No professional baseball player is a man hurting for confidence. They might be young or a late-round draft pick. But every player in every organization believes he belongs in the MLB sometime sooner than later. Check that; he knows they will belong in the big leagues.
But as the many bus rides and changing of teams across the country, all without being in the big leagues. A nagging thought must go through Deyvison De Los Santos’ mind.
Why am I here?
The Marlins aren’t doing him any favors regarding their lineup construction. They have a rotating door at DH with everyone from Connor Norby to Jake Burger filling in at third base — De Los Santos’ position.
But Miami isn’t in contention; they are 54-90, which is a dreary 37 games under .500.
De Los Santos and the Marlins — who acquired him at the trade deadline in a deal with the Diamondbacks for AJ Puk — begs the question of why not giving him a shot in the big leagues.
“He could help the Marlins almost immediately,” The Athletic’s Chad Jennings said in an MLB Trade Deadline grade story.
Instead, they have chosen to let him ride out this season in the minors.
For De Los Santos, the proponents for his promotion are pretty clear.
He’s produced at every level of the minor leagues, and the Marlins value him enough to trade AJ Puk, who has allowed one earned run of over 18.0 innings since joining Arizona. And perhaps most importantly.
But there are a few key factors underpinning his stay in Triple-A.
Since the trade, he’s hit just .255 in Jacksonville, and his walk-and-chase percentages have remained unimpressive, a trend many are willing to overlook because of his massive power.
But perhaps most significantly, De Los Santos — a former Rule 5 Draft selection — is not on the team’s 40-man roster, meaning a roster move would need to be made to result in his promotion. Meaning the balancing act the Marlins have invested themselves in since the trade will likely last a little longer.
MLB.com has De Los Santos’s MLB Projection listed as 2024; his big-league-level power and pedigree do, too. But it’s not in his hands — whether or not De Los Santos thinks he’s ready.
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WBN MLB: https://worldbaseball.com/league/mlb/
Photo Credit: Infielder Deyvison De Los Santos #27 of the Amarillo Sod Poodles runs to home plate during the game against the Arkansas Travelers at HODGETOWN Stadium on September 09, 2022 in Amarillo, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images)
