It may sound revisionist to say it, but I don’t think many of us were surprised by Sandy Alcantara‘s first major league start. The start for the Miami Marlins wasn’t his first major league appearance. He did appear in eight games last season as part of the St. Louis Cardinals, and struck out 10 in 8 1/3 innings.
After the Marcell Ozuna trade brought Alcantara to the Miami Marlins system, along with Daniel Castano, Zac Gallen, and Magneuris Sierra, Alcantara was rated as Miami’s #3 prospect. He moved up to #2 on the list after Lewis Brinson (another new acquisition) spent his rookie eligibility.