MIAMI – The Miami Marlins today announced that the team has acquired Minor League outfielder Matthew Etzel from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for catcher Nick Fortes.
Etzel (ET-zull), 23, is ranked the 28th-best prospect within the Rays system per MLB Pipeline and has appeared in 56 games this season with Double-A Montgomery, posting a .230 AVG (45x196) and .360 OBP. He is tied for second on the team in RBI (34), tied for third in stolen bases (17), and tied for sixth in hits. The 6-foot-2 versatile defender has made 46 starts in left field, seven starts in right field, and played in one game at first base, committing just one error in 90 total chances. The left-handed hitter received an invitation to his first Major League Spring Training with Tampa Bay this season.
The Webster, Texas native owns a career .267/.365/.418 (192x718) slash line in 205 Minor League games between the Rays and Orioles organizations after being acquired by the Rays in 2024. Etzel made his professional debut in 2023 across three levels of the Orioles system, slashing .323/.455/.510 (31x96) with 21 stolen bases in 30 games. He was originally selected by Baltimore in the 10th round of the 2023 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Southern Mississippi (Hattiesburg, Miss.).
Fortes, 28, has appeared in 59 games with Miami this season and has produced a .240 AVG (31x129) with 11 runs, six doubles, one triple and 10 RBI. Per Baseball Savant, Fortes ranks in the 92nd percentile among all catchers in the Majors in Blocks Above Average (seven). The University of Mississippi product has appeared in 363 career games with the Marlins in parts of five Major League seasons from 2021-25, posting a .225 AVG (220x979) with 38 doubles, 25 home runs, 96 RBI, and a .621 OPS. The Deland, Fla. native was originally selected by Miami in the fourth round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft.
The Marlins 40-man roster now stands at 39.