In his end-of-season news conference, Miami Marlins president of operations Peter Bendix reflected on the Marlins’ disappointing 2024 season, which saw them lose 100 games for the second time in six years and miss the playoffs. This outcome fell far short of fans’ expectations, particularly after head coach Skip Schumaker won 2023 NL Manager of the Year. The Marlins and Schumaker mutually agreed that he would not return for the 2025 season.
However, Bendix’s vision for the upcoming rebuild appears to be far more extensive than anticipated. This comes just six months after one of the season’s most surprising stories, when Bendix announced the trade of beloved star player Luis Arraez—while Arraez was on the field, ready for the opening pitch of a game.
Peter Bendix was hired last winter as the Marlins’ president of baseball operations after spending 15 years with the Tampa Bay Rays—a transition that itself was somewhat awkward.
In 2023, Marlins fans were stunned when their team made a surprise playoff appearance, finishing third in the National League East. But the organization mishandled the situation with the General Manager who played a key role in that playoff run. Kim Ng, with 21 years of experience in the front offices of the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, and Los Angeles Dodgers, had three World Series rings to her name. Prior to joining the Marlins, she served as a senior vice president for Major League Baseball for nine years. Upon her hiring, Ng became the highest-ranking woman in a major men’s North American professional sports front office, and the first female general manager in any American major sports league.
Ng, who had also hired Skip Schumaker, was widely regarded as one of the most respected and highly accomplished executives in Major League Baseball. However, despite her success, the Marlins effectively rewarded her by offering her a demotion, a move that led to her departure from the organization.
A year later, much of the playoff-caliber team has been dismantled, and the Miami Marlins have plummeted to last place in the division.
In a surprising move just a day after expressing his frustration publicly, Peter Bendix shocked the baseball world once again by announcing that Miami’s entire 2024 coaching staff would be departing alongside Skip Schumaker. After posting a 146-178 record over the past two seasons, the Marlins are now preparing for Bendix to make his first head coaching hire since taking over as president of baseball operations.
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