The Miami Marlins have not done much in terms of addition this offseason as the team entered yet another rebuild in 2024 and have spent most of their offseason trading away players like Jake Burger and Jesús Luzardo while signing a plethora of minor league deals. However, they had recently mentioned a desire to add a veteran presence to the starting rotation and Alden González of ESPN has reported the team has now signed veteran right-hander Cal Quantrill to a one-year deal. Craig Mish of the Miami Herald reports that the deal is valued at $3.5 million. Per Robert Murray of FanSided, the deal can get to $4MM, implying there are potential bonuses worth $500K.

Quantrill, 30, joins Miami after being non-tendered by the Colorado Rockies in November. Originally drafted by the San Diego Padres eighth overall in 2016, Quantrill quickly rose through the ranks before debuting in 2019 with the team. He made 10 appearances with San Diego during the 2020 season, posting a 2.60 ERA in 17 1/3 innings before being sent to Cleveland in a blockbuster deal for Mike Clevinger. In eight games during the rest of the 2020 season, Quantrill posted a 1.84 ERA and was primed to step into the Cleveland rotation the following season.

Splitting his time between the bullpen and the rotation, Quantrill made 22 starts in 40 games, posting a stellar 2.89 ERA in 149 2/3 innings and accumulating 3.7 rWAR, the best mark of his career. In 2022 he spent his entire time in the rotation, making 32 starts and posting a 3.38 ERA in 186 1/3 innings of work. Between those two seasons, Quantrill recorded a 3.16 ERA with an 18% strikeout rate, 6.8% walk rate and 42.6% ground ball rate. He benefited from a .274 batting average on balls in play and 77.9% strand rate in that time despite a 4.10 FIP that may be indicative of his nature as a groundball pitcher who relied on his luck more than anything but was still a solid pitcher.

He fell off a bit in 2023 has he tried to pitch through injuries that turned out to be shoulder inflammation, causing him to miss a good chunk of time on the injured list where he made just 19 starts on the year for a 5.24 ERA. He had been able to finish the year strong and though the Guardians designated him for assignment, the Rockies were encouraged by his efforts down the stretch and swung a trade for him.

2024 was a two-sided coin for Quantrill in Colorado. Looking to prove he was healthy and effective he came out the gate strong over the first couple of months. He pitched 102 1⁄3 innings and posted a 4.13 ERA. In May he dazzled with a 1.71 ERA in 31 2/3 innings over five starts, going 4-1 in that stretch in what was the best month of the year for the Rockies. Additionally, Quantrill recorded 10 quality starts, providing a reliable arm that the Rockies struggled to find over the first half of the season. There had been motivation to try and trade Quantrill to a competing team but the Rockies failed to find a viable suitor to take him. In June and July, Quantrill made 11 starts but struggled to a 5.63 ERA with 41 strikeouts against 22 walks. Things got worse after the trade deadline when he went 2-5 with a 6.82 ERA in his final seven starts with 20 strikeouts against 24 walks.

When all was said and done, Quantrill’s performance was passable as his 16.8% strikeout rate was subpar but standard for him. His 10.5% walk rate was a bit higher than average while his 44.4% ground ball rate was right around par. The Rockies could have chosen to hold on to Quantrill for the 2025 season, but since he was projected to earn about $9 million in his final year of arbitration, the Rockies decided to cut him lose at the non-tender deadline.

The veteran right-hander now heads to the team where his father Paul Quantrill finished his career in 2005. Quantrill will provide some stability to the backend of the Marlins rotation after the Marlins made room on the 40-man roster by transferring left-hander Braxton Garrett to the 60-day injured list. Sandy Alcántara is expected to headline the rotation after missing all of 2024 due to Tommy John surgery and will be joined by Ryan Weathers, Edward Cabrera and Max Meyer. Aside from Quantrill and Alcántara no other projected starter has more than two full years of service time. With Eury Pérez also on the recovery road from Tommy John surgery he underwent in April last season, the Marlins are looking to Quantrill to be a cheap bargain pickup to eat some innings and hopefully rebound from his time in Colorado.