course. Uh, this is tough.

I'll give you a clue. I'll give you guys a clue. Sure, thanks. There is a repeat champion. I know what it is on this list.

Yeah, Vanderbilt.

I'll give you the years. Okay. 2010 and 2011.

Okay. Jackie Bradley Jr. and Christian Walker. Florida.

I wish. That is incorrect. No, but do not give any hints based off —of that.

This is going to be a bad one.

Speaking of Florida, 2017 Brady Singer, University of Florida.

That is correct, sir. That was my second day of summer B at the University of Florida. We won a national championship.

What about— we needed to know that. What about '05 is my wheelhouse?

Are you missing about this?

Let's talk about some of the unsung heroes of this team. Who are some of the guys that maybe don't get that all-star recognition that have really helped the Marlins churn?

I'm gonna have to go with Eriberto Hernandez. So Eriberto Hernandez was a huge piece for the Marlins, and it was very unexpected when he was called up last year, and he was a guy who was just so clutch. Now, that wasn't the start to the season that he had this year. This year, he really struggled. He actually got sent down to AAA, but he didn't let it get him down. He made one small adjustment to his swing. He was hitting the ball on the ground a little bit too much, so he, he, he actually lifted up his front shoulder so he could get under the ball more and drive the ball more. So across the 24 games that we've seen him since being recalled again. He's hitting .306. He's got 6 home runs, 17 RBIs, and 22 hits. Confidence is back up. The mentality at the plate, that attack mentality's back there. And a slight adjustment to his stance and to the way he approaches the ball has been the reason that we've seen that turn. And then, uh, Joe Mack too has been fantastic. He's become the primary catcher for the Marlins, and they always knew they had his name circled as this is our catcher for the future.

It was a matter of, okay, like, can you get the bat going a little bit? And that's what we've seen in June. We talked about the pitching contributions. You always, even though the Marlins call pitches from the dugout, you still have to get a lot of credit to those guys behind the plate because the catchers, the catchers really have a big impact on their pitchers. You have to have that trust factor there. And that's something that a Joe Mack, who's such a young guy, does such a great job with. makes such an effort to get to know his pitchers on and off the field so they can learn to trust him. He's fantastic behind the plate. He just, he's got a great arm. He blocks the ball. He's got great relationships with the guys. And we're starting to see the bat come around a little bit here in June, which is really nice.

We talked about Otto Lopez, but there are 3 more Marlins that could be potential All-Stars this season. They're all worth highlighting. I mean, Liam Hicks is near the top of the league in RBIs. You got Xavier Edwards as a switch-hitting second baseman. That has been about as good as anybody at that position all year. And Max Meyer, who has still, at the time of this recording, yet to lose a baseball game, which is pretty unbelievable, considering where things are. So we always go for a, a golden era Star of the Week on the show. I'm sticking with all Marlins this week as I've excluded them throughout most of the season to try to not show my bias. But Kelly, which of those three do you want to spend a little extra time highlighting here?

I'm gonna spend time on Xavier Edwards, and it's because Max Meyer, that's gonna be voted in hopefully by Dave Roberts.

Yeah.

He has shown that he deserves to be there, so I'm not gonna give him as much time because this is the one where we need the fans to vote. Xavier Edwards being 8th in All-Star voting—

It's crazy.

Is criminal. He has such a high baseball IQ. He impacts the game in ways that people will not see unless you sit down and you watch him day in and day out. In, day out. We have seen him let little pop flies drop in front of him so he can get the faster runner and say, okay, and replace them with a slower runner at first base. We saw this game against the Dodgers in LA. It's fantastic. He knows, okay, I gotta tag Ohtani first before I tag first base and get Freddie Freeman. That double play when the Dodgers had bases loaded and they were threatening, it was a one-run game. Those are the things that will never show up in the box score that Xavier Edwards brings to the table and how he impacts the game. Miami Marlins have the best middle infield— in Major League Baseball, and they should both, both be here in Philadelphia.

That's absolutely right. If you remember it, if you're one of these nostalgic baseball fans like we have, have talked about and welcomed into the Pitch Clock over the years, you remember Alex Gonzalez and Luis Castillo. You remember Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla. This Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards middle infield duo is just about as strong as any in Marlins history. They are both deserving All-Stars. And you mentioned, Kelly, it's a popularity contest. I know the fans of the Levitard Show like to make their voice heard. I know that they like to swing things as it goes along, whether it's, you know, heck, it was a, a Lewis Brinson All-Star campaign back in the day where we know they made their voices heard. Now you got a couple of guys who are truly, truly, truly deserving in that middle infield. So hey, you can go vote 5 times a day. LeBretard fans, I sure hope you will. If you're a Marlins fan or otherwise, make your voice heard. Go get Otto Lopez and Xavier Edwards to the All-Star Game.

Do it.

Prove to us.

Yeah. Prove to us. Prove to Jeremy.

That's right. Prove to the two of us. That exactly what you're strong fan base.

Let's see it.

Yeah, let's see.

I appreciate—

Right now, let's see what you can do.

That's right.

I appreciate the challenge, Kelly. I'm sure, I'm sure our fans do as well. And I'm sure they appreciate having you here with me on the Pitch Clock. Hopefully we can do this again as maybe the Marlins are headed toward a wildcard race somewhere down the stretch. You are the best. You are our all-star. Thank you very much, Kelly Sacco. You want to go again?

Yeah, I definitely do. Tommy La Stella. Clearly and obviously played for the team South Carolina.

Steera!

Incorrect.

Okay. I'm debating, do I let Chris get on the board simply because I don't think it's going to happen. No, here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to go 2010.

Yes.

Jackie Bradley Jr. South Carolina. Oh, damn it.

I knew it. It was, I knew South Carolina. So can you, it's my turn.

Yeah. So can you get on the board? So can you get on the board?

Yeah, I can. Yeah. 2011. Yeah. Coastal Carolina. No, South Carolina.

Yes. That's true. All right. Chris gets on the board.

Oh, Coastal. That's another team I feel like has done well.

Coastal's good. They lost last year in the final.

Okay.

Maybe that's what I'm thinking of. To Alex Bregman. Not actually him, but LSU. I just won. That was me winning. Oh, oh, can I?

Yeah, that was you winning. That was you winning.

Yeah. Can I give you the other ones I knew? Yeah.

Let's keep, let's keep going around the board. Let's see. So Jeremy, I'm just going to clear winner here.

So all I knew for sure, all I knew for sure was actually Garrett Cole at UCLA.

That is correct. He was not on that team. Right. Garrett Cole pitched at UCLA.

But when— can I give you a fun fact here? When Garrett Cole pitched at UCLA, he pitched at UCLA at at the same time as Trevor Bauer, as well as the guy who is presently leading the Savannah Bananas, Derek Klena, who went on to be the star of Wicked on Broadway. He quit pitching at UCLA to go— he was a Broadway star and now is the star of the Savannah Bananas.

That's crazy.

Did Jacob Gonzalez go to Mississippi State?

In 2021? Uh, 2022. Jacob Gonzalez. No, he went to the other Mississippi school.

Southern Miss. Ole Miss.

Ole Miss. Ole Miss won in 2022.

Can I ask you really quick? Yes. Just for the audience.

Absolutely.

2007.

Oregon State.

2008.

Fresno State.

2009.

LSU, one of 3 times.

Aaron Judge went to Fresno State.

Aaron Judge went to Fresno State. 2012. Arizona. That's Cody Bellinger.

Yep.

2015.

Virginia. Not Cal State Fullerton. Back-to-back at East. 2016 was Coastal Carolina.

Ah, Coastal.

This was the year they shocked the world.

Coastal, that was the year. They beat the Gators, knocked the Gators out of the tournament that year.

So then '17 we said was the Gators.

Florida.

'18, Allie Rushman, Oregon State.

Yes.

Okay.

Vandy, Mississippi State, Ole Miss in '22, LSU with Paul Skeens and Dylan Cruz. 2024, you have a guess there, Jeremy?

I actually don't remember what—

The Tennessee Volunteers.

Who went to Tennessee?

Yeah, so all those hard-throwing guys, Chase Burns as well. Chase Burns Lewis was not on this team though.

And their manager is now the manager of the Giants.

Tony Rotella. Yes, right. Correct. And last year, as you mentioned, was LSU.

This is just Ethan wanting to talk about Florida College.

That is correct. That's 100%. I mean, we didn't even make the College World Series this year. We lost to Troy in the regional.

But I don't know about all this we that he's doing, but I know that we, as in the Tasche household, now has 6 wins against Chris. Yeah, I don't like it. 7 wins overall. We're getting rid of that Lewis win. Can we just— that's outta here. You'll get your extra bonus one.

You'll get your bonus one.

You'll get a chance to play Lewis.