Hernández starting against righty on Wednesday

Conine got the Marlins on the board with a 373-foot (106.5-mph EV) solo shot off of Bryce Miller to lead off the second inning. He then smacked a one-out double in the seventh inning and scored on Jakob Marsee’s RBI single. With his three-hit night, the 28-year-old outfielder is now hitting .264/.369/.486 with four homers and 11 RBI through his first 84 plate appearances on the season.

It sounds like a precautionary move since Caissie was replaced by Griffin Conine in right field to open the second inning. The 24-year-old rookie has hit .239/.297/.459 with 12 homers, 50 RBI and four steals in 246 plate appearances over 79 games in his Miami debut. He’s delivered borderline top-50 value among fantasy outfielders this season.

Hernández gave the Marlins an early 1-0 lead with his solo shot, and then hit another one in the sixth. He also singled and drew a pair of walks, so a nifty overall day for the 26-year-old. He’s now homered 11 times in 2026, and he’s done so with a slash of .234/.314/.457. Those numbers show the flaws in Hernández’s game, but also why he has a chance to be a pretty good one over the coming campaigns.

Hernandez did his damage off of A’s right-hander Jack Perkins in the opening inning, with his 414-foot (102.0-mph EV) three-run shot giving the Marlins a 5-0 lead before an out had been recorded. The 26-year-old outfielder also singled in the ninth inning. With his two-hit attack, he’s now hitting .223/.296/.413 with nine long balls and 32 RBI on the season.

Ruiz has now been on the bench for two straight games as Heriberto Hernandez, Owen Caissie, and Jakob Marsee start in the outfield. This was always part of the risk when Griffin Conine came back from the injured list and filled the designated hitter spot. It seems like Ruiz will be limited to mostly starting against left-handed pitchers and pinch running for the time being.

It would be easy to say that it’s because the Rangers are starting a left-handed pitcher, but Tyler Alexander is just the opener for Kumar Rocker. Caissie has hit .171/.265/.439 in 15 games in Juene with three home runs and 11 RBI, but a 30.6 percent strikeout rate. With Griffin Conine returning on Sunday, the Marlins DH spot is full, so Caissie, Jakob Marsee, Heriberto Hernandez, and Esteury Ruiz will have to split time between the three outfield spots. Hernandez has a 160 wRC+ in June, and Ruiz has a 242 wRC+ in just 39 plate appearances, but has earned more time. That may mean more days off for Caissie.

Conine returns to Miami’s lineup following a 10-week absence working his way back from surgery to repair a tendon in his left hamstring back in mid-April. He went 4-for-10 with one homer during a three-game minor league rehab assignment at Triple-A Jacksonville. The 28-year-old offers some interesting over-the-fence pop and could be a cheap power source in extremely deep mixed leagues.

Hernández drew a walk in the first inning, then highlighted a four-run fourth inning with a two-run homer off Matt Gage. The 26-year-old outfielder is hitting .233/.302/.404 with seven homers, 15 runs scored, and 28 RBI across 162 plate appearances. Hernández is getting more regular playing time, starting in seven of the team’s last eight games.

Conine played seven innings in right field during his first rehab contest since undergoing surgery to repair a tendon in his left hamstring back in mid-April. The 28-year-old is likely to require a handful of additional contests before he’s ready to rejoin Miami’s corner outfield mix.

The 26-year-old outfielder opened the scoring in the ballgame with a 403-foot (104.4-mph EV) solo shot off of Paul Skenes to open the second inning. That would be his lone hit in four at-bats on the afternoon. For the season, Hernández is now hitting .237/.308/.397 with six homers, 26 RBI and five stolen bases across 146 plate appearances.