CINCINNATI -- The Marlins have had a rotating cast atop their lineup this season, with Jakob Marsee, Xavier Edwards and the since-traded Liam Hicks having spent the most time batting leadoff.
If there's a chance for one player to secure it outright, consider Marsee to have made his case on Saturday.
The second-year center fielder put together his best game of 2026 in the Marlins' 8-4 win over the Reds at Great American Ball Park as he homered in a 4-for-4 performance.
It wasn't just his tangibles that stood out. Marsee also made a heads-up play in the fifth inning, sprinting to first on a single and taking second when Reds right fielder Noelvi Marte couldn’t come up with the hard roller. He was able to move to third on Edwards’ squeeze bunt, and score on Heriberto Hernández’s grounder through the left side.
Marsee tattooed all four balls he hit -- singles at 97.4, 103.9 and 103.2 mph and a Statcast-projected 386-foot homer at 100.3 mph.
He would have had a chance to drive in the go-ahead run in the eighth, but manager Clayton McCullough pinch-hit for him when Reds lefty Sam Moll came in, which led to a two-run single from Hernández and an RBI knock for Griffin Conine.