The Marlins headed into the offseason looking for at least one outfield upgrade and checked one addition off the box prior to the lockout when securing Avisail Garcia on a four-year, $53MM contract. They’re still hoping to add “at least one more” outfielder when the current transaction freeze lifts, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald writes, which meshes well with recent reports tying the Fish to myriad outfield options.
They were linked, to varying extents, free-agent options such as Kyle Schwarber, Nick Castellanos and Eddie Rosario even after adding Garcia. On the trade front, they’re reported to have interest in D-backs star Ketel Marte. One note of importance in their search to add to the outfield mix, via a second column from McPherson, is that general manager Kim Ng suggested the team believes the newly signed Garcia can play regularly in center field, if needed.
Miami doesn’t have a true, everyday center fielder at present, and at least ostensibly, the Marlins look to be carrying quite a few corner-only outfielders (e.g. Garcia, Jesus Sanchez, Garrett Cooper). Deadline acquisition Bryan De La Cruz has some experience in center (629 innings between MLB and the minors), but a good portion of that (199 innings) came out of necessity with the Marlins late last season. Meanwhile, he has just shy of 3000 career innings in right field and another 723 in left field, suggesting that the Astros –who traded him to Miami in the Yimi Garcia deal this past July — viewed him as mostly a corner option, at the very least.
A willingness to play Garcia in center field would open up the Fish to adding another corner option. To that end, it’s worth noting that MLB Network’s Jon Heyman suggested last week on his Big Time Baseball Podcast that Miami “may end up with Rosario” being their preferred option as a second outfield pickup. Both Rosario and Garcia have played a fair bit of center field in their careers, so if the former indeed joins the latter in Miami, perhaps both could see occasional time there.
Following the Marlins’ signing of Garcia and their pre-lockout trades to acquire catcher Jacob Stallings and infielder Joey Wendle, Miami has $23.8MM in guaranteed payroll and a projected Opening Day payroll of about $69MM, per Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez (including arbitration-eligible players and pre-arb players). That’d be a jump of about $12MM from last year’s stripped-down roster, but even for a typically low-payroll club like the Marlins, there’s room to add onto that mark. The Bruce Sherman/Derek Jeter ownership group has in the past been reported to be planning a gradual payroll uptick as the team emerges from a rebuilding effort. The Garcia signing, the Sandy Alcantara extension and the acquisitions of some arb-eligible players with salaries of relative note (Stallings, Wendle) all support that line of thinking.
jim stem
Having a 69 million dollar payroll is simply pathetic by today’s competitive standards. This is why baseball needs some kind of floor base salary. If Miami ownership can’t run a business properly to compete financially, they should be forced to sell to someone who can or relocate.
tstats
It’s nice tho
DarkSide830
yeah, nice.
MLB Top 100 Commenter
Miami has begun to rebuild itself into an interesting team. If they doubled their payroll by spending 70 million per year on three more players, say Correa (32 million per year), Castellanos (23 million per year) and Schwarber (15 million per year), they could be a really competitive team.
rct
“Miami has begun to rebuild itself into an interesting team.”
Haven’t people been saying this for like 15 years? They seemingly always have some young stars or phenoms and a ‘wait a few years’ attitude but then they immediately trade them as soon as they’re due big money. Don’t fall for the same song and dance. They’ll be under .500 again this year.
MarlinsFanBase
FYI….Loria is no longer owner of the team.
Also, that build they had with the three star OFs and Realmuto and their supporting cast was headed toward more success with Jose Fernandez leading the rotation. Unfortunately that build up died with Fernandez because the Marlins were not going to be able to have enough pitching to support that lineup. The reason was they would’ve had to put a bunch of money to get a pitcher with Fernandez’s talent, and they still needed a #2 and #3 after Chen’s arm fell off. Prior to Fernandez’s death, the Marlins offseason plan was to make a play for Cueto in free agency that year. Once the death of Fernandez changed their plans to have to load up on anything, while they still made the highest offer to Cueto that offseason, he went to San Francisco (speculated because he would’ve been the only pitcher carrying the team instead of the original plan of pairing him up with Fernandez). The following offseason, the best free agent pitchers were Darvish and Arrieta. Even if the Marlins spent a ton on them, they would’ve still needed two more pitchers….even with them performing at high levels (which they didn’t). The Marlins would’ve had to go into a payroll of over $200 million in order to keep the lineup and add the necessary pitching. That was not going to happen.
Essentially, it can be seriously considered that the last rebuild before this one would’ve given them a chance at their third World Series had they not lost one of the best young pitchers in the game.
People always want to conveniently forget or ignore that fact.
Sid Bream Speed Demon
Yeah, that boat coke ruined a budding team.
Cohens_Wallet
LOL
lemonlyman
If a rebuild completely implodes because of one player then it wasn’t a successful rebuild.
MarlinsFanBase
@lemonlyman
That’s a fair assessment. They built a really good team of offense, but were thin at pitching because they shouldn’t have been solely dependent upon Fernandez, not matter how great he was.
Cosmo2
Let’s not discount the psychological aspect here as well. It’s not like Fernandez needed TOS surgery or something. What happened had to be beyond demoralizing.
MarlinsFanBase
@Cosmo2
Yes, that was a big part of it as well. There were many negative ripple effects that are immeasurable to this day.
At least the organization is getting back in the right direction since that tragedy.
mlb1225
Idk man, $69 million is a really nice payroll.
RunDMC
Can the top spenders wallowing in mediocrity, missing the playoffs (i.e. Mets) also be penalized? Maybe a different form of punishment? MLB in cooperation with Twitter to temporarily mute the owner would not be unwelcomed.
Cosmo2
Yea, that’s an interesting wrinkle, as is the other side of the coin: teams with low payrolls and good records. Should they be forced to spend stupidly despite the fact that their plan is working?
FredMcGriff for the HOF
Marlins are going to need to add more than Avisail Garcia who conveniently had his best year at 30 years old right before free agency. They lost Starling Marte who is better. Their starting pitching is good but they need more big bats. Marlins are not the Rays even though they added Wendle. They need to get their payroll up more to complete.
RunDMC
Sure, but finding big bats is easier than you think. Look how cheap 2021 NL RBI-leader came to them in Duvall. I can’t imagine that if they aren’t able to find that power in FA, all those blossoming arms can be spun into a proven bat with control.
GarryHarris
$69M isn’t even their debt payment.
Sideline Redwine
It’s always easy to spend other people’s money…
Albert Belle's corked bat
A Kevin K trade from the Ray’s makes sense.
Yankee-4-Lifer 75
How about Aaron Hicks, if he can stay healthy? He would be a lot cheaper than Kevin K.
Metsin777
@Yankee-4-Lifer You really can’t be serious about that right? Aaron Hicks is untradeable, hes “hurt” almost every season and when he does play hes below average. Kevin Kiermier is so much better than Hicks that it isnt even close. You just want the Yankees to get rid of him. Yankee fans only offer players in trades they don’t want because they arent good.
bucketbrew35
This isn’t a really good argument considering Kiermaier also cannot stay healthy. At his best, Hicks is a very balanced player. At Kiermaier’s best, he is slightly below average offensively and elite defensively. An argument can be made that adding either one, if healthy, would be a worthwhile move.
Sideline Redwine
Well, according to many on this site, WAR is the end all be all. Kiermaier? Over 30 war in eight seasons. Hicks? Twelve…in nine. Each w about 2800 ab’s. Lol Hicks. Sure.
Rsox
@Yankee-4-Lifer
Hicks isn’t really cheaper since Kiermaier is only on a one year deal. Hicks has three years on his deal and is rather expensive if for no other reason but you can’t count on him to stay on the field
BeansforJesus
How about a scarecrow filled with asbestos? It would be a lot more useful than Aaron Hicks.
If it could stay healthy, of course.
Metsin777
Marlins should go give up everyone for Juan Soto and then offer him Tatis money since they have so much free space. Then go out and get some relievers, another outfielder, and a thirdbasemen
DarkSide830
i heard Babe Ruth is available.
lady1959
And Mickey ⚾️
chiefnocahoma1
WAT??
ludafish
I wish they could get Soto. But I think Soto wouldn’t take Tatis money. The trajectory he is on could easily make him the first 400 million dollar man.
I would love to trade for him somehow. I’d be happy parting with Meyer, Cabrera, Bleday and adding on a Neidert and Eliesier. A package like that could get you a lot of players but probably not enough for Soto.
I also don’t think he will leave Washington. He’s going to finally be that position player they break the bank for instead of their penchant for pitchers. I see another 10 years easy of Soto putting up batting lines over .300/.400/.500. what he has done before playing his age 23 season is just astounding.
rct
Trout was MLB’s first $400 million man.
ludafish
I actually meant to say 500. But I also found Trouts contract weird because it originally added years to his extension and then became something new somehow.
MarlinsFanBase
Marlins shouldn’t try to trade for Soto. It’s a waste of time for a pipe dream. I’d wait until his free agency, then get in line with a nothing to lose mentality.
Sideline Redwine
Out of curiosity, what do you think the Nats would accept to give up their best player and cornerstone of the franchise? The entire Marlins rotation?
Tomahawk Takeover
Even with the disrespectfully low payroll, the Marlins are the one team in the division that truly concerns me as a Braves fan. If they were to get Marte or add a couple more offensive pieces I would be very nervous. They’re starting pitching is legit.
Metsin777
Unless you are talking about Ketel Marte, Starling Marte was on the team all year and they were virtually in last place most of the year with him on the team. Need a superstar, not just above average players
Tomahawk Takeover
Ketel Marte is who I was talking about.
MarlinsFanBase
@Metsin7
Keep this in mind. The Marlins were one Anthony Bass reduction away from being there with the Mets last season. You were ahead of us by 10 games. That is a sizable lead, but when you consider that Bass handed you 4 head-to-head wins that we led into the late innings, that gap shrinks quickly….before we count all of the other wins Bass handed to other teams.
The Marlins are not to be taken lightly. They don’t have as many holes as the Mets, so they are getting decent pieces to fill the voids.
Cosmo2
They are a team on the rise for sure
scottaz
Here we go again with the Ketel Marte rumors. Don’t worry Tomahawk, Ketel isn’t going anywhere. Dbacks won’t trade him AND he’s NOT a CF. He’s a 2b. He hates CF and gets injured when he plays there. He wants to be a 2b from now on. So stop with the rumors about Ketel Marte as a trade option to fill a CF need.
Tomahawk Takeover
I don’t care where he plays, he’s still an awesome player and makes any team better.
Cosmo2
Yea, Ketel is not a CFr
Tomahawk Takeover
Maybe not a good one on defense but the bat certainly plays there
Cosmo2
Anyone’s bat plays at CF. The glove is what makes the position. He’s not a CFr. By “the bat” logic, every LFr could play CF. The bat has nothing to do with it.
lady1959
!⚾️
whyhayzee
First off, the teams that are bidding salaries into the stratosphere are way worse for baseball than the teams who are holding to a budget. The inflation rate of salaries coincides with ticket prices, the annoying amounts of time for commercials between half innings, and many other aspects of baseball that continuously deteriorate the game. Money, money, money.
While it’s great to root for a big market team, it’s kind of sad to watch them buy away the talent from the small market teams just by having more money at their disposal. I still wish to see the big market teams actually develop their own talent.
Give the Marlins a chance to succeed in a patient methodical way before you throw them under the bus with all the other supposedly cheapskate teams.
VonPurpleHayes
@whyhayzee I disagree here. Owners not spending is never good for baseball. There are of course extremes. Cohen with the Mets is a little obscene, but teams like the Orioles and Pirates are ridiculous. The Marlins payroll is pathetic right now, but they show a willingness to spend, and are rebuilding the right way. So I can’t really criticize this current era of Marlins ownership.
I’ll never understand fans defending cheap owners. It’s not like small market owners can’t spend. They absolutely can, but they refuse to do so.
whyhayzee
If teams have the money and don’t spend it then I agree with you. It would drive a fan crazy. That’s when you need new ownership. I think baseball is so entrenched and immobile. If teams could move more easily to better fan base areas and if new owners could buy teams more easily, things might improve. But MLB is like a good old boy network.
gbs42
“Like?” That’s exactly what it is.
MarlinsFanBase
The only owners I can respect are the mid=spending ones. The ones spending very low and the ones spending extremely high are both bad for the game and for fans.
I am one for a salary floor and ceiling. In the very least, I like the idea of this expanded playoffs and a salary floor. That addresses many problems there….then who cares who wants to spend excessively because all you have to do is make the playoffs to potentially win it all – whether you’re spending $100 million or $400 million on payroll to do so.
However, the lack of a cap does hurt the working class fan as prices of tickets and concessions continue to phase the average family out of the game.
FarhanFan22
This take doesn’t make sense.
MLB tickets and concessions are cheaper than the NFL and NBA in the cities I’ve lived in. Salary cap doesn’t lower ticket prices. Owners will never give up profits just because they saved on payroll.
MarlinsFanBase
@metsfanina22
So, an owner spending more for the creation of a product and then charging his/her customers more money for the higher costing product that he/she will not want to pay from his/her profits, doesn’t make sense to you?
Also, FYI…MLB has more games than both the NFL and NBA combined. Therefore, they are trying to make their money in less games than MLB, thus the higher prices.
gbs42
MarlinsFanBase
Salary caps allow owners to pocket more profits. They set ticket prices based on supply and demand. Is player payroll a factor, too? I’m sure it is, but it’s far from a direct correlation. For example, when teams tank and slash their payrolls, do they slash ticket prices a similar amount? No.
Regarding the difference between MLB and the NFL/NBA and number of games, are you saying the NFL/NBA owners should be making the same money as MLB owners? They’re providing 1/10th and 1/2 the number of games. Attendance certainly has to be considered, since NFL game attendance is roughly 3x MLB games, but any comparison between MLB and NFL/NBA is going to be somewhat muddled. Their similar products, but they’re not direct equivalents.
Cosmo2
There are other places for money to go besides players or owners pockets. Why can’t fans get that?
gbs42
Comso2, what incentive is there for owners to charge less for tickets, concessions, parking, memorabilia?
Cosmo2
None. Until fans refuse to pay. I’m just saying that there are places for money to go besides those two options. Tons and tons of employees that don’t wear uniforms. Fans tend to neglect this fact.
rct
“The inflation rate of salaries coincides with ticket prices”
No, it absolutely does not. You have this backwards. Owners will charge whatever they think people will pay. Ticket prices going up is what drives salaries up, not the other way around. If owners could charge $10,000 a ticket and pay every single player league minimum, they would.
stymeedone
Then why is the average stadium half empty for every home game? The owners are trying to charge more than the fans are willing to pay. I watch the area behind home plate at NYY games remain barren, because the tickets are ridiculously priced. Teams that cannot draw 66% of capacity should be forced to lower prices until they do. Empty seats do not grow the fan base.
smytds
People don’t go to games because their team sucks and the product is bad, not because $20 is too much to spend on a ticket
FarhanFan22
Player salaries driving up ticket prices is a fallacy.
These are millions/billion dollar businesses, they set ticket prices according to incomes, previous years, and other market prices. Ball clubs aren’t hurting for money.
They’re ran by ex Wall Street bankers who know how to extract every dollar.
Salaries have increased because tv money increased exponentially.
The invention of YouTube and DVR have made live sports more valuable and driven player salary higher.
Mitchell Page
They could contact my Oakland A’s , and trade for Ramon Laureano if they were ok with loss of a month playing time .
Unknown69420
what would it cost???
everlastingdave
Avi doesn’t help the defense and doesn’t do a ton for the offense compared to some other corner options. Shouldn’t they have just traded for someone like KK along with a Castellanos or Schwarber signing?
Camden453
Avi doesn’t help the defense as there’s a drive by Castellanos and that’ll make it a 4-2 ballgame
stpbaseball
Avi has the tools to be a plus center fielder. he’s got one of the best sprint times in the bigs at 30. we’ve also seen him put up middle of the order offensive numbers. he’s got to be among the toolsiest players in the world making his very average performances most every year very frustrating. potential always gets paid. as a fan I always root for him to put it all together and see what that would actually be. near Buxton level maybe?
Goose
It is OBVIOUS that having two teams in Florida was beyond stupid. The Rays have been amazing for their payroll. Both teams need to move to areas where they should be able to sustain a $150 payroll, basement, in another market. This hurts the sport.
Cosmo2
The Rays may be good BECAUSE of their payroll. While everyone else falls into the trap of overpaying big names, the Rays retain flexibility and spread out their talent rather than try to build a roster by being star-struck. Might actually be a better plan than the status quo of the rest of the league.
LordD99
The Rays have figured out a system to be good while not developing a fan base. That’s not helping MLB. Not trying to be snarky. MLB has to wonder if having a team survive off of revenue sharing is a good long term strategy.
theodore glass
The Rays move to Tampa and they will thrive.
stpbaseball
I wonder if it’s that simple. I also want to see Miami actually come out and support the Marlins. Jeter and company have done that rebuild correctly and if they spend some money and supplement that core they’ll be good. Little Havana has passion for baseball, they need to show up. can’t blame Loria for ruining things forever
Perksy
I think the people in the area are more interested in going to the beach and hanging out in south beach than going to a marlins game.
ludafish
South Beach is for tourists. Miami is the most fairweather fan city in the country. When the team is good they will be supported. Which will hopefully be soon with the moves they have made. They have also been so much more active in the community since the Sherman takeover that more people seem to care. I see more new Marlins logos around than ever before. It is still not where it needs to be which is why I understand the gradual uptick in spending. In reality as a Marlins fan I expect them to finish at .500 give or take and he “in it” for a decent amount of time. Then hopefully make some more moves next season and then you will really see some progress.
The Rays are the real wild card because it remains to be seen if Tampa would actually support them. It’s easy to find videos and articles of people randomly asking people in Tampa to name a Rays player or something and they have no idea (and as little as 2017 some answered “we have a baseball team?” Granted that person was the wrong one to ask but it was funny). The team does not play in Tampa. Other teams have proven that isn’t an issue sometimes (Braves) but the location of the stadium is very awkward and to get to it from Tampa you pretty much HAVE TO cross a bridge. So the worst part is leaving a game as public transportation can’t really get you there so driving is a must. Some people have reported taking over three hours to get home from a game when with no traffic Google maps will tell you it’s a 25min drive. I know people say the stadium is garbage but it has more to do with the location. Seeing the way the BUCS and Lightning get supported it’s easy to think them playing in Tampa would solve the problem.
The same way the Dolphins and Heat get major support (especially when they are good). The Florida Panthers play in Broward and had some attendance issues. Now they have been good and have amazing attendance. Winning fixes things in Miami. Actually playing in Tampa fixes things for Tampa.
Mjm117
@Ludafish couldn’t have it said better. Greta post
Mjm117
Great******* f U auto-correct
Cult of Dickie Thon
When the teams are very good, Miami fans come out in large numbers to support the team because it becomes more an entertainment than a routine sporting event. It was especially true when LeBron was on the Heat and it was fairly routine to see famous people on the sidelines or in box seats.
MarlinsFanBase
@Goose
I partially agree about the two-team issue in Florida. I personally felt that MLB moved too quickly to add the second team in Florida just a few years after the first. The Marlins needed to have at least 10 to 15 years to build their fan base. No other expansion was done that way – adding two teams in the same state within a few years. Prior to both teams, Florida was mostly Braves Country – with the exception being the transplants. The Marlins needed to build their fan base in Florida until there was a true, and clearly identified need for another team in NW Florida. MLB mishandled it because they didn’t allow the Marlins to maximize their fan base, and fully understand their fan base reach in Florida. Just a few years later, they bring in the Rays to cut into what was starting to be some of the Marlins fan base in Central Florida, and eliminated any expanded potential.
As for the Rays, they were dropped into an incomplete fan build converting from Braves fans and Spring Training fans to having their own state team. This hurt them too.
Had MLB waited, they would have very likely built well. In all likelihood, the Marlins would have had a stronghold in South Florida through the eastern part of Central Florida. The Rays would’ve had the stronghold in North Florida through the western part of Central Florida. MLB never allowed this to develop properly.
Camden453
Peyton Burdick can play CF
ludafish
I am a big Burdick fan and depending on what they do before spring I would give him some playing time. Let some guys compete for the job in spring. Otherwise he may be a year (or two) away.
slider32
Marlins have the 6th best starting rotation in baseball, so they are not that far away from being a contender. Most of there starting lineup has around a 2 WAR. They just need to keep upgrading position players and add 2 good relief pitchers.
ludafish
Where did you get the 6th best stat from? Legitimately asking.
They have the potential to trot out the best rotation in baseball but that means a lot of unhealthy guys staying healthy. They have 7 guys that have flashed 1st or 2nd starter stuff. Just have to keep them on the field. Shore up the pen (which can be done with some internal moves) and they may not even need much more of an offense.
smytds
And the 30th lineup in baseball (per my own rankings ofc)
ludafish
Eh I don’t think it’s the 30th but it’s not far
Rsox
Marlins need is in CF. It makes no sense why they keep mentioning corner OF’s when they are loaded with them
MarlinsFanBase
Agreed.
If they had concerns about De La Cruz being there, they should have held onto Sierra a little bit, until they found a true CF to take the role. At least, if we are going to not have a sure bat in CF, at least we have the potential of De La Cruz with Sierra’s defense and speed as a 4th OF to support that.
I too am not too thrilled with the prospect of rotating guys in CF who “can” play the position, but are not true CFs.
Habeto
Mags and Brinson had way more than enough chances to hold into the position and they failed. They are gone and that’s improvement.
Give a chance to Brian Miller. Worse case scenario, he can platoon with DLC. In fact, I don’t think that plan is terrible, and maybe by the trade deadline the team can make a good trade, depending on how the things are going.
FrontRowMarlins
An infield addition would be great for depth. Then you can play Brian Anderson in the outfield in an attempt to try to keep him healthier. His shoulder needs a bit of a break from the hot corner.
Rsox
At this point with all the corner OF’s already on the roster or in the system if a 3B is added they should probably see what they can get for Anderson
FrontRowMarlins
Coming off two bad seasons, they need to build up his trade value. Rather see BA in the outfield than see Rosario
dsett75
All Miami ever does is act broke 80% of their existence until they go out & almost literally buy a World Series ring. That’s basically how they won 2 WS. Other than those couple years, they’re always broke even though they’ve had a basement low payroll for years. It doesn’t make sense & they shouldn’t be allowed to get away with it. I have to believe that the Commissioner has a ballpark idea of what individual teams are making.
Habeto
There are a number of teams trying to “buy” that WS ring every year and most of them barely made the playoffs.
ludafish
What are you talking about? If you compare what they did in 97 to many other teams then they didn’t “buy” a ring.
And in 2003? You clearly are joking right? There is a great YouTube video by SBNation I believe called “How the Marlins failed in to a world series ring” and it discusses how literally from the ashes of the 98 fire sale the embers turned in to the core of the 03 team. The highest paid player on the team was Ivan Rodriguez who took a ONE YEAR deal of 10 million because everyone thought he was washed up and the FO knew they had talented pitching. Seriously who do you think they bought in 2003? Every starter on the WS staff was drafted or traded for years before. Same with just about every starter not named Ivan Rodriguez.
They tried to buy one in 2012 and it failed. That’s about it. That’s the one real time they tried to buy anything and it failed. In 2006 they added Carlos Delgado but he actually took less money to play for the Marlins and Loria claimed to lose money that year so he traded everyone again… But I’ve had it with this “they bought their rings” nonsense.
Habeto
Ranking options for CF:
Perfect fits: Mullins, Reynolds.
Good options: Straw, Grisham, K. Lewis, K. Marté (he is no CF)
OK options: Laureano, Happ.
Let me think about it: Bellinger, Hicks, Robles, JBJ, T. Hernández.
Ugly: All of those corner OFs via free agency, Winker.
smytds
I love Marlins fan. Pure comedy
Cosmo2
What? Mike Trout not on the list?
Habeto
No one on that list is an unrealistic target. The Marlins have enough prospects – specially arms – to trade for any of them.
What’s so funny?
Trout? Hahahaha, sure. They would have to sell the entire franchise, stadium and probably ask for a loan in the Bank.
Cosmo2
Reynolds and Mullins are unrealistic as why would their teams trade them? But fair enough, I see what you’re saying, I was exaggerating the point a bit.
ludafish
They could 100% acquire Mullins or Reynolds. It’s just a matter of if it’s worth paying. As Reynolds will cost at least two of Meyer, Sixto, and Cabrera. Then probably Dax Fulton and JJ Bleday (or Peyton Burdick, or both). They can even argue for Rogers or if they know their stuff a Eury Perez. Depending how long their rebuild is even ask for Whatson. I wouldn’t spend what it would take to get him. But I imagine if they would offer four to five players I mentioned to any team they could get almost anyone.
Cosmo2
Maybe. My point is simply that it would be utterly ridiculous for the O’s or the Pirates to make such a trade. Both players are young enough to still be in their prime when the team should start winning. Rebuilding need not take 5,6,7 years. That’s just crazy to me.
Yoyosoxsox
It does seem unrealistic that they get most of players said due to they are who they are,but the have the prospects to get damn near anybody if they are willing to drain the tank
FarhanFan22
Marlins should make a push because the NL east is down. Besides the Braves, the division is filled with losers.
Dorothy_Mantooth
The Marlins should add Nelson Cruz and one other impact bat, either IF or OF. While it’s great to have an impact CF, it’s not a requirement by any means. Look at the Braves last year. You can get by with a good athlete in center field; Garcia could be fine in CF for Miami. If Jesus Sanchez continues to smash the ball (and cut down on his K’s), he could be a 30hr, 90 RBI RF for them. Adding Garcia, Cruz and one more bat should make their offense competitive enough to win more than they lose, provided their young pitchers stay healthy and continue to develop.
Miami has a lot to look forward to over the next 3-5 seasons. If they spend money wisely, they could be true contenders by 2024 or 2025 at the latest. The NL East could become a mirror image of the AL East with the low payroll, Florida team winning the division and the (3) other good teams: Philly, Atlanta & Mets battling it out for wildcard berths. The Nats will be mid-rebuild at that point.
SoCalBrave
Braves were fine during a short period with Duvall in CF. That doesn’t mean that you can go all season without a CF. Specially in the huge outfield where the Marlins play.
eddiemathews
Brewer fan here…if the Marlins play Garcia regularly in center that great pitching staff won’t look so great.
caryloyd
No team should spend less than $120M given the money flowing through the league. Revenue share should come with strings attached otherwise 1/4 the league will always
Look like Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Miami. Money won’t buy Success, but it gives you a shot. Jason Stark had a great proposal on changing the draft. Teams who barely miss playoffs draft first and continues to the team with worst record drafts 20th. Playoff teams round out 21-30. It would eliminate tanking keep Sep baseball relevant
browner1979
Who signs a 30-year-old who has consistently been below-average as merely a part-time CF, and says, “Yes. We can use him there”?
That’s a combination of Ng not wanting to sound desperate for an upgrade and godawful payroll.
I’m not sure if that is more bothersome, or the fact that the author accepts Garcia-as-CF at face value.
VegasSDfan
Garcia 4/53. I would have said pass. I think Milwaukee made the right move with the buyout. They should have been more proactive and traded him last year.
HBan22
I agree that it was a bit of an overpay. I know the Marlins really wanted to bring back Starling Marte and that their offer to him was over $60 million, and I believe they signed Garcia very soon after the Mets signed Marte. I think Miami wanted to make sure they added at least one solid outfielder at a somewhat reasonable deal, but I can’t help but feel like this signing was a bit aggressive, considering there are a lot of good corner OFers still available. We’ll see if Garcia can sustain his success from last year, but I felt the Marlins should have aimed a bit higher.
Goose
Bleday and Burdick could be up as early as next year. It will be interesting to see what OF the Marlins sign and the commitment they make. I suspect anyone they sign will be a placeholder with some trade value.
stretch123
Between Jon Berti, De La Cruz, and a FA addition like Joc Pederson, I believe CF will be good to go for 2022. Peyton Burdick will be a stud so wouldn’t want to block him. There’s also a slight chance Bleday can play center on occasion at the beginning stages of his career. Victor Mesa Jr is another guy who can become a CF option as soon as mid 2023. He’s been tearing it up in the minors.
HBan22
I was really hoping Miami would sign Castellanos. It was never particularly likely, but I was still disappointed that they were willing to shell out as much as they did for Garcia, and yet not willing to pay a bit more for the truly elite-level bat that I felt they needed. Garcia could end up replicating last year though, and maybe Castellanos disappoints. I’ve been wrong before!
ludafish
I think Castellanos wants 100 plus and plays horrible defense. Garcia could be good or bad defensively at least. Plus with what he wants you’re going to pay for his age 30-36/37 season when his defense is super suspect and they have a plethora of players ready to DH. I can understand passing on him.
What I can’t understand is if they offered Marte the same deal Garcia got before he was traded he would have taken it. The negotiations were very public as the Marlins seemed to be offering 3/39 and upped it to like 3/43. He wanted a 4th year. If they offered 4/53 he would have absolutely taken it. Are they better off with Luzardo and Garcia? It’s a possibility… But probably not? Marte also had a career year. It should be very interesting to see how it all plays out.
theo2016
Why not sign Correa and use Chisholm as a chip in like a Cedric Mullins/marte deal.
Rsox
D’backs traded Chisholm once so probably not that interested in bringing him back. The Orioles on the other hand could probably use him
Cosmo2
Why would Baltimore trade Mullins? He’s controlled through ‘25. Do they never expect to contend again? What’s the point of rebuilding if your gonna trade away a successful young piece like Mullins?
Habeto
Fair question, BUT the Orioles will probably need more pitching and are maybe 2 years away of contending. Also, Mullins’ trade value is as high as it gets and the Marlins definitely have the pitching depth (both Prospects and MLB-ready) to make a deal happening. A 4-5 players package can be very tempting.
Same applies to the Pirates with Reynolds. The Bucks will need more time to contend but Reynolds’ value is even higher; that’s why I think is possible for the Fish to bring him over.
If it happens, watch out.
ludafish
While I think Reynolds can be the missing piece… At what cost? I don’t think we have discussed that on FishStripes but it would take a lot of talent we are excited about to get there. What do you think it would take? I’m guessing Meyer and Eury Perez then something like Dax Fulton and JJ Bleday. Maybe even a Whatson or an Eder mixed in there. I think they wouldn’t go after Sixto because of injuries and would probably be interested in Cabrera. I don’t include Rogers and Pablo because of service time but they could ask for them too depending on the window they see or trading them off.
I know prospects are prospects but is it worth giving away that much of the future?
Mjm117
I don’t think it will take 4 of our top 10
Prospects to nab Reynolds. But I don’t doubt it will require a hefty haul to pry him away.
Habeto
I think an accurate approximation is to think about a similar trade. For example, what the fish got for Yelich or Ozuna at that time.
Starting with Yelich, the Marlins got #1, 5, 23 and Yams in the Brewers’ Top 30 prospects that year. I haven’t checked the prospect status on the Ozuna trade… but I will!
Rsox
@Cosmo2
They are trying to sell high on the year Mullins had last season. It’s less about having to trade Mullins and more about probably believing he won’t replicate those numbers again.
Cosmo2
Yea, if that’s their thinking I could see that. I’m kind of assuming that Mullins is the real deal but I don’t follow him that closely.
Yoyosoxsox
It does seem unrealistic that they get most of players said due to they are who they are,but the have the prospects to get damn near anybody if they are willing to drain the tank