Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: A good bet to make roster
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There is "very strong sentiment" toward including both De La Cruz and Jesus Sanchez on the Marlins' Opening Day roster, Barry Jackson and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald report.
Sanchez was already considered a lock since he's out of options, but De La Cruz has been viewed as being on the roster bubble since he does have an option left. However, it would appear the Marlins are likely to keep both and leave one of Yuli Gurriel or Jose Iglesias off the roster. De La Cruz finished with a huge September in 2022 and put up impressive batted ball data all year, making him an intriguing late-round fantasy option. Where De La Cruz plays remains to be seen, but he's capable at all three outfield spots and could also see time at designated hitter.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: On roster bubble
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De La Cruz could be squeezed off the Opening Day roster after the Marlins signed Jose Iglesias and Yuli Gurriel, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
The two veterans seem assured of spots, likely leaving just one spot for either De La Cruz or Jesus Sanchez, and unfortunately for the former, Sanchez is out of minor-league options while De La Cruz isn't. The 26-year-old's best chance of breaking camp with a big-league assignment might come if the Marlins decide they need extra outfield depth to help ease Jazz Chisholm into his new duties in center field. De La Cruz has shown some power this spring, going 7-for-27 with five extra-base hits (two doubles, two triple and a homer), but he also sports a 0:8 BB:K, which won't help his case.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Slugs 13th homer
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De La Cruz went 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, two runs scored and three RBI in Monday's 4-0 win over Atlanta.
The 25-year-old launched his 13th homer of the year off Bryce Elder in the third inning to close the book on the scoring for the night. De La Cruz has been one of the hottest hitters in the majors over the last couple weeks, slashing .436/.448/.800 over his last 14 games with four homers and 16 RBI, and the late-season surge should give him a leg up for a starting job in the Miami outfield heading into 2023.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Racks up extra-base hits
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De La Cruz went 3-for-4 with a double and a two-run home run in Wednesday's loss against the Mets.
De La Cruz put the Marlins up 2-0 with a homer off righty starter Taijuan Walker with two outs in the fourth inning. The outfielder has recorded six doubles and two home runs over his last four games. In addition, the 25-year-old has a .426 average over 54 at-bats in his last 16 contests.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Three extra-base hits
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De La Cruz went 4-for-4 with two doubles, a solo home run and two runs scored in Saturday's 4-1 victory over the Nationals.
De La Cruz led off the fourth inning with a home run to give the Marlins a 3-1 lead. The outfielder has hit four home runs and recorded 14 RBI during his last 10 games, recording a .389 average and .806 slugging percentage over 36 at-bats.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Drills grand slam Monday
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De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with a grand slam in Monday's 10-3 win over the Cubs.
De La Cruz hammered a 398-foot grand slam in the third inning. Over his last six games, he's gone deep three times while driving in 12 runs. The 25-year-old outfielder is slashing .219/.267/.369 with 21 extra-base hits and 33 RBI through 296 plate appearances.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Drives in four
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De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a home run and four RBI on Thursday against the Phillies.
De La Cruz took Noah Syndergaard deep in the fourth inning to account for three of his four RBI. He's started each of the Marlins' last four games with Avisail Garcia (hamstring) sidelined, and he has three hits in 12 at-bats in that span -- including two home runs. De La Cruz has hit just .214 across 283 plate appearances for the season, though he appears to have a clear path to playing time across the final few weeks of the campaign.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Playing time on rise
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De La Cruz will start in right field and bat seventh in Wednesday's game against the Phillies, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
After accounting for the Marlins' only run in Tuesday's loss to the Phillies with a solo shot, De La Cruz will stick in the lineup for the third game in a row. With Avisail Garcia (hamstring) heading back to the injured list Tuesday, De La Cruz appears to be the Marlins' preferred option to replace Garcia in right field.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Riding pine Saturday
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De La Cruz isn't starting Saturday against Atlanta, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
De La Cruz was called up by the Marlins on Friday and will be on the bench for a second consecutive game. Peyton Burdick, JJ Bleday and Brian Anderson are starting in the outfield from left to right.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Called up Friday
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De La Cruz was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville on Friday.
De La Cruz experienced some struggles at the plate in the majors in July and early August and was ultimately sent down. He performed well in the minors following his demotion, slashing .320/.370/.620 with four home runs, three doubles, 10 runs, 10 RBI and a steal over 13 games. He could see semi-consistent playing time for the Marlins with Jorge Soler (back) and Avisail Garcia (hamstring) both still sidelined.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Will rejoin MLB squad
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De La Cruz is expected to be called up by Miami ahead of Friday's series opener in Atlanta, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
After recording a .581 OPS to start the season, De La Cruz was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville on August 12. Since then, he's flipped a switch in the minors with a .320/.370/.620 slash line over 54 plate appearances with Jacksonville. De La Cruz is capable of finding success at the plate in the majors, shown by his respectable OPS of .783 in 2021.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Demoted to Triple-A
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De La Cruz was optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville on Friday, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
De La Cruz has recently been playing an everyday role in the outfield for Miami, but he'll head to the minors after posting a .483 OPS in 17 games since the All-Star break. Overall this season, the 25-year-old has a .205/.249/.332 slash line in 261 plate appearances, failing to replicate his .296 batting average from 2021.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Out of Sunday's lineup
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De La Cruz is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cubs, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
De La Cruz started the last nine games and will step out of the lineup after going 6-for-32 with 10 strikeouts during that span. JJ Bleday, Billy Hamilton and Peyton Burdick will start from left to right in the outfield Sunday.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Everyday role opens up
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De La Cruz will start in right field and bat cleanup in Wednesday's game against the Reds.
With Avisail Garcia (hamstring) landing on the injured list Wednesday, De La Cruz looks like he'll have a clear path to a regular role in the Miami outfield, at least until one of Garcia or Jorge Soler (back) is activated. De La Cruz had already started each of the past six games while going 3-for-20 with a double, a walk and a run.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Takes seat Sunday
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De La Cruz is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mets, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
De La Cruz started the last three games and will head to the bench after going 1-for-10 with four strikeouts. Jesus Sanchez, JJ Bleday and Avisail Garcia will man the outfield from left to right Sunday.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Back on bench Wednesday
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De La Cruz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Reds.
De La Cruz started in each of the Marlins' last four games, going 4-for-14 with a home run and a stolen base. Despite his quality work the past few days, De La Cruz still looks like the Marlins' fourth outfielder while all of Jesus Sanchez, JJ Bleday and Avisail Garcia are available.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Swipes third bag
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De La Cruz went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Tuesday's 2-1 win over the Reds.
The Marlins went 3-for-3 on steal attempts against Reds rookie catcher Michael Papierski, allowing De La Cruz to swipe his first bag since June 19 and only his third of the year. The 25-year-old outfielder hasn't done much at the plate either, and he's slashing a sluggish .221/.250/.412 through 22 games in July with three homers, six runs and seven RBI.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Homers in win
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De La Cruz went 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and one run scored in Sunday's victory over the Pirates.
De La Cruz launched a solo shot in the fifth inning, then sent JJ Bleday home on a single in the ninth. The home run was his first since July 5, his third of the month and his seventh of the year. The outfielder has five hits in his last six games, raising his batting average from .209 to .218 during that span. It comes after he went hitless in his previous five games.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Gets seventh straight start
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De La Cruz will start in right field and bat eighth in Thursday's game against the Pirates, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.
De La Cruz will garner his seventh consecutive start Thursday, but since producing three doubles in a July 8 win over the Mets, he's gone 2-for-19 with 10 strikeouts. Jorge Soler (pelvis) has appeared in two rehab games for Double-A Pensacola and could be activated from the 10-day injured list over the weekend, at which point De La Cruz will likely fade into a reserve role.
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Marlins' Bryan De La Cruz: Doubles machine against Mets
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De La Cruz went 3-for-3 with a walk, three doubles, a run scored and an RBI in Friday's win over the Mets.
All three two-baggers came against New York starter Chris Bassitt, who gave up only six hits in total over 6.1 innings. De La Cruz is enjoying a productive stretch at the plate, batting .314 (11-for-35) over his last 12 games (10 starts) with five doubles, three homers, five RBI and six runs in that span.
