SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- As the Marlins face the D-backs at Chase Field this week, about 30 miles away, several of the franchise’s top prospects are preparing for the opening of the Arizona Fall League.

Two of them are outfielders Víctor Víctor Mesa and Jerar Encarnacion. They are on the roster of the Salt River Rafters, who open their Fall League season Wednesday.

Mesa, 23, is ranked by MLB Pipeline as Miami’s No. 13 prospect, and Encarnacion is 17th on the team’s Top 30 list.

Mesa, a native of Cuba who signed along with his brother Víctor Mesa Jr., were two prized international free-agent signees last October. Encarnacion, a native of the Dominican Republic, is one of the organization’s top development stories.

Mesa opened the season at Class A Advanced Jupiter, and advanced to Double-A Jacksonville.

“It’s been a learning experience, the whole year,” Mesa said through an interpreter. “A lot of learning situations, on and off the field. This is the professional level of baseball, and there’s so many things you have to learn. It’s just making adjustments, and changing things for the good.”

In his first season of professional baseball, Mesa appeared in 89 games at Jupiter, having a slash line of .252/.295/.283, and in 27 games at Jacksonville, he hit .178/.200/.196.

The sluggish statistics didn’t catch the Marlins completely by surprise, because Mesa didn’t play in organized games for more than a year.

“We didn't hold back from inviting [Mesa] to Major League Spring Training, unfortunately he got hurt and didn't get the benefit from that,” Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. “We put him right in the Florida State League, which is an extremely challenging league. He got off to a slow start, but showed that he was able to make the necessary adjustments. We got him into Double-A. I got to see him in Double-A, and the other parts of his game, the baserunning, the stolen bases all were excellent.”

Mesa is an athletic center fielder, who is a plus runner and defender with a strong arm.

“I feel next year, I’ll be doing better,” Mesa said. “This is a great opportunity for me to be in the Fall League that has so many high-ranked prospects. It’s great baseball. This is a place for me to get more at-bats, and to continue my development so I can have a great season next year.”

Each level presents its own challenges. Mesa noted that at Class A Advanced there were plenty of pitchers who threw hard, and pitched mostly off their fastballs. At Double-A, the quality of offspeed pitches was improved.

“It’s an adjustment I have to make,” Mesa said. “In Single A, they were throwing hard, a lot of fastballs. Sometimes they would throw a breaking ball. If the breaking ball doesn’t work, they’d go with fastballs, once again, in many cases.

“In Double-A, it was different. If their breaking ball wasn’t falling in the strike zone, they’d go again with the breaking ball until you made the mistake. I need to make the adjustments. Get the at-bats and get my rhythm at the plate.”

Encarnacion is a power-hitting corner outfielder, who combined to hit .276/.331/.425 with 16 home runs and 71 RBIs at Class A Clinton and Jupiter.

“It’s about keeping the same mentality I had been having all year, and just look for my pitch, and not go for the pitches they want me to get,” Encarnacion said about his Fall League objectives.

Encarnacion is one of the most improved players in the Marlins’ system.

“You think about all the development stories we’ve had,” Hill said. “On the pitching side, Sixto Sanchez, Jorge Guzman. The years they've put together, in terms of their improvement. Staying healthy, cleaning up the mechanics. I would say Encarnacion on the position-player side is another one of those stories, where you say that's a great development job.”