Miami Marlins
In the middle of a rebuild, although it seems like this team is always rebuilding, the Miami Marlins were the biggest surprise of 2020. Not only did Miami earn its first postseason appearance in 17 years, but this franchise also won their Wild Card series against the Chicago Cubs.
Miami is led by its young pitching staff, highlighted by sub-3.50 ERA performances from youngsters Sixto Sanchez and Sandy Alcantara. Last year’s offense was relatively average at the plate but did enough to keep this team in ball games and winning series.
Neither of these pieces has come together in 2021 and the Marlins are off to an extremely slow start. Miami is just 1-6 through the first week of the season and already trails the NL East division-leading Philadelphia Phillies by four games. The pitching staff hasn’t been as electric as last season but is still faring relatively well with a 4.19 team ERA, which ranks 17th in the league.
On the other hand, the bats are floundering. Miami scores an average of just three runs per game, the 26th ranking amongst MLB teams. Marlins hitters are batting just .210 at the plate and slugging .299. Last year may have been an aberration, but the offense will need to get going if Miami has any hopes of replicating its success from last year.