Like many players, when Eli Marrero played for the St. Louis Cardinals he would often be seen playing catch with his son during pregame warm-ups. That was 12 years ago and the young Marrero has now grown into a soon-to-be graduate at Coral Gables High School in Miami, Florida. He also happens to be ranked by Baseball America as the eighth best catcher available and 124th top prospect overall in tonight’s Major League Amateur Draft.
Shorter and a more stout build than his father, Marrero is listed at 5’9 and 190lbs. A switch-hitter, he batted .263 for the 18U Team USA squad with a home run and six RBIs in 12 games.
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Besides catcher, Marrero has also played some in centerfield. If the draft does not work out to his liking, a scholarship to Mississippi State will continue his baseball career.
After spending the last couple of seasons as a hitting coach and managing in the Arizona League for the Cincinnati Reds organization, the senior Marrero was promoted to the manager of the Daytona Tortugas (Advanced A).
The pitching coach for Daytona is Tony Fossas, who was teammates with Marrero in St. Louis during Eli’s rookie year in 1997.
The Cardinals have the 27th, 39th (competitive balance), 66th, 100th, 105th (compensation for not signing 2014 pick Trevor Megill), and will then select 26th in rounds 4-40.
Me an the pops! @PerfectGameUSA pic.twitter.com/2v1sW2Vjep
— Elih Marrero10 (@Elih_Marrero9) October 18, 2014
