Connor Norby and Kyle Stowers Are Getting Their Chance in Miami

The Miami Marlins approach to the 2024 MLB Trade Deadline was clear- Sell everything worth anything.

After falling well short of their expectation early this season, the trade to move Luis Arraez only one year after acquiring him signaled that the new Front Office was ready to put their touches on this organization.

Whether you agree with what they did or not, you have to at least appreciate that they did lean into their approach and maximize all they could from their tradable assets.

We saw them make six trades total but, the most surprising one in terms of a return was their trade with the Baltimore Orioles. Miami moved on from Trevor Rogers, who was selected 13th overall in the 2017 draft, after a couple of up-and-down seasons following his 2021 All-Star Game selection.

Many across the industry deemed the return an overpay. Baltimore, as we know, has a loaded farm system and was dealing with a surplus of offensive talent within their farm system.

Infield prospect Connor Norby, Baltimore’s No. 6 prospect by Just Baseball at the time of the trade, and outfielder Kyle Stowers, a prospect who found himself on the outside looking in, were the two players the Marlins were able to convince the Orioles to part with.

Whether you believe in the future prospects of the two or not, there was no denying that the Marlins looked to have gotten more than full value in return for their left-hander.

Now as Norby and Stowers find themselves in a new organization with clear paths to everyday playing time, which they did not have in Baltimore. They are going to be able to show those across the league what they are truly capable of.

Connor Norby

The former second-round pick in the 2022 draft was labeled as one of the best hitters of the class coming out of ECU. The simplicity of his approach was the reason why he had been so successful through his quick ascension of the Minor Leagues.

After finishing off the 2023 season strong, where he was able to climb across all three levels in one year, 2024 looked to be the year where Norby forced himself into the plans on the Orioles loaded infield. However, 2024 did not start the way he had hoped.

After going through some struggles, which could have been caused by the frustration of having already proved himself worthy of a spot on the Major League roster, Norby was simply trying to pass the time until he got his opportunity.

During this period, the Orioles wanted to maximize Norby’s value to them by having him play multiple positions while in Triple-A Norfolk. He spent some time playing his normal second base position, while also playing some outfield and third base.

Norby has gone on record saying that he is a second baseman and it is where he feels the most comfortable playing. However, that is not likely where the Marlins intend for him to play the majority of his time. As soon as he entered the organization, Norby was assigned to Triple-A to get more reps at third base.

The Marlins had been playing Jake Burger at third consistently with Josh Bell occupying the first base position before him being traded to Arizona.

With them already projecting the need to move him off of the hot corner, finally acquiring a player who could lock down a position for them that they had been searching for an answer to for quite some time, Norby’s positional flexibility had to have been quite enticing, even if it is not the position he feels he plays the best.

Nonetheless, Norby is in a situation where he is going to get the everyday plate appearances he had been searching for when he was in Baltimore. In his 14 games with Miami, he is currently slashing .271/.338/.373 with one home run, a near 30% K%, and a 9.2% BB%. He does, however, have an 82% z-contact% and that is all the Marlins could hope for.

For years the Marlins have been known for their ability to develop pitching, but struggle to do the same for hitters. Acquiring an MLB-ready hitter like Norby was the perfect target in this trade.

Whether he can be an above-average Major League player on an everyday basis or not should not be how you view him. The Marlins are looking for consistency and Norby will provide them with that for years to come.

Kyle Stowers

Kyle Stowers, as I mentioned previously, was the odd man out of the Orioles organization and the depth they had across every level in the outfield. He was being shipped back and forth between Baltimore and Norfolk before the Orioles decided to leave him in Triple-A so he could get the everyday at-bats to try and boost his trade value to move him as they did. Well, he accumulated so many opportunities in Norfolk that he became their home run king.

Now that he finds himself in Miami, like Norby, he will get every opportunity to try a become an everyday Major Leaguer. His start with the team just has not gone as well as Norby’s has.

After striking out in six of his first seven at-bats for the Marlins, he is currently hitting .131/.197/.131 with 26 strikeouts in 61 ABs across the 19 games he has played so far. Despite the struggles, Stowers has gotten all the support any newcomer could ask for from Manager Skip Schumaker.

Skip has been quoted as saying that Stowers has an incredibly high baseball IQ that stands out amongst the rest of his peers. With the combination of his power, above-average base running, and the ability to play a strong right field, he has continued to find ample playing time despite his struggles at the plate.

With an acclimation process certainly being of need for someone who had been bouncing across two different levels for some time, Stowers will look to maximize all the playing time he gets in 2024 in order to establish himself as a part of the Marlins future starting in 2025.

Many would say, myself included, that the Marlins would have done a one-for-one swap with Rogers for Norby and that Stowers could be labeled as a “throw-in”. Whether that is the case or not, the talent is there for Stowers to carve out a role in the Marlins’ plans.

Did the Marlins “Win the Trade”?

What it all boils down to is the following. This could go down as being a surplus for a surplus deal on both sides.

The Orioles had a logjam on offense, while the Marlins are able to develop pitching unlike any other, plus will have injured arms like Sandy Alcantara, Eury Perez, and Braxton Garrett rejoin the rotation in 2025. The fact that Rogers just got optioned down to Triple-A for Balitmore does however make this deal look like even more lopsided for the Marlins.

The Marlins are one of the best organizations for young players to join when looking to find a role at the Major League level. Connor Norby and Kyle Stowers fit two roles that the organization was looking to fill.

While it could be a perceived “win” for the Marlins, at the end of the day, each player involved in this deal will need to turn the page on their past and maximize every opportunity they have going forward.