The Marlins have announced the acquisition of Gold Glove catcher Jacob Stallings from the Pirates. In exchange, Pittsburgh acquires righty Zach Thompson in addition to right-handed pitching prospect Kyle Nicolas and outfield prospect Connor Scott. Miami was connected to Stallings earlier this morning.
The 31-year-old Stallings (32 next month) will come to the Marlins with three years of club control remaining and give the Fish a standout defensive catcher to pair with their burgeoning young pitching staff. While his offensive numbers don’t stand out — Stallings has batted .251/.331/.374 with 17 homers, 32 doubles and a triple in 780 plate appearances dating back to 2019 — the 2021 Gold Glover is one of the best defensive players in the sport, regardless of position.
Over the past three seasons, Stallings has racked up 42 Defensive Runs Saved, including 21 DRS this past season. He notched an imposing 36.2% caught-stealing rate from 2019-20 and has a career 27% mark, though it’s worth noting that he slipped to 21% in that department this past season. Each of Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs and Statcast peg Stallings as an above-average pitch framer, and Prospectus credits his ability to block pitches in the dirt as plus as well.
Projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn a $2.6MM salary in 2022, Stallings is highly affordable in terms of salary — and he can be controlled via arbitration through the 2024 season. For a low-payroll club that is building around what it hopes will emerge as a dominant young pitching staff, Stallings is a highly sensible addition. Sandy Alcantara, Trevor Rogers, Sixto Sanchez, Edward Cabrera, Elieser Hernandez, Max Meyer and others will all likely benefit from his framing and game-calling prowess.
Looking to the Pittsburgh’s return, they’ll add an immediate rotation piece (Thompson) in addition to a pair of promising young arms. The 28-year-old Thompson proved to be an outstanding pickup on a minor league deal last winter after the White Sox allowed him to become a free agent.
Thompson, a former fifth-rounder, gave the Marlins 75 innings of 3.24 ERA/3.69 FIP ball over the life of 26 appearances, including 14 starts. His 21% strikeout rate and 8.9% walk rate aren’t exactly dominant numbers, but Thompson thrived in terms of generating weak contact; his 87.6 mph average exit velocity ranked in the 76th percentile of MLB hurlers, while his 33.9% hard-hit rate checked into the 82nd percentile. The spin rate on his four-seamer is also in the 92nd percentile.
While Thompson won’t be mistaken for a top-of-the-rotation arm, he’ll give the Bucs six years of club control and won’t be eligible for arbitration until at least the 2023-24 offseason. (At 121 days of service in his debut season, he’ll be on the bubble of Super Two status, barring fundamental changes to the arbitration system in collective bargaining negotiations.) As it stands right now, Pittsburgh controls Thompson all the way through the 2027 season.
Nicolas, 22, was Miami’s second-round pick in the 2020 draft and ranked 23rd among their prospects on Baseball America’s midseason Top 30 list. He landed 16th at MLB.com and 18th among Miami farmhands on Eric Longenhagen’s rankings at FanGraphs. The Ball State product pitched to a combined 4.18 ERA through 99 innings of Class-A Advanced and Double-A ball this season, pitching more effectively at the more advanced of those two levels. Nicolas punched out 32% off his opponents this year, albeit with a somewhat bloated 11.5% walk rate. Miami has developed him as a starter to this point, but with a heater that reaches the upper 90s and a plus slider, it’s possible he’ll ultimately move to the bullpen.
Scott, meanwhile, was Miami’s first-round pick back in 2018. While he still landed in the middle tiers of the Miami system at both FanGraphs and MLB.com, Scott’s stock has dipped a bit since that lofty selection. (The lack of a minor league season in 2020 surely didn’t help his development.) Scott spent the 2021 season in Class-A Advanced, where he posted a solid .276/.333/.446 batting line with 10 homers and 14 steals, and reports on him suggest that he’s capable of playing a quality center field and hitting near the top of the lineup if things pan out. Scott only recently turned 22, and with a pretty good showing at Class-A Advanced under his belt, he could be ticketed for Double-A Altoona in 2022.
Pittsburgh doesn’t have an immediate heir-apparent to take the reins if Stallings, but the lack of an immediate successor in Pittsburgh served as little deterrent from jumping at what they surely view as a strong offer. The Pirates aren’t contending in 2022 anyhow, and the free-agent market has a number of veteran options who could be plugged in as a stopgap while the team waits on 2021 No. 1 overall pick Henry Davis to develop in the minors.
It’s a different story in Miami, where they’ve been on the hunt for a catcher for the better part of the past year. Miami has designs on stepping out of the NL East cellar and into playoff contention, and a move to both sharpen the team’s overall defense and help maximize the pitching staff is a strong step in that regard. Stallings won’t do much to bolster a lineup that was already lacking in power, but he’ll draw plenty of walks and provide the type of sage catcher that clubs often seek when building around young rotations.
Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic first reported the Marlins were nearing agreement on a deal to acquire Stallings. Jon Heyman of the MLB Network reported the Pirates were acquiring Thompson, Nicolas and Scott in return.
Photos courtesy of Imagn/USA Today Sports.
This is interesting. Stallings is currently the only catcher on the pirates roster. But hey the catching market is thin, hopefully they get a decent return.
Stallings will not be a part of a contending Pirates team – the smart thing is to trade him now for futures. Of course, it depends on the return.
See, this is exactly why I think Bryan Reynolds should be traded. He ALSO won’t be a part of a contending in Pittsburgh. Maybe his last year.
Unless they extend him, which imo won’t happen because he won’t agree to it even if the pirates made a respectable offer.
They are not trading Reynolds…he is the center piece of the rebuild
It was less than a month ago when I said right here the Red Sox should trade for Stallings and then sell Vazquez to the highest bidder. They all laughed at me like Carrie in the shower, they said the Pirates would never trade Stallings.
Prospects would have been about the same, Bloom would save about $5M this year, and the Sox would have had a true catcher controllable for years.
Who’s laughing now? Bwahaha!!
Because it is all about you.
@ 3rivers—- depends on if they can extend Reynolds or not. They are not trading him until he says he will not sign and desires FA. If he and his agent are at least discussing the idea of an extension, no need to trade yet
Carter Bins time?
Pirates have been rumored to Yan Gomes, not on this site, but basically everywhere else
He went to the Cubs for about $12 mil more than the Bucs were willing to spend.
Perhaps The Bluejays can make good trade partners. They have three or four catchers
RIP Kirk for Alcantara straight up
/s
That was never happening from the Marlins side. They could get more than Kirk.
/s sarcasm
I missed the sign!
Houston stole it.
@bhambrave, You win!
@bhambrave that was funny as hell!!!!
He is kidding!
Honestly looool, was gonna cost a little more but was definitely worth it
I was thinking there was a real possibility that the Jays would snag Pablo Lopez for Kirk/prospects… seems pretty unlikely now. I would have been all over that if I was the Jays, Lopez might be the most underrated pitcher in baseball.
Done. I’d hate to see Kirk go but we still have Gabriel Moreau waiting to make the roaster
Wtf, Pirates?
What? It’s not like the Pirates were going to contend even if they had him
Kyle Nicolas has the upside of a mid rotation SP with a floor of a multiple inning RP. The Pirates return was decent but I was hoping for both Nicolas and Daxton Fulton plus a 3rd piece.
I think the Pirates got a very solid return here. Nicolas is underrated and has some solid potential, as you said. Thompson looks like he could be a solid swingman type.
Very nervous… For who?!? At least Stallings is very good defensively. Everyone wants a catcher who can hit really well but with the potential of the starters they need a great defensive catcher to handle the staff. I know nothing of his game calling skills, anyone who does please let me know.
Stallings is massively underrated. Team leader type. Great defensively with upside offensively imo. Great acquisition for the Marlins.
Thats what I said. Stallings has more value than he would ever actually get paid. This looks like a trade a kid playing The Show would do, with little regard to anything else.
On the field coach.
Another catcher off the board. Cashman is determined to keep Sanchez for whatever reason
It’s a thin market. Do you want to give up a Gil or Garcia and prospect for Stallings? Because that’s what the Marlins would ask for.
I believe there’s a better chance we might read the Yankees have signed Sanchez to a two year deal than they’ve non-tendered him.
YES
It really seems like Cashman is determined to trot the same exact team out there with maybe a slight, and I mean slight, improvement with a buy-low upgrade at SS. If this goes down and he doesn’t get Story or Baez, then he misses a trade for Garver / Contreras, he needs to be fired. And, I think Cash has got a lot of talent as a GM. This may not even be his fault; rather it’s probably Hal. But he’s the owner of the richest franchise in sports.
If Hal wants to simply pocket money, go to buy the Rays, A’s, O’s Marlins, a new team in TN, or whatever. He’s got a lot committed now, but those commitments come substantially off the books in 2023.
Cashman does NOT have any talent as a GM. The only season the Yankees won it all back in 2009 he signed Sabathia to a record deal, Teixeira, AJ burnett, and had already extended Arod for 10 yrs even though he was 31-32. Cashman is prob the worst GM ever
@YankeeClipper…maybe. Cashman is more methodical and has targets. I’ll wait until the offseason is done to see what the Yankee roster looks like.
Yes, Rob, as should I. I’m just far too impatient for Cashman’s waiting game because I don’t see the same fire that’s defined the Yankees for nearly a century. It’s a sea change in mentality from sports (winning) to business (ways to squeeze every last dime out).
Stallings looks like a pretty darn good catcher. Nice pickup for the Fish
Yes, definitely a nice pickup for Miami. They really helped themselves.
Pirates are like Kansas City in the early 60’s. A major league farm team for the rest of the league. Developing players for teams that know how to use them.
Must have been the Kansas City A’s because the Royals didn’t exist until 1969
They never said it was the Royals.
Stallings, McCutchen, Marte, Cole, and many others were developed way before being traded away. Marte had a gold glove before being traded to. McCutchen was in his prime years before being traded. Stallings just won a gold glove while playing for Pittsburgh (worst team in the whole MLB) before being traded. I can go on and on about players who were traded that you claim “developing for teams that know how to use them” and they used those players rightfully. Otherwise they wouldn’t have any value to be traded to another team. Pittsburgh is in a total rebuild mode. Contention for the playoffs will happen within 5 years. By 2026, I am sure the Pirates are competing and your “train of thought” will be an after thought. It only makes me believe you are a self opinionated person who doesn’t follow the Pirates or a fan. Which makes your allegations, less relevant.
If you want to claim such a thing, Tigers, White Sox, Marlins, and a few more have been on a rebuild for 20-30 years now. Pittsburgh former front office failed to continuously stay competitive. With this new GM who won a World Series and drafted Mookie Betts and traded for JD Martinez, is now leading the Pirates. His resumè hasn’t failed him yet. He hasn’t made any big splashes yet, but I think he has gotten some hidden gems in the system right now. Drafts have been pretty good and makes me interested (to some degree) in the Pirates future. I may have hide away my Pirates gear and took down that Pittsburgh Pirates flag that once proudly sat hanging off my porch. But I still keep an eye on what they are doing and feel good about the future. Once they start winning and NOT trade away the system for has -beens, stuff will come out of the attic. 2026 seems legit when I start to think about bringing that stuff out.
What are you talking about? 20-30 year rebuilds? Pittsburgh hasn’t even been to the World Series since winning in “79 – that’s over 40 years ago! The only other team that hasn’t been to the World Series since ‘79 is the Mariners, who were an expansion team in ‘77. Every other team has made it to the World Series, and there are only 7 franchises that haven’t won a title since ‘79.
Nothin your front office has done in the past 40 years should make you feel, in any way, that hope is coming around the corner. 2026? Might as well be 2062. Until they either find an owner that is willing to spend what it takes to build a perennial contender or adopt an efficient and effective small market style business model like the Rays, A’s, etc., they are going to remain a feeder system to the rest of the league.
Obviously you aren’t a Pirates fan. You are implying the Pirates have had one single owner in the last 40 years. You fail to recognize that the Pirates filed bankruptcy in 1995 with poor management who spent money and traded the farm system. The Pirates nearly moved out of Pittsburgh with Mark Cuban being one guy who wanted to purchase the Pirates. But a guy named Kevin McCarthy brought several people in and bought the Pirates and took them out of debt. Last few GMs have the sell of the Pirates were horrible and made similar mistakes that the previous GM done and put them in bankruptcy to begin with. 2001 season the Pirates spent millions (still no top notch prospect or bright future) on players like Kenny Loften while finding lightning in the bottle with Jason Bay. Still it wasn’t enough to win and turn around the organization. Until Harrington came along, there was more bad PR moves and GMs. Harrington broke the streak that every Pirates fan can’t shake. But in the end, he did what sent the Pirates into Bankruptcy in 1995. He sold the system and got little in return. Now we have Cherington who is building a era from ground up. I like to say, he’s doing fairly good.
Anyways, I stand firm at 2026 happening. Last player to potentially be traded before Pirates become relevant again, is Reynolds. With Hayes potentially getting extended and guys like O’Neil and Mason Martin not too far away from playing in the big leagues next year. The future looks brighter than it did when the Archer and Cole trades happened. There was no future after the Archer trade. The system was a bust. Again, by 2026 the Pirates will see the playoffs again. Within 3 years, a winning record. 2026 should be Henry’s rookie year and guys like O’Neil, Hayes, Gonzalez, Swaggerty, Contreras, and more will be 2 or more years in the league. That system is getting better every year.
Just go on and troll another team. Maybe that Bengals sweep set some of you off
I think there’s a lot that the current front office is doing that gives us hope. I don’t like this trade, but it doesn’t erase the fact that he acquired Roansy Contreras, Miguel Yajure, Canaan Smith-Njigba, and Maikol Escotto for a two-time Tommy John victim in Jameson Taillon who was roughly league average this year, got the team’s long term closer with David Bednar, as well as a very high-ceiling outfielder in Hudson Head, and a noteworthy catching prospect out of Joe Musgrove, Liover Peguero (now a consensus top 100 prospect) and 2019 first round pick (Brennan Malone) out of the Diamondbacks for Starling Marte (who played just 33 games in Arizona), as well as a phenominal 2021 draft, and some solid moves at the trade deadline.
I’m not going to say that the past hasn’t been ugly. It has. But it’s exactly what it is: the past. What Neal Huntington did three-four years ago, or the fact that the Pirates haven’t won anything since 1979 doesn’t dictate what happens the next 3, 5 or 10 seasons. Nothing Ben Cherington has done so far has made me worried for the future of this team. There’s actually a plan in place. They’re actually developing prospects.
By the end of 2023, Nick Gonzales, Liover Peguero, Henry Davis, Roansy Contreras, Quinn Priester, Oneil Cruz, Travis Swaggerty, Miguel Yajure, Carmen Mlodzinski, Canaan Smith-Njigba, Diego Castillo, and Endy Rodriguez could all be in regular roles. They’ll join Bryan Reynolds, Ke’Bryan Hayes, David Bednar, and any other pitcher that may breakout like Bryse Wilson, Mitch Keller, Wil Crowe, or Max Kranick.
From 2013-2015, the Pirates were 280-206 (.576) and make the playoffs three times. (Only the Cards [287-199] had a better record during the same period.). In 2015, they had the second best record in the majors. That was their window. Probably before you were a fan.
Given the current playoff system, winning the WS is increasingly a crap shoot, which probably helps ratings (profits). Squeak into the playoffs and get hot at the end of the season, you have a good chance at winning. Are you the “best” team that year? Not if you just squeaked in, but who cares except the purists. Can’t wait for the expanded playoffs. Maybe we can have a 500 team get hot and win it all. That would be exciting.
I was a fan during those years. Those were some of my favorite summers of my life. Started being a fan in 2011 when I was about 10-years-old. That was the age I really started to learn about baseball, how it was played, comprehend what was happening, etc. Eventually, I started watching the Pirates regularly during that summer (2011). Pretty sad first two years to be a Pirate fan because of their late season collapses in 2011 and 2012. But I don’t regret being a Pirate fan. I’ll always be a Pirate fan for life, regardless of what happens. I remember the first game I went to during those winning seasons. One was an extra inning game vs the Brewers but there was like a 3 hour rain delay. Stayed for as long as we could before parents said it was time to leave. Pirates walked it off in like the 14th inning with I think Travis Snider or Russell Martin driving in Gaby Sanchez. Probably the most memorable game I ever went to was one against the Mets in 2015. It was Matt Harvey vs A.J. Burnett (still one of my top 3 favorite Pirates players). Burnett out-dueled Harvey and the best part was that the 7-Line Army came out to watch the game and essentially had a whole section to themselves across the park in the left-field nosebleeds.
Heck, there’s probably a video of me celebrating the 2013 Wild Card win on my old iPod touch gen 4 wherever it is lol.
If Henry Davis is just starting in 2026, something has gone seriously wrong. One of the main issues with the Pirates has been developing prospects slowly. I will stand by saying that for true prospects, AAA is a waste of time, they are playing vs has beens and career minor leaguers. The good ones are playing by 23-24 at the oldest. Previous regime would let a guy rot in the minors, playing two years in AAA, then get 200 plate appearances in the majors and let them go if they don’t play well.
New regime seems to be more aggressive with their promotion of prospects. Travis Swaggerty went from A-Ball to Triple-A. Roansy Contreras and Oneil Cruz spent very little time at Triple-A before making their major league debut. But there are some young minor leaguers that the Pirates should at least get acquainted with Triple-A. Ji-Hwan Bae hit well at Double-A and is only 22-years-old. same with Canaan Smith-Njigba. Carmen Mlodzinski looks like he’s skippind Double-A. Doubt they call him up before at least a few starts at Triple-A. They already had Henry Davis taking reps at High-A. Wouldn’t surprise me if he started out at Double-A next season (he’ll be 22, so no an unreasonable age). Nick Gonzales will probably get a similar treatment to Cruz and Contreras.
correction, Love him or Hate him, Nutting turned the teams financials around and finally started to be in the green in the later 00’s. Kevin’s group might have kept the team in Pittsburgh but then they ran it back into the ground when the Nutting’s provided a loan to the franchise that saved them. This loan ended up with Nutting becoming the Owner a handful of years later. There is alot more to the story but it isn’t out there because it doesn’t fit the narrative that Bob sucks
Since then they have become pretty darn profitable though still in the back half of the league (estimated). They done this partially by keeping the payroll ‘manageable’ and spending more when it made sense. They still had a well below league average payroll… Any move NH made after that 3 year window failed miserably and those moves were not ‘big’ moves. IMO those moves are why we are in a total rebuild now.
there is still some hope for 2023, but that all depends on if/when prospects break out and moves Ben makes to supplement.
add Adam Frazier to the list. A hitting Gold Glove candidate recent years.
Ben’s contribution to the Red Sox later decade success is over rated. Most of the seasons he was there the team was a losing team. Much of the later latter decade break out prospects (like betts and bogarts) were before he was the lone GM. to be fair though he was a scout and partial GM during that time.
Lets not for get the Sandoval and Ramirez mostly albatross contracts.
His lone over .500 season where the team won the Series was bought with cash.
not that he is bad, just over rated.
So much for those Joey Bart to the Marlins rumors…
That was never going to happen anyways
Posey retired
Bart is the starting catcher for Giants
Great move for Miami. Will be great for their young rotation. Interested to see what’s going back…
Get out of here with your rational comment! I demand crazy return ideas or partisan boo-hooing!
You’re right, sorry. MIAMI, Y U NO TRADE FOR YADI????
So far it’s for Zach Thompson and two prospects
Yep! Not the premium prospects that Pirates were claiming they’d get for Stallings.
LOL!
Come on nobody really expected much for a soon to be 32 year old light hitting catcher
Pirates fans did. They had been posting on a few different rumor threads about how the Marlins would have to give up one of their premium pitching talents.
Apparently, they thought they were trading JT Realmuto, Salvador Perez or Wilson Contreras.
I like this return. Thompson could be a solid #4 and this kid Nicolas has all the tools to be a really good reliever if he doesn’t make it in the rotation.
Not bad for a couple years of a 32 year old catcher. Marlins had a surplus and Stallings fills a clear need but the Pirates snagged some talent.
Perez defense is bad, at least last year and most years not all that well. probably should not be behind the plate. Litterally the worst defensive catcher by far in all of the MLB (with 400 pas)
Contreras bat is better but his glove is much worse still near the bottom of the MLB, still MUCH better than Perez in that respect.
Stallings is cheaper than both, in the case of Perez MUCH cheaper.
Stallings stats do not reflect his bat well… to be fair.. i don’t watch the other teams much so they could be in a similar boat.
the only thing really keeping Jacob’s price down is his age, and with his contract even if age does pull him down he’s still be a quality back up that isn’t too expensive to carry.
so yeah.. what ever they would bring in.. should be similar…at the catcher position anyway. But you know people don’t value defense as much as offense.
JT well.. yeah … he is hard to beat minus a young Molina or a unretired Posey.
I’d imagine Alfaro would have to be a throw in which actually would be quite nice for the Pirates.
He costs money tho
We better get an absolute haul. Stallings is so good
This is an under the radar move that could pay big dividends for Miami. Curious to see who they gave up, but Stallings is a top-tier catcher.
Is Brian Cashman dead?
Dead serious about going to Itchy and Scratchy Land
Buccos already got the Yankees prospects last year
Great pickup to work with a young pitching staff.
I think there’s a value to good catchers that doesn’t show up in WAR or other metrics. Like the way the Giants staff improved when Posey came back.
I’m (painfully) prepared for Max Meyer to be included but am cautiously optimistic that it’ll be Jake Eder instead.
EDIT: Not even Eder…this is awesome!
Guys with good upside but haven’t put it together yet (even in the minors). So I am ok with it. Thompson is a good back end starter but he won’t get the chance in Miami. I really don’t want to see Meyer go anywhere. I’ll trade Eder any day over him.
I was playing around with a Rojas/Thompson trade on the trade simulator site earlier today. Angels need a SS and more pitching.
Meyer isn’t going anywhere unless Miami can land a really high position player prospect.
Not that Stallings was the second coming of Johnny Bench, but here’s a move that harkens us back to something the old front office would have done. Pretty solid defensive catcher and he’d come through at the plate every so often but more than anything else, he was an affordable, dependable leader here. Very, very strange move
How is it strange? You have one of the best young pitching staffs in the MLB and Catcher has been a question for the last few years. To me they are simply fortifying a strength. The move makes a ton of sense for both teams.
He’s describing the Pirate fanview, I think.
Thompson is a great return
Disagree. He’s spent six years treading water in the minors until this year. It would seem to me that Nicolas is more the guy they had their eye on. Don’t know much about Scott
I was unaware that Stallings was 32. Makes a bit more sense now, I guess
Thompson, Scott and Nicolas aren’t bad players. They’re just not worth Stallings.
@matty if Cashman is not dead he’s in a unconscious in a coma
Maybe Cash got wacked by Hal?
Sorry if you thought Stallings was worth a king’s ransom, but in the real world the Pirates got what he was worth
I’m satisfied with the return. Two pitchers and an outfielder. Would have preferred for them to keep Stallings though. Unless they trade Reynolds too, who currently has max trade value.
a likely back end pitcher
a likely mid pen arm
a likely 4th out fielder.
A catcher with his cost controlled, control. a 2-3 fWAR the next year or two and likely a quality back up should he degrade due to age.
Not totally unfair for the pirates but not good either.
a PTBNL, Cash, INT Bonus or a combination of the three depending player options and amounts. would have made it more fair.
Personally I would’ve went with one ‘higher quality’ prospect and change. preferably one(s) that wouldn’t need on the 40man.
Now if the Pirates pick up a quality defensive catcher for a 2 year controlled contract… i’d be less inclined to say…. meh.
He’s 32 didnt expect much
You gonna love Thompson. The guy was amazing and literally came out of nowhere. He is a 5th spot starter or a tremendous bullpen piece. Nicholas has a lot of potential. Scott is a former 1st round pick, but was kinda buried in the Marlins system. Maybe you could have used Alfaro as well.
Alfaro stinks. He’s beyond bad and can’t hit or field. Then by some miracle when he actually gets on base, he tries to steal and gets caught. Alfaro, yeah no thanks.
I could see Alfaro being non-tendered.
Probably better to go with 2 players coming back than 3.
Thompson is an immediate addition to the rotation, then you’d want a prospect with some genuine upside.
On the whole: Nicolas has a live arm but walks too many, Scott doesn’t have the plate discipline, vision, or pop, and Thompson is exactly the type of pitcher who would regress without the proper tutelage (and the Pirates have been terrible at tutoring pitchers the past half decade).
Mack423: I agree that Nicolas has a live arm. His walks were a little high. He was a ’20 DP who didn’t have much of a jr season & no milb season. I’d say he fared pretty decent in Hi-A & he was better in AA. I like the return from the Pirates perspective.
After thinking about the trade more, looking more into it, it’s not as bad as I originally thought. I still don’t like the trade and I think the Pirates should have instead went after one higher ranking prospect/more promising one rather than three different prospects, but it is what it is. Hope it works out well and that’s all I can say.
Nice pickup for the Marlins.
pretty good return for a defense-first catcher north of 30
it might be cliche but I would consider this a win-win
Nice pickup by the Marlins. With a healthy and young high-end pitching staff, it will be interesting when they finish ahead of the Met$.
I think is a solid move. Might be a tad overpriced, but I guess that what the Marlins should do to get things done.
Now go and get Mullins, two/three good relievers and a veteran SP (on a minor league deal). Call it an offseason.
Connor Scott is an OF.
Good eye, and Steve fixed it.
Np, sounds good.
Nice haul for the pirates….stallings is good..bit pirates got adequate compensation
Wow. Is this a joke? Marlins utterly fleeced. Massive W for Pittsburgh
Stallings for Thompson straight up isn’t even fair and then they’re adding two other prospects
Total mismanagement of precious prospect capital
You’re joking right? At least the marlins have a chance to win a WS within the next 3-5. Say hello to our rotation of Alcantara, Rodgers, Sixto, Cabrera and Meyer….
Pittsburgh on the other hand, will always suck.
Hey stretch. Wait two years buccos will be a good contender…..maybe you should stretch your neck a little longer
Marlins are currently the 5th best team in their division, right behind the two big spenders, the WS Champs, and the wizard Rizzo. Maybe in 3-5 yrs they can move up to 4th with their 5 inning pitchers and punch-and-judy lineup
Marlins look at least as good as Phi Was if not better.
You can’t tell me that they have the 5th best rotation in their division… I think they have the best rotation in their division. With the addition of Scherzer, it is a toss up with the Mets.
I’m usually the first person to bemoan the Pirates, their trades and lack of a strategy beyond profits. Cherington has at least retooled the minors, making your comment incredibly stupid
LOL at the people who said a Stallings trade MUST include Meyer, Sixto or Cabrera. LOL!
On a serious note though, Nicholas and Scott are underrated prospects. Nicholas looks like a future No 3/4 starter and Connor Scott has the potential to be a Bradley Zimmerman/Kevin Kiermaier type of Outfielder. Good trade for both sides IMO
I saw that guy’s comment earlier lmfao. There’s a reason why certain people should stick to this forum instead of pretending they have a finger on the pulse of a baseball front office
Nicolas to me is a pen piece. But the kind that will be a good setup man/closer for a couple years.
Scott tailed off the 2021 minors season after a great start. HE has a lot of tools but has yet to put it together.
If they both do then PIT is in for a surprise. I think both teams could end up loving this trade in the end.
Sky is the limit with Nicholas. Has much better than #4 stuff. Question is starter or closer.
Looks bad for the Pirates unless they sign a couple one year deals with free agent catchers. Even the return is bad. Thompson seems alright, but Nicholas and Scott are barely lottery tickets. I have to say the Marlins are making some smart moves. With all that young pitching, they could be a force in a year or two.
Nope! Nicholas arm is great. His floor is a late inning reliever, his ceiling is a mid rotation SP. Scott turned the corner in high A last year after slumping some. Nicholas may be in AAA next year and Scott could be AA. To go with a starting pitcher that’s quite a good return.
Backup catchers are a dime a dozen. Can easily pick up a Robinson Chirinos or a Roberto perez and go with that or whatever – would cost nothing.
First name that came to mind for me was Perez. He can be had for about $2 or $3M on a one year deal.
So, the same as Stallings $, right. I think the Bucs will need to sign two catchers at the major league minimum salary for this to make sense. They’ve already signed a career minor league catcher who hits for average and is a decent fielder. They need to find one more guy like him.
Both have plenty of upside, especially Nicholas. Scotts speed arm glove makes him at least a 4th outfielder or weak starting cf.
Wow. Seems like a massive overpay! Marlins give up their recent 1st round and 2nd round pick plus an MLB ready pitcher. I don’t know much about stallings but he doesn’t seem like one of the better catchers in the game..
lol, he just won a Gold Glove
Price of Gold is down. Rather have a Crypto or Platinum Glove.
Crypto is make-believe, but platinum works.
I’ll take a few make believe crypto worth multiple thousands of dollars each.
Until someone says “Hey, wait a minute. This is worthless.”.
They failed to develop those prospects so far. Those are ones you hope to trade. Pirates obviously feel like they can. Stallings is one of if not the best defensively, calling games, and managing pitchers. Average hitter.
Love this for the Marlins. Nice job to get value in Thompson, too. Marlins have shown signs of competence in the past year or so.
Stallings is a pretty under-rated player. Catchers who hang around a 90 OPS+ and are one of the top 5 defensive catchers in the game (in the upper portion of that top 5 at that) are a good get. Nice job, Kim Ng.
The return looks OK; Cherrington generally finds under the radar type prospects. Seems to be fair, even if there aren’t any BIG names involved.
The return was FAIR, but Pirates now have a big hole at catcher (for now). Unless they were blown away, they should have kept Stallings.. I thought he could have been a value back up piece if they were good in a few years.
The Pirates have a hole at every position. What does it matter if they create a hole at catcher?
I understand what you are saying, but every move they have done under BC was either trying to replace a mediocre player with someone cheap and slightly better or a dump for high ceiling prospects which would pay big dividends down the line. This will cost the team wins next year but also doesn’t give them wins down the road. I guess being able to control a back end starter for 6 years is an opportunity you cant pass up to them. Stallings was good at managing the young arms, very doubtful you will find that with someone on a dumpster dive deal who hasn’t come up with the team. There was no reason to get rid of him when he was going to be paid a very affordable price and you had no real replacement option ready in house.
The Marlins are back baby!
I like this both ways. From the Pitt side, it feels a bit like the Darvish trade, with under-the-radar guys coming back, with higher potential than their current rankings, And the Marlins get a real catcher in exchange for some of the prospect depth.
Conteras, Waters and pitching for Reynolds.
This makes a lot of sense tbh.
Pirates are set with catching prospects. They will sign a cheap free agent who is good with young pitchers.
Done. Jamie Ritchie.
Ritchie might be the backup, no way in hell that’s the starting catcher though. That would be embarrassing even by pirates standards.
I hear you. He probably will be given a shot at #2, but 24 hours ago, We were thinking … “no way in hell” the Bucs trade Stallings.
wtf are the yankees doing?
Well, I got this one wrong.
Such a good move for the Marlins. Young pitching galore and this is just the type of guy they needed. Doesn’t look like a splash but one of the best moves of the off-season so far.
If the Marlins can sign Chris Taylor, I think they can call this a successful offseason. Im curious to see where they turn to for a CF if Taylor doesn’t sign here (I don’t expect him to). I’d rather us not give up Max Meyer (and more) for a CF like Cedric Mullins or Ketel Marte.
What was the marlins gm thinking. Stallings is a 240 hitter. His best year he had what 8 hrs. He is a good framer of pitches. Great. This pitcher is like baz we gave up. Has an arm that’s unreal. The Ot has a chance to be a really good player and Thompson. He is actually a good pitcher. For stallings. U kidden me. Stallings. Take his dad with u. Tell him thanks for destroying the Pitt basketball program as well.
The Marlins can stash Stallings in the 9-hole. If he makes the pitchers better (which he will), then he’s worth it. His offense, which isn’t that bad for a catcher, is irrelevant.
Good move by Miami.
For those of you who don’t watch Pirates games but do watch the playoffs, Stallings is like Maldonado – meaning when the game is on the line and in certain situations, Stallings will give you an excellent AB. But most of the time, its not much production. Great pickup for Miami though.
Stallings is a slightly below league average hitting, gold glove catcher. That’s worth a lot these days.
It’s simple. When you have a young pitching staff you want a catcher that will get the most out of them. Its nice to have that and 20 30 hrs but good luck with that.
What are you saying?
MIA starting to act like a major league ball club finally. Tired of seeing the same teams be good and compete. I want to see the bad teams try to actually compete
not a nad move by MIA asset wise, though I don’t know if Stallings fits their window all that well.
They should be contenders by 2023 at the latest, and by 2025 maybe Joe Mack will be ready.
There window is now. Only problem is the other division teams are win now.
Great pickup. Miami making some solid moves. Will definitely be better than the Mets next year.
I’m thinking the pirates could have gotten a better return from the Marlins if they kept negotiating. Maybe I’m wrong.
Marlins really needed a catcher and they have lots of pitchers.
Other teams wanting Stallings certainly could have beat this return.
Apparently not. Cherington is good at what he does and was probably pretty thorough in checking the market for Stallings.
I expect the Pirates made it known to other teams that Stallings was available. It would serve no purpose to keep it secret.
Yeah, it’s not like some radio show where the first caller wins the prize. . These trades aren’t spur-of-the-moment decisions. People like Ben Cherington and Kim Ng do this for a living. Both have a plan for creating a window of contention for their teams. It’s why I’m comfortable with the Dodgers laying back a bit, and why you should be comfortable with the Braves doing the same. A big difference between the old days and now is that players move around more often. For that reason, we shouldn’t become too attached to them. The Dodgers losing Seager stings a bit, but that’s the nature of sports and I fully expected it. I think they’ll be fine. In fact, it’ll be fun to see how Friedman restructures the roster.
The only thing I want for Christmas for the Braves is Freddie. The Braves have no in-house replacement, but these recent contracts are probably driving up his price. Other than first base and a reliever or two, I think they’re set. Maybe a back-end vet starting/long-relief pitcher, until Soroka (hopefully) comes back.
What a great deal for Miami. Exactly what they need and gave up surplus pitching. Kim Ng is best gm in baseball.
Nice trade for both sides. The Marlins get a legitimate Gold Glove catcher and the Pirates get a decent return to help with their rebuild. Beyond the free-agent fireworks, the real interesting stuff will be the trades, most of which won’t happen until the new CBA is agreed upon. Being a fan of a baseball team is an exercise in patience. Winning teams aren’t built over a long weekend. I like what both of these teams are doing. Don’t forget that their timetables for fielding a winner are different.
Another good, quiet move for the Marlins while everyone else is making the headlines.
Headlines is what wins championships brooo!
Yep!
Look at how the Mets have owned our division with all the headlines they make every offseason. They are right there in championships with the Yankees too. It certainly all about the headlines.
C for Pirates. Solid return.
A for Marlins. 2 prospects who haven’t been developed well enough to miss. A useful starter who they hope to have 5 guys who are as good or better.
How can you give grades already? The trade just happened and “futures” players were involved. All we can say at this point is both sides got what they wanted, otherwise they wouldn’t have agreed to the trade. Also, trades aren’t made in a vacuum. They are all part of the bigger picture.
Remember, no one thought much of the return the Padres got when they dumped James Shields in exchange for a 17-year-old infielder who had never played a professional game. It was just Padres being Padres.
Quit posting sensible takes!!!
Don’t see any reason in grading a trade 3 or 5 years after it’s been made. By then it’s easy to grade. My friends want to know what I think now. Obviously if Stallings suffers concussions and retires end of season etc the grade at that date will change. I gave the Padres an A. Did I know for sure Tatis would be a mvp caliber player? No. But the Padres weren’t contending, the cut salary, and received a high upside prospect for a back end starter. If Tatis never became anything it would still be a A. If Shields won the cy young next year then it would change.
The Pirates grade won’t lower. They weren’t winning a championship this year. Stallings is only getting older and prospects are coming. If these players never play a inning it’s still at least a c. They got the best return they could when it was a good time to trade Stallings.
In theory, it is a good time to trade him because he’s almost 32 and he just won a gold glove, so you would expect some regression. He’s controllable for 3 more years, which is probably all he will last. I would have just run him out there until Henry Davis is ready unless they had an offer they couldn’t refuse. 2.6/2.8 is peanuts even to small markets. I would hope the window is open in at least 2024, which could have made him a backup on a playoff type team. I would give the pirates a D only because the end of his control seems to line up with the beginning of the window. Catcher is a spot it would have been nice to have a succession plan instead of just patchwork like the rest of the team, especially since it would have been cheap.
Pirates begin there salary dumps. Come on Yankees pirates can’t afford Reynolds either
I had a bigger dump this morning than this.
So much for Pirates fans thinking they would get one of the Marlins premium pitchers for Stallings. Like I’ve said every time in this Stallings discussion – he’s a good defensive player and catcher, but he does not have Realmuto value. The trade is now done, and it is now confirmed that you Pirates fans that suggested those wacky returns for Stallings’ value were way way way wrong.
Most fans live in fantasy land. A top 20 or even top 50 prospect was never going to happen. However I wouldn’t have ruled out a top 100. Pirates might rather have a proven mlb starter and 2 high upside prospects instead of a single more established prospect and little or nothing else. BC so far has gone quantity over quality in his trades.
Sky is the limit for Miami’s pitching now, that lineup still looks rough. I suspect Cedric Mullins and Nelson Cruz aren’t walking through that door, but that would be massively entertaining.
We don’t need Cruz because Aguilar will be our DH, but Mullins certainly is someone I’d be okay with trading one of our premium pitching talents for.
MarlinsFanBase, I’m one of those people who believes an extra playoff spot in both leagues would be good for the game. I also believe a team like the Marlins would benefit from it. Get your pitching and up-the-middle defense in order, stay afloat until the July deadline, and then add the bat(s) you need while everyone else is looking for the pitching you already have. What they are doing is really smart. If the starting pitchers continue to develop as planned, no one will want to face the Marlins the next few Octobers. You don’t have to spend a zillion dollars to compete. Just draft and develop pitching, get to the post-season, and give it your best shot. An expanded playoff field will make it easier for that to happen.
Actually, up the middle we’re solid. Miggy Rojas is an excellent defensive player and was a GG finalist the previous year. Jazz has warts, but a great deal of talent.
The rest, yes I agree. I don’t know if we need that extra spot to help us particularly, but it would give us more playoff hopes and appearances.
And yes, a pitching staff like this is dangerous come the playoffs. It’s how we won back in 2003. A lot of people will underestimate the Marlins moves, but they have quietly made very smart moves with adding Garcia and Stallings. Those guys fill needs, instead of us going out for the headline moves.
I’ve been saying Jacob Stallings for a long time now, but the return is so much less than I thought it would be. Thrilled!
Embarrassed to say that I’ve never heard of Stallings, then again I haven’t seen the Pirates play for a few years.
Um, you’ve never heard of a Gold Glove winner? Have you been watching baseball?
I confess to watching some Pirates games. Stallings is an outstanding defender. I was glad he won a Gold Glove because he deserved it.
Don’t get many Rays or Braves games in Ohio. Working 70 hours a week doesn’t help either.
The Bucs just signed a free agent catcher to a minor league contract. Jamie Ritchie, from the D’Backs organization (originally with the Astros). He is a career minor leaguer.
AB . R . H . 2B . 3B . HR BB SO SB AVG OBP SLG
1898 327 543 115 9 28 342 399 26 .286 .404 .400
He gets on base and doesn’t strike out much. Not much pop. Fielding as a catcher he 22 errors in 2318 chances for a .991 fielding pctg.
@BudgetBall, Thanks for pointing that out and providing stats. Either a Major League placeholder or an experienced Minor League catcher to help develop the young pitchers. Young minor leaguers need older teammates to help show them the ropes. Either way, he can provide some value despite it being an under-the-radar move.
Marlin fan very happy!
Reynolds may be next since Pirates look to be worse team in history of franchise.
You might want to study up on Pirates history. They had three straight 100-loss seasons from 1952-54 when the schedule was only 154 games. That led to seven-time home run champ Ralph Kiner being traded in June 1953 after refusing to take a pay cut. According to legend, general manager Branch Rickey told Kiner, “We finished last with you. We can finish last without you.”
With the current team, at least there’s a plan in place to get better.
pretty sure Rickey was working on a plan to get better 🙂
Traded by the Pittsburgh Pirates with Joe Garagiola, George Metkovich and Howie Pollet to the Chicago Cubs for Bob Addis, Toby Atwell, George Freese, Gene Hermanski, Bob Schultz, Preston Ward and $150,000.
Sorry but we don’t have Branch Rickey who helped create the 1960 world champs.. Would have probably lost 100 if 2020 was a full season. If we lose 100 this year it will be three in a row just like the early 1950s.
Cry hey…these people who don’t know anything about the pirates great history are nothing but trolls. I’ve been a pirate fan since I was 10 years old in 1965. I’ve seen the highs and the lows. This team will challenge in 2 years. Cherrington is doing the right thing. And Reynolds isnt going anywhere. I don’t like the ownership…but you can’t force him to sell.
Watch out for the Marlins
Z.Thompson(CWS 2019 #24-ranked prospect, PITT drafted him out of HS in 48th-round but went to college instead and became 2014 5th-rounder to CWS 3 years later)
K.Nicolas(MIA #16 prospect, 2020 2nd rounder #61-overall) 70-grade FB
C.Scott(MIA #23 prospect, 2018 1st rounder #13-overall) Bradley Zimmer Comp
Solid haul draft capital-wise for a cheap defensive stud Catcher…Only time will tell tho!
Too bad they couldn’t have gotten Reynolds packaged with Stallings. Although that would have cost the Marlins more than it would be worth. Their only real remaining hole on offense is CF now.
I think they probably checked in on including Reynolds, but probably the price tag was more than they wanted to give in pitching talent. The reality is that the Marlins may not be jumping to give up much pitching talent for a CF because we still have Bryan de la Cruz who looked very promising after the deadline trade we got him in. I think the only CF the Marlins may trade premium pitching talent for is Mullins.
Also, they’re still surveying the free agent market with some of the OFs, such as a Chris Taylor who can help the Marlins do a rotation with Garcia and de la Cruz…among others.
A combination of Chris Taylor and Joc Pederson might be affordable. Joc is not a CF but would give them a corner OF with a winning pedigree and some badly-needed power. Taylor would improve their depth immeasurably. He would be adequate as the starter in CF, while also adding flexibility if one of the infielders is banged up or needs a rest. If you think about it, his versatility makes him preferable to Marte at probably a better price. Like Joc, Taylor is also used to winning.
I personally like Taylor because of the versatility. With his ability to play CF adequately and de la Cruz being able to as well, and if we bring Jon Berti back on a lesser deal, we could expand the versatility on the roster and our rotation of parts, especially with Taylor also being able to play infield.
I’m loving that the Marlins are quietly making these moves compared to the headline moves other teams are making. We’re addressing needs, while the other teams are just loading up on names. If we make a big splash, i hope it’s for a legit closer like Jansen, Iglesias or Kimbrel. Anyone of them are an upgrade for the end of games for our bullpen.
Awful trade by the Pirates IMO
This is why people can’t stand them.
They got a bunch of mediocre guys for their team leader who cost a whole 2 million.
I could have seen if the Marlins overpaid, but they clearly didn’t.
Stallings could have easily been the backup to Henry Davis on a good team in a few years.
Buc crazy..I guess that name fits you well. 32 year old catcher…your rebuilding…doesn’t fit..pirates got a nice return
Stupid trade. To include Scott was very stupid. They had others like Diaz, VV Meza, Johnson, plenty more. To much for a defensive no bat catcher. Could had done better with Toronto for someone like Kirk or Jansen. all those prospects and adding Garret could had brought back either one. Here we go again overpaying for others players that no one else is interested. Should had hold on to Nicolas and included Fortes or Alfaro. I think Nicolas and Scott are going to be very good productive players for the Pirates as soon as next year. They still short an outfielder. They need to get Rosario, he can really hit. Garcia, Rosario and Sanches plus other combination should be an excellent ;lineup.
. .
I am delighted with this trade. Last season watching the series against the Pirates I was so impressed with Stallings. There are so few decent defensive catchers in baseball and now I’m going to see one something like 120 times a season.
As a Marlins fan, I love this move.
I also imagine that Todd Hallandsworth is relieved. He had to be running out of euphemisms that were diplomatic attempts to avoid saying that Alfaro’s defense sucks.
Hollandsworth is out. He is no longer on the broadcast team in 2022. I don’t think Tommy Hutton will be able to be so mothering
Oh I didn’t hear when it happened. Funny if Holly ends up getting a job with Alfaro’s next team. Euphemisms will continue. Poor guy.
I’m kind of surprised Alfaro or at least Jackson wasn’t included in the deal as the Pirates have no Catchers on the ML roster now. Wonder who they will bring in off the scrap heap; Kurt Suzuki? Jonathan Lucroy? Tony Wolters?
Jorge Alfaro. That’s probably why they didn’t grab him in the trade. They know he’ll be non-tendered…especially after this trade.
They value handling young pitchers and framing.
As Yankees fan this one bothered me.
It might just be the Pirates being dysfunctional and not shopping him. That’s the only way I can wrap my head around this bc there are plenty of teams that could have used him considering what was given up to acquire him besides the Yankees.
Is Cashman alive? Serious question I’m getting worried at this point…
I hope so.
Lol
But looking at it logically this is all fan fanfare
right now.
I’m still waiting for the smoke to clear.
“While Thompson won’t be mistaken for a top-of-the-rotation arm, he’ll give the Bucs six years of club control and won’t be eligible for arbitration until at least the 2023-24 offseason.”
Anything that close to indentured servitude gets Bob Nutting’s stamp of approval.
Thompson’s stats move him into #1 starter consideration. The Pirates will be filling out a rotation with a bunch of #4/5 or even spot starter types. Quintana’s career stats put him into consideration for #1, as well. Should be fun games. Lots of scoring.
Nice trade. The prospects can develop along with Davis. Like the fact that Scott has speed. Now lets get to choosing some of those vet backstops that are available.
This is the best rotation the Pirates have had in quite a few years.
Cashman can’t even get this guy.
I would have preferred holding onto Stallings until the deadline because Henry Davis won’t be ready until 2023 as advanced as he is with the bat. However, I think the Pirates got a decent return and Thompson can fit into the rotation right away which they really needed. Just need to sign a veteran catcher to a 2-year deal to serve as a stop-gap until the future in Davis is ready. Overall, I like the trades Ben Cherington has made so far and I think after one more bad year, the fruits of those trades will start to debut and the Pirates will begin to play winning baseball again. Marlins need to start winning in 2022 and I think Stallings definitely helps them take a step towards that.
with Jacob’s control, kind of shocking they traded him for an underwhelming (though not totally unfair) trade.
A gold glove and apparent clutch hitting Catcher who isn’t crazy slow, with long term control… Only thing he has going against him is his age and even that is cost controlled so not a huge deal to carry him as a back up should he regress over the years.
For
A reasonable option for the back end rotation
A likely 4th out fielder, possible everyday if he finds his bat. 4 tool player if he gets his swing going.
A likely Pen Arm with an off chance to be a rotation piece if his secondary stuff develops.
Not unfair but tossing in a PTBNL and/or int bonus money would have put me over the top. Really Jacob is a 2-3 fWAR player
Not having Stallings is pretty much a fork in any plans on trying to compete in ’22 which would be fairly iffy to begin with.. Baring a bounce back 1/2 year signing or buy low trade. Some one like Ramos or Gomes or a trade for a Molina type though probably not him.
I’d still be open to bringing back Russell Martin even if it is a coaching role. He ‘fixed’ pitchers and would be a great mentor for Davis.
Rather disappointed and unexpected (to me) given he would be here in 2022/23 for a possible (soft) run at competing next year with prospects projected to make it to the show.
BUT there is the fact of a possible lock out, in which case Stallings becomes less important to the Pirates should it continue into the season.
Will miss Jacob in the black and gold. Liked watching him play.
thinking about Davis more. he basically went directly to high A, not unexpected for a draftee at his level. in a short sample he demolished the opposing teams like he did in Louisville. I didn’t see any film of him behind the plate since before the draft though.
If his glove work hasn’t regressed, I’d expect him to be in AAA by the end of next season if not sooner and maybe even get a few AB’s at the MLB level in september. thats a pretty big maybe but we are pretty sure his bat is there just a little bit of time to confirm that the short sample isn’t just because lower quality opposition needs to be checked out.
as it stands now with the bargaining agreement