Jean Segura on 2023 Marlins: ‘If we come together, we’re going to surprise a lot of teams’

Jean Segura knew the factoid, and he frankly was tired of seeing it.

The infielder was MLB’s active leader in regular-season games played without a playoff appearance — 1,328 games spanning 11 seasons and stints with five separate teams.

Was is the key word.

Segura finally reached the postseason in 2022 in his fourth and final year with the Philadelphia Phillies as the No. 6 seed in the National League. The Phillies’ unexpected playoff run went all the way to the World Series, where Philadelphia lost in six games to the Houston Astros.

“I waited 11 years to get to that moment,” Segura said. “I thank God for giving me the opportunity to get there, to get to the postseason and go straight to the World Series. There’s nothing better than that. And as soon as you taste it, you want to get there every single year. It’s a great experience that I can’t explain how good it is.”

It will be an uphill climb for Segura to make a repeat appearance in the postseason with his new team in 2023. Segura, 32, signed a two-year deal with the Miami Marlins that includes a club option for the 2025 season. The Marlins formally introduced him Wednesday morning at an event at loanDepot park.

The two-time All-Star is the first major addition to Miami’s roster this offseason. The Marlins know he can’t be the last as they try to find a way to contend in a National League East that had three teams make the playoffs last season in the Atlanta Braves, New York Mets and Phillies — all of whom have made substantial upgrades this offseason.

(The Marlins have also an deal in place with veteran right-handed pitcher Johnny Cueto that is pending a physical.)

But Segura isn’t fazed by the competition. He is embracing it.

“If we come together, we’re going to surprise a lot of teams,” said Segura, who is set to make $6.5 million in 2023 and $8.5 million in 2024. The club option is $10 million and comes with a $2 million buyout if not enacted. “We have the pitching, the starting rotation. ... If the offense can come together, we’ve got a pretty good shot [to compete]. It’s not what people think about. ‘Oh, the Miami Marlins. They’re going to lose 100 games.’ No. Our job is to get to the postseason and win a World Series. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s not impossible.”

The Marlins view Segura as an integral piece to being competitive a possibility.

Offensively, he gives the Marlins a steady hitter for a lineup. Segura is a career .285 hitter with a .739 on-base-plus-slugging percentage, 107 home runs, 492 RBI and 712 runs scored in 1,328 games. In 427 games over the past four seasons in Philadelphia, Segura hit .281 with a .755 OPS, 43 home runs, 176 RBI and 228 runs scored.

For good measure, he has a career .305 batting average and .748 OPS in 41 games at loanDepot park.

“Jean was always on our radar,” Marlins general manager Kim Ng said. “Obviously have seen him quite a lot, having been in the same division as him for a past number of years. He’s a nice combination of power, speed and positional versatility.”

As for that positional versatility, Segura is slated to be Miami’s primary third baseman heading into the season — although that could change now with the Marlins trading shortstop Miguel Rojas to the Los Angeles Dodgers, a source confirmed to the Miami Herald.

It would be a shift away from his comfort zone, considering he has played the majority of the career in the middle infield, but both Segura and the Marlins are optimistic that his arm and range will help him make a quick adjustment to playing third base.

“It’s another challenge but I love it,” said Segura, who has played just 24 games at third base — all of which came in the 2020 season. “I love the challenge. I’m one of those guys that loves action, so that’s a new position for me, but at the end of the day, after playing shortstop for the majority of my career, when you move to third or second, it’s an easier [adjustment].”

He has also already begun working with his new teammates. Shortly after his signing became official on Jan. 4, Segura was at loanDepot park working out, hitting in the batting cage and doing field work. Jazz Chisholm Jr., Miguel Rojas, Garrett Cooper, Avisail Garcia and Jorge Soler, among others, have been working out at the ballpark as well.

“It’s good,” Segura said, “because those are the guys that you’re going to spend the majority of your time with over the next six to eight months. ... This is a new year, a new opportunity.”