Marsee reflects on rookie season, extension talks

Yankees vs. Marlins. Sold-out crowds. Early postseason implications.

Many rookies might fold under the pressure, but not Marlins center fielder Jakob Marsee, who composed a historic Major League debut to open the club’s three-game weekend sweep of the Bronx Bombers this past August.

“Honestly, it gives you confidence because you get a hit against those teams, you're like, ‘Well, if I can do it against one of the best teams in the game, I can do this against anyone,’” Marsee recently told MLB.com. “So it kind of gives you a little bit of confidence moving forward.”

Marsee, who went on to produce 1.9 bWAR over the first 55 games of his career, exceeded rookies limits this past season. But he is still a youngster in the game with much to learn, so the 24-year-old joined teammates Heriberto Hernández, Cade Gibson, Joe Mack, Josh White and William Kempner for the Rookie Career Development Program.

For four days last week, a select number of players from every organization attended sessions on Zoom as part of a joint program with the MLBPA, designed to provide guidance and identify resources for players on the verge of Major League careers. Topics included healthy relationships, security and safe driving, prohibited substances, sports betting and community building and development.

Experts in finance, health and wellness, media relations and sports psychology worked closely with the players to address many of the issues that often arise during this transition.

Retired players, veterans and former participants alike, including Paul Skenes, Royce Lewis and broadcaster Jessica Mendoza, shared their experiences and imparted wisdom. Small groups broke out into sessions, discussions and informal chats.

“I'm pretty sure every group had some sort of former player, or someone to moderate,” Marsee said. “There was like 10 of us, and we all kind of talked and just bounced ideas off each other, told each other what we do, and got to hear what everyone else does, and hear how they go about things to help us going forward as well.”

The ability to share ideas and ask questions was impactful to Marsee. Time was spent discussing everything from the difficulties of west to east coast travel to the importance of getting away from baseball. Having interests outside of the game eases the grind of a long baseball season and can reduce stress. For Marsee, he found hanging out with the people he loves most and reading both the Bible and self-help books pivotal.

While the inexperienced Marlins relied on each other during the 2025 season, it was nice to get an outsider's perspective of how things are done. Marsee, who leaned on Graham Pauley before reaching the big leagues, then received mentorship from All-Star Kyle Stowers and others once he got to The Show.

So when Marsee was thrown into the fire for that Yankees series, he rose to the occasion. It was as simple as remembering to breathe and stay calm for first pitch.

"I was really proud of myself," Marsee said. "I was able to be myself, and that's something I was really prepping myself for. Graham always told me how it was the same game. Obviously lights, stadiums, everything's bigger and intensified. So obviously there can be some added stress and trying to do too much and stuff. So I really wanted to just make sure I treated it as the same game and not try to treat it as anything else."

That mentality worked out for Marsee, who garnered down-ballot NL Rookie of the Year votes and now enters this spring as the projected Opening Day center fielder. This offseason, the Marlins have even approached him for extension talks, along with Stowers and Eury Pérez. The organization sees him as part of the core group moving forward.

“It's like what anyone dreams of when they're playing,” Marsee said. “To hear that stuff, it's cool, just because I want to play this game a long time, and usually that's what that means. Hearing people say that kind of stuff, it's pretty cool and special, just because I want to win a lot of games, and to see that our organization is going in the right direction, and to have them think of me like that is pretty special. So all that stuff means a lot to me, and just hope to keep on bringing wins to Miami.”