Marlins’ Andrew Heaney could steal NL Rookie of the Year Award
In 2013, a Major League Baseball team in Florida waited to call up its top prospect until the middle of June. That was the Tampa Bay Rays and outfielder Wil Myers. The Rays delayed Myers’ big-league debut purely for financial reasons. He proved to be a huge addition, winning the AL Rookie of the Year Award despite the late start and helping Tampa Bay win a wild-card spot.
The story could be similar this season down south in the Sunshine State with the Miami Marlins. They have been a huge surprise in 2014. Miami finished with the worst record in the National League last season despite a Rookie of the Year season from pitcher Jose Fernandez. It was a WagerWeb long shot to win the NL East yet the team is in the thick of the division and wild-card race despite Fernandez going down with a season-ending arm injury in early May.
To boost the staff, the team called up its top pitching prospect from the minors on June 16, left-hander Andrew Heaney. He will go right into the rotation and could be a difference-maker like Myers was. The Marlins are +4000 at WagerWeb to win the NL pennant and +9000 to win the World Series.
Heaney, considered the top lefty pitcher in all the minors, was Miami’s No. 9 overall pick in the 2012 draft so he’s on the fast track. He was 3-0 with a
2.74 ERA in four starts for Triple-A New Orleans this year. He opened the season at Double-A Jacksonville, where he went 4-2 with a 2.35 ERA. He should be a major upgrade over struggling veteran Randy Wolf. The team also called up its second-best pitching prospect, Anthony Desclafani, to replace the ineffective Kevin Slowey. Desclafani isn’t as highly touted as Heaney but certainly better than Slowey.
Also, Heaney could easily steal the NL Rookie of the Year Award. The AL rookie class is stellar this year, led by the Yankees’ Masahiro Tanaka and White Sox’s Jose Abreu. The NL’s class is very weak. The leader right now is likely Arizona shortstop Chris Owings, but the Diamondbacks are in last place. If Heaney helps lead the Marlins to a playoff berth that would go a long way toward his candidacy.
Keep an eye on Miami over the next month. If the two kids pitch well and the Fish stay in the race, they will be a buyer ahead of the July 31 trade deadline. Not to mention a much better betting option overall on WagerWeb.
