The terms of Kim Ng’s contract with the Marlins weren’t made public when she was hired as general manager in November 2020, but Barry Jackson, Jordan McPherson, and Craig Mish of the Miami Herald report that Ng’s deal is up at the conclusion of the 2023 campaign. There hasn’t been any public word about extension talks, though that seems to be by design, as Marlins owner Bruce Sherman prefers for the focus to be on the club’s playoff chase.
Sherman did give the GM a vote of confidence, stating that “Kim and the baseball operations team have worked diligently throughout the year to identify players that can help us succeed. Through continuous investments by our ownership group, our club has been able to make key additions to this promising roster that is now competing for the playoffs. The additions of Josh Bell and Jake Burger at the deadline have been a great spark to our lineup as well as great individuals in the clubhouse.”
Over the previous 19 seasons, the Marlins have reached the playoffs only once (in the shortened 2020 season) and have posted only five winning records. With that downbeat recent history in mind, it counts as a notable achievement that the 2023 squad has a 78-72 record and is challenging for a wild card position. There have been plenty of ups and downs in the Marlins’ season, yet at the very least, South Beach fans can look forward to two more weeks of pennant-race baseball and potentially some postseason action.
In general, it is a little unusual to see top executives go into a true lame-duck year, as the Marlins apparently don’t have even a club option over Ng’s services for 2024. Given how Miami was 137-188 in Ng’s first two seasons, it makes sense that Sherman might have wanted a full year to see if Ng could turn things around, plus in a sense 2023 is Ng’s first true season in charge of baseball operations.
Ng was initially hired when Derek Jeter was calling the shots as the Marlins’ CEO, plus VP of scouting/player development Gary Denbo (a longtime Jeter confidant) had an outsized influence within the front office, and manager Don Mattingly was continuing in the dugout as a holdover from the Jeffrey Loria era. However, Jeter shockingly parted ways with the Marlins in February 2022, Denbo was fired a few months later, and Mattingly wasn’t retained as skipper last fall.
Ng hired Skip Schumaker as Miami’s new manager, then embarked on her first relatively normal offseason as GM, free of front office tumult, the pandemic’s disruptive elements, or MLB labor disruptions. The focus was on upgrading the offense, and while the Fish still aren’t a big-hitting group, the acquisition of Luis Arraez was a clear win, and (as Sherman observed) Bell and Burger have both hit well since coming to Miami in deadline deals. As well, Jorge Soler bounced back from his very disappointing debut season in 2022 to post quality numbers this season.
Given the Marlins’ success this year under Ng, the Herald writers unsurprisingly note that “it would be surprising if she’s not invited back” on a new contract. As we saw with James Click and the Astros last year, no amount of on-field success can guarantee employment for a general manager if the owner isn’t entirely satisfied with how things are going, and it is possible Sherman might want to install an executive free of any past association with Jeter. That said, the Marlins have such a checkered history of ownership and front office upheaval that Sherman might not want to add to that history by changing GMs in the wake of what is shaping up as a successful turn-around.
Waiting to negotiate with Ng creates some risk for the Marlins since another team could conceivably emerge to offer her another front office position, though it is perhaps instructive to remember that Ng was an assistant GM under Brian Cashman with the Yankees in 1998-01. Through Cashman’s long stint in New York, he has routinely fully completed his employment contracts before signing new deals, even waiting until weeks or months into the offseason before officially putting pen to paper on his own contract since there always an understanding that he would be returning. If such an understanding similarly exists between Ng and Sherman, an announcement of a new contract for the GM might just be a matter of time.
GM of the year.
Based upon her overall work, I would rank her in the top 11-20 range among 30 MLB GMs. The Marlins should definitely bring her back. Many smart moves on a tight budget. The Avisail Garcia signing was horrible, or she would be ranked even higher.
She sure had to fight to be a GM. Kind of like a state worker finally being given the chance to be an agency secretary.
You have a ranking list of all the GMs in baseball based on this season ? Please share
She’s certainly in the running.
What abour Krall from the Reds?
Both strong candidates indeed. Regardless of whomever wins, I’m sure the comments will be well-thought-out and unbiased.
Well that’s just a given SeñorTort…
Krall made all those trades last year, didn’t sign any pitching going into the season and didn’t acquire any notable pitching at the deadline so he’s not even close to the running.
He also extended the manager bell. He’s terrible.
LOL absolutely not. Mike Elias all day. Indisputable.
If she walks out the door, I could see the Yankees hiring her as GM, and they move Cashman to the Jean Michael position, but above her
Bet she’d turn down that gig in a 1/2 a heart beat. Why work under someone who’s underachieved his whole career when she can be the shot caller w less pressure ?
So cashman has underachieved his whole career? Lol. I guess the 4 WS championships he’s had as GM makes him an underachiever then huh. SMH
Kim come back please
Baseball should be opening up more jobs to women in major front office positions. Raquel Ferrera, long time a sort of vice GM in Boston should be elevated to GM this time but don’t expect it to happen for obvious reasons. DEI only goes so far you know.
John – Before reading your post, I was just thinking of Kim becoming POBO for the Red Sox with Raquel being elevated to GM. An all-woman team would be fantastic.
Why would that be “fantastic” as you say?
SBSD
I can’t speak for FPG, but, perhaps they meant that since there’s no reason the vast vast majority of F/O’s should be composed of just men, having two women would be a sign that baseball is becoming a bit more progressive in their thinking.
It’s telling that people don’t question male front offices, but do question the idea of a female front office.
but do question the idea of a female front office.
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I don’t think said that. He asked what the documentation was for her being “fantastic”. I did the same thing. We don’t know what she does. We don’t really know what anyone below the title of GM does.
Saying that she is “fantastic” is just as inappropriate as saying she is “unqualified”.
JB
The comment was a bit ambiguous
I read it as they didn’t say any specific people would be fantastic. They said an all female FO would be fantastic. So, I stand by my previous comment. I agree that we don’t really know what any front office staff do, do it’s hard to evaluate.
If that was the intent, I am all-in. If the RS thought Ferrerra was truly the best available, and promoted her, I’d be thrilled. I have a daughter that is sports-oriented, well-educated, and actually interned for a sports team (assuming that hockey is considered a real sport).
Time to pay off daddy for the money I invested in her:)
Because DEI is a joke, probably.
The Red Sox will probably pay big bucks for whoever the top available GM/PBO is, with a proven track record of success.
Basically the most qualified candidate will be hired. The way it should be…
@guilderc
So Ng doesn’t have the resume?
And are you saying that about the same team that fired Dave Dombrowski and tried to convince everyone else that he was incompetent?
@MarlinsFanBase
Never said Ng doesn’t have the resume. She has 30 plus years in the sport. I think other commenters are cutting her resume down by implying that women should get a FO job for being a woman.
Also, I’m a Yankees fan, and I wish Boston kept Dombrowski longer. I could only dream of them having more albatross contracts like Dombrowski left in Detroit to set them back nearly a decade.
guilder – That’s not what happened last time. Bloom never had a position higher than VP and Cora had only one year of Bench Coach experience.
I hope you’re right and this time Henry hires somebody with a proven track record, but that would mean allowing them to make their own calls ie: not forcing Cora on them like he was forced on Bloom.
Hmmm…If the Red Sox want to hire a guy with a proven track record of success, they should hire that guy Dave Dombrowski.
Oh wait…
Why say “baseball should be opening more jobs for women?” Why does it matter? What’s lacking that women would bring to baseball? Breast feeding rooms? They likely have them already. What specifically has Kim Ng accomplished for the Marlins that the Rays haven’t / didn’t / couldn’t do ? I’m so sick of this crap. What other carve outs should we make for a group of people? Have 1 of every color under the rainbow with ultimate authority going to the person with the most unique background? Idiot.
desert – Kim has 33 years in the game, including 21 years with big market teams, 13 years as Assistant GM and 3 years as GM.
She has the experience, why should young white guys with a fraction of the experience be selected instead of her? I wish John Henry had selected her instead of Bloom 4 years ago.
This whole thought process is wrong and this chat is showing that her race and her gender is more important to them than her merit. The reality is that whether you support or reject women in sports, the fact that your bias exists shows her place is not based on merit.
If you defend her position with the team by saying more women need to be offered jobs in men’s sports, then show me where her gender makes the sport better. If you are against women in men’s sports, then show me the proof of how preventing women from getting these jobs makes the sport better.
Neither can be proven, but that you advocate for someone based on appearance or gender shows that you are trying to check a box rather than get the best candidate. Based on a fair an unbiased analysis of her job, the Marlins have failed to produce results and the teams she has build has been unbalanced.
Now let’s dive into her record, she joined a Yankees front office in March of 1998 when the team won 114 games, but her hiring happened after the roster had been constructed. The team then dropped to 98 wins in 1999, followed by a drop to 87 wins in 2000, and then a slight up tick to 95 wins in 2001 before she left to join the Dodgers.
While she was in New York during the three WS wins, she benefitted from an existing core and objectively the team got worse first in record and then in terms of postseason success while she was in her position. The 1996 WS core was still the main group pushing the success in 1998-2000, and she only added Clemens in 2000 and Mussina in 2001 to mediocre results.
Once with the Dodgers, she spent 10 years as their assistant GM. During her tenure, they posted the only two losing seasons from 2000-2023. They only won three pennants and one WC birth, and never making a World Series. They won 85 or less games in 6 of the 9 seasons she was involved in roster construction, surpassing 90 wins only twice..
The year after she left was the last season the Dodgers missed the playoffs. It would be fair to say that her impact would’ve lingered over the 2012 roster. In 2013, the 2nd season since her departure from L.A., the Dodgers started a run of 11 straight playoff appearances with 10 of 11 seasons ending in a NL West pennant, they went to three WS and won one of them.
For those wondering, the Yankees went on to win 100 games in three straight seasons following her departure. in 2002. Over her time in the Dodgers, the Yankees never won less than 89 games and won 84 or more in all but one season. They won a WS and banked 100 wins four times in 10 years. What is clear is she didn’t objectively make either team better
To answer your question, the young white guys getting picked are coming from Ivy League backgrounds and their education is a huge improvement over her University of Chicago education. Also many of the other GMs that weren’t part of the young white Ivy League movement were ex-players who have experience on the field.
The facts of the matter is whenever only 30 positions exist for a specific job across the world, there are going to be far more good candidates losing out than bad candidates. I would also point out objectively that women can create hostile work environments, if they feel overly scrutinized and that can detract from the team dynamic good or bad.
To reinforce me sentiment about women in the front office. I know the desire for men to keep women out of baseball and the desire for women to push harder for inclusion creates the dynamic where women feel overly scrutinized. The women’s’ advocates will point out more female hires will solve this, while critics will point towards short-term losses.
The reality is that sports management is a game of “what have you done for me lately.” Any time the culture of the organization is negatively changed, the longer it takes for the team to overcome those issues and distractions. For example the comments made by Kevin Mathers as CEO of the Mariners led to a dark shadow being cast over the team.
Clearly, Kim Ng is not at fault for her lack of inclusion within a male dominated sport, and can’t be held responsible for the hostility she is going to encounter in the workplace. However, she tends to provoke situations, rather than trying to dissolve the misunderstanding or conflict with nuance and subtlety.
One example was a flight attendant asked what she was doing on a chartered flight for players and staff, which she decided to make a big deal about being their boss instead of just stating she was involved in business operations. That boasting only served her own motives, and it was a way to elevate her value over the players.
Another time a guy made rude comments to her at a GM meeting she attended. They were bigoted and totally inappropriate. When he later tried to apologize she refused the apology cutting him off and telling him how it would only make him feel better. While true, that’s not the way you conduct yourself in the business world.
We may feel like confronting people and telling them off when we are offended. When justified there’s still a better way to handle it and more importantly her attitude will right or wrong have an effect on how other teams hire women moving forward. Jackie Robinson was forbidden from pursuing confrontation, something Ng should also try doing.
For those who will talk about her being justified, personally she would be, but professionally she should’ve accepted his apology and then reported him to her boss and to his boss. Instead she’s got a history of being somewhat of a loose cannon and a potential cautionary story for teams looking to bring women into their front office.
Should Kim Ng be judged for defending herself? In a vacuum, no, but the reality is her decisions have huge ramifications and she could’ve got the same result without instigating the fight when she became offended. I would critique a male in the same way, but as a trailblazer for women in sports, she needs to be above reproach.
Personality, morals, attitude, work ethic, and many other attributes all contribute to the value a person brings to their job. However, if being in the front office causes problems that wouldn’t otherwise exist, it still has to be factored in to the decision to hire them. You aren’t hiring the resume, you are hiring the person and their personality is a factor.
She needs to decide if she wants to advocate for women by inclusion or by demonstration. So far it appears she wants to be a demonstrator instead of someone that just does their job. Had Jackie Robinson confronted every jerk, how many other black men would’ve never had the chance to play in Major League Baseball? Too many.
U have no evidence to support she would do a better job than bloom
there’s not a single ivy school that is “a huge improvement” over the university of chicago
desert
Nice that this article has been lacking ignorant comments like yours
So, let’s address this
The point is that there has been one female GM in major professional US sports. There have have ?thousands? Of male GMs.
You ask what has been lacking? Women.
It’s absurd to think that only one women in history has been worthy of the job
So, the question shouldn’t be what do women bring, it should be “why has everyone always thought men brought something women didn’t?”.
And the answers to that aren’t great.
fili – For the longest time, all front office GM’s were male because they played professional ball at some point. But that ended long ago, and since being a former player is no longer a requirement then women should have the same front office opportunities as men.
While in a vacuum this is true, the effects of being female will also contribute to how others in her organization interact with her title and also how other organizations choose to do business with the team for whom she is working. The other question to ask is are there really only 29 ex-players and men who have grown up around the sport that are better than her? Hand to God, I’d imagine there are more than 29 men who are more talented and qualified to be a GM for a male sports team than a woman.
Which begs the questions…
Are we adding women to the front office because in the long-term it’s better for baseball or women?
If the point is doing what’s best for baseball and the organization specifically, why are people advocating for women to get these jobs simply based on gender?
If 20 years from now there are ten GMs in the Major Leagues, will the league be better for those changes or would it even matter?!
If virtue signaling and equality are the motives, than we should start to consider whether our motives are justified and whether we’re really making things any better.
When Branch Rickey advocated for Jackie Robinson to be a MLB player, he didn’t do it because he thought it would be good for black players, he did it because he thought black players would be good for baseball.
Right now, I’m failing to see how female inclusion improves baseball. Sure, they might do a good job, but they aren’t exactly filling a talent void that would go unchecked without them like black and minority athletes gaining inclusion in sports through advocating for Jackie Robinson..
Dang bro, Thank_God_We_Aren’t is dropping dissertations on us here. Gonna have to take this to the bathroom and read it.
isoab
Username checks out
So sad that do many people think that anything longer than a tweet is a dissertation.
Someone can’t take a joke
tldr; “I’m one of those Ivy League kids. Kim Ng wouldn’t hire me, so I’m mad.”
Some people r just extreme bootlickers
Perhaps they open more lower scouting department jobs and let them prove their worth and after 15-25 years in the game consider them for the highest positions that exist on the executive side of things, like most people have had to do over the long and documented history of the game?
Raquel Ferrera, long time a sort of vice GM in Boston should be elevated to GM this time
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The problem with an opinion like this, is that I am not sure that anyone outside the RS FO knows what she does, or what her accomplishments are. This is exactly like Bloom when he was hired. He got credit because TB had a good team. But no one knew what he did with TB.
Without being privy to inside information, no one knows how good she is or isn’t.
It really shouldn’t. It should be focused entirely on merit-based promotions.
Just here for the misogynistic comments. My mute button finger is getting itchy.
Agreed, Some of these trolls just can’t handle a woman doing anything that offends their delicate nature.
Whew, if that’s the profundity you find in gender statistics, minority male STEM hiring statistics might cause your neurochemical wiring to short-circuit. Nonetheless, the point is taken, albeit an obvious one.
As if virtue signaling is somehow better?
Imagine spending your life looking for things to be upset about. What a miserable way to live.
Sounds like you sought out a comment that triggered you in order to respond.
Imagine looking for things to be upset about?
I didn’t realize pointing out the obvious somehow equates to being triggered.
Clearly you’re the upset one, resorting to childish name calling in the comments section of a mlb trade website.
I just don’t like hateful people and don’t want to read their miserable comments. You just hit the hater jackpot and I will no longer have to see yours. Congratulations.
Well she is a woman…..
Okay …wait what …
I don’t have anything else to add
I will say this
I don’t know that much about her, I don’t think I could pronounce her last name without some help. But when she trade for Jake Burger, I thought she was the bees knees
That was a terrific trade and maye just get the Marlins into the playoffs
Burger helped destroy the Yankees
And was a big part of the destruction of tbe Braves this weekend
Saint Derek Jeter? The article states he had a hand in hiring her. So she reversed his damage when he hired her, which wouldn’t have been fixed by her if he didn’t hire her?
Jeter wanted to gradually spend more on payroll and Sherman didn’t when it was realized that Marlins’ revenues weren’t growing. I don’t agree with the way Jeter took over and cleaned house but Sherman pivoted and changed his business model along the way.
Bruce Sherman sounds like one of the bigger d-bags in the entire sporting world. Maybe she doesn’t want to come back. Excellent platform year. Though there have been some moves in the past that deserved the criticism they received.
How is Bruce Sherman one of the bigger d-bags? Because Jeter left when he couldn’t get his way like he would with the Yankees in NY? Or because he decided to wait to sdee what Ng could do, considring that she was being bashed heavily until the Marlins started winning some games this season with the Arraez trade?
Ng had two bad years of a lot of hit and miss moves until the Marlins started winning this season. Her head was being called by the fan base and media personalities until the Marlins started winning this season. And of course, she did strike gold at the deadline with getting Bell and Burger, and finally ridding another one of those Yankees holdovers of Denbo’s, Garrett “IL” Cooper.
Should an owner really just make a quick decision based on the latest body of work or looking at the whole body of work? It should be the whole body of work, and with everything that happened, certainly he knows if Jeter and Denbo affected how Ng was able to do her work or if they simply supported her…and no matter what, did the work she’s done starting with the Arraez trade and the deadline deals reflect her learning from her previous mistakes? A lot will go into it. How does it make Sherman a d-bag?
I never said anything about Jeter.
“Through continuous investments by our ownership group, our club has been able to make key additions to this promising roster that is now competing for the playoffs.”
Based on this statement it seems like Sherman is the one who can’t get past Jeter leaving. This is a VERY self congratulatory statement from an owner who has a reputation of prioritizing profit over winning. I think Ng, the new coaching staff, and even (gasp), the players deserve more credit than the ownership group.
I stand by what I said. D-bag.
OK, I see how it’s self-congratulatory, which wealthy guys tend to be egomanics that say stuff like that, but where is the stuff that supposedly covers him having a reputation for prioritizing profit over winning? The ownership has spent the last few years. Often not wisely, but they have spent.
If you’re going to refer to the selloffs of the roster they bought from Loria, do know the facts before you try to argue with this Marlins fan and the other knowledgeable Marlins fans about that. In short, our fan base has supported that.
So, where is the prioritizing of profit over winning…or are you going by what E!SPN and FOX Sports or the NY-based national media told you?
And while you didn’t day anything about Jeter, he’s part of the equation because he hired Ng and Denbo.
Why are you so offended? I’m only being critical of the owner. I never insulted you or the Marlins fan base. Basically I agree with most of what you say. There are many Marlins fans on this site who have been critical of ownership. I tend to agree with their arguments.
I don’t know what your strange sensitivity to NY is, but I’m not part of that. I have no affiliation, obligation, or sentimentality toward NY.
I am a Cardinals fan who semi-follows the Marlins because of Sandy Alcantara and the former Cardinals on the coaching staff. My views about the Marlins are basically objective because I don’t feel strongly one way or another about the team.
I’m very sorry for making a statement or statements that obviously trigger a passionate side of you. Have a nice day.
I’m just calling out rhe statement of “…reputation of prioritizing profit over winning…” Where is the evidence? In my time speaking with other Marlins, there was one troll pretending to be a Marlins fan would say it, and maybe on other that has gone on the warpath, but I think that was more of an issue with a certain player being dealt away that is not missed by most of the fan base. And even he mainly is upset about the same stuff we all get upset at – not spending wisely, which is far from prioritizing profits and more about spending stupid. Other than that, most of the complaints have been about Ng’s performance up to this season…not really anything about Sherman prioritizing profit over winning. That was Jeffery Loria., not Sherman. If anything, we’ve bashed the bad spending – Avi Garcia, Cueto, Segura, Corey Dickerson, Anthony Bass, etc. signings under Sherman’s era.
I’m wondering where you get that from. The only place I can see is E!SPN and FOX Sports who lazily report BS when it involves teams that aren’t in NY or Boston, usually recycling their BS fictional narratives.
Can’t way they prioritize profits over spending when one of their issues the last few years is spending stupidly.
He absolutely has prioritized profit over winning. In case you werent paying attention at the deadline he publicly said Ng would have all resources available to improve the team, but the trades they made said otherwise as well as reports he didnt want to take on salary past this year. The trades of Cooper, Floro and Segura were made to shed approximately the same amount of pay they were taking on in Robertson, Bell and Lopez. That in itself is prioritizing profit over winning. If he truly wanted to win, there would be no limitations on adding players with salaries past this year, or any type of salary limitation whatsoever. He absolutely is patting himself on the back nothing. All the credit goes to Ng for the work she did with his ridiculous stipulations in place.
The ownership group to my eyes doesn’t look like they have invested much of anything really. These free agents brought in over the last few seasons have been K-Mart Blue Light Special third-tier sort of low ceiling guys. Ownership has been El Cheapo. Not impressive.
@cuban1
You got this part wrong. Josh Bell = $16.5 million; Dave Robertson $11 million; and Jorge Lopez $3.25 million…versus…Segura $6.5 million; Garrett Cooper $4.2 million; and Floro $3.9 million. So, taking in approximately $30.75 million and sending $14.6 million out isn’t exactly the same amount…and noting that it’s still a big gap when considering that it was an exchange of remaining salaries for the year, and we acquired Robertson a little before these others were sent out.
And I;m sorry, but normally we all agree with a lot of the bashing that we all do with how the Marlins are run, but when you constantly bash this ownership and praise Loria’s memebrship like you’ve done in the past, it loses the rest of us Marlins fans.
And sorry, but there is no reason to complain about moving on from Floro, Segura and Cooper. Floro was garbage. Segura was a nother Ng mistake. And Garrett Cooper was one of the biggest waste of times in our team’s history and the job security he seemed to have was a major indicator of the Marlins acceptance of ineptitude, which if I remember correctly, you were one of the Cooper bashers like I and many other Marlins fans have been. Good riddance to Cooper and these other two. But Cooper specifically was long overdue.
Now with the rest, we’ll see where it goes. But you think Sherman is holding back salary like Loria and Samson did? Loria only increased payroll when he knew he was selling the team so he could increase his sales price – clearly indicated in every contract he signed pushed the bulk of the money to the year after the All Star Game when he planned to close the sales deal. Sherman’s team has never strayed away from their plan – whether we agreed with it or not. The team has been built nicely, with flaws, but nicely and here we are competing wth pieces going forward.
And how much do you want the Marlins to spend, and where? We have our OF going forward…De La Cruz, Jazz, Sanchez, Davis, Myers, etc. We have our Starting pitchers. We have our 2B/1B in Arraez. We have our 3B in Burger. If we didn’t blow a lot of money on Garcia, that coule’ve gone to filling one of the other voids. We’ll have to wait and see on Bell and Soler, but even with departures by them, I’m pretty sure we’ll fill those along with SS and something to upgrde Catcher. And even with Catcher, many of us are pretty comfortable with Fortes if we can’t land a top-tier Catcher. Again, where do you spend and how much? The only real holes that stand out majorly is Closer, SS, and a secondary or starting Catcher. And anything that free agency optouts cause (1B/DH?). Other than Closer, we can fill those roles without spending a fortune.
but feel free to offer where and on what you feel we should be spending on.
@Ignorant Son-of-a-b
If you’re comparing them to the big markets, you’re right. But if you’re comparing them to other MLB teams, how can you fault them when they are competing for a playoff spot? The only real spending knock I have against them is not investing in a Closer, but they have stupidly spent Closer money on other pieces that weren’t needed, like corner OF when they signed both Soler and Garcia when they only needed one corner OF type at the time…which in turn took playing time away from the two young corner OFs they had/have, Sanchez and De La Cruz. Are we also going to bash teams like the Rays for not spending?
I mean, come on. We’re bashing a team that is competing for a playoff spot, who has spent stupidly…and the bash is that they don’t spend? A team that spends stupidly doesn’t spend? Really?
1)youre going by the entire salary, theyre only responsible for the rest of what was owed. if you consider all those players but Segura were pending free agents and assuming Bell opts out, the money is the nearly the same because segura was owed money for next year.
Cooper and Floro each were due approximately 1.4, and segura a little over 2 million, plus 8.5 next year with a 2 million buyout. While robertson still was owed 3.5, bell 5.4 million and lopez 700k. If bell opts out, which im sure the team is counting on, they actually make out by saving roughly 2 million because segura would be owed that money regardless.
2)i have never praised lorias ownership, i can promise you that.
3)yes all those players being shipped out didnt matter much, its the fact that she HAD to do it in order to make the numbers work is the problem. That was by design, not coincidence.
The Marlins CBT payroll has gone from $82 million to $121 million since Ng came on board. That is a nearly 50% increase in spending.
The Marlins are not spending like the Mets, but they are increasing spending by a huge margin.
The investments she has made have paid off. They are in the hunt for a playoff spot.
Ng didn’t make any decisions until Jeter and Denbo were gone. She was the GM in name only, like whoever the GM that was under Bloom or whoever the GM that is under Hoyer.
2022-2023 is the first offseason she had the reigns fully and she did a good job. The team you cheer for is fighting for a playoff spot.
@cuban1
First, I did cover that the salary wasn’t the full amount when I states “…nd noting that it’s still a big gap when considering that it was an exchange of remaining salaries for the year, and we acquired Robertson a little before these others were sent out.”
Now with you covering that in more detail than I wanted to, please see @outinleftfield’s post.
The Marlins are spending, just mostly stupidly.
Now with the players shipped out, while you do have a fair reason to have a problem with the potential why those players were shipped out, I ask the question…do you prefer that they would’ve kept those worhtless players clogging up the roster and taking playing time away from guys more deserving? I’m hoping we trade away Avi Garcia’s contract the same way to get us another high-priced player in exchange. I’d take that all day long. Would you really complain if Ng pulls that off soon? To me, while I understand appearances can look bad, especially with the team’s history, but we can’t keep expensive scrubs for the sake of appearing like we’re not dumping salary. Dumping expensive garbage is very good baseball decision-making.
Who says im am bashing the job Ng has done? For the most part i praise her. Its the stipulations she has had to work under which i previously mentioned that are the problem. Yes, they have spent money, and stupidly, which is exactly why Sherman is now making her work without taking on more salary.
Also, you previously asked he i would like them to spend. Honestly, im not a big proponent of spending in free agency at all, because youre usually going to get someone elses used goods and the majority of the time its an overpay for something they accomplished elsewhere that theyll never duplicate. I would prefer the team spend money to revamp their awful scouting and development and build the team the way it’s supposed to have been done for years, so they have a continuous pipeline much like the Rays.
She has done a fine job. Hopefully this opens the door for more GM’S of the female gender.
Correction: She’s done a fine job from the point of the Arraez trade and through the deadline. Prior to that, there was a lot of hit and miss in her moves. She’s had a good season this year, but you can’t pretend the previous two years didn’t happen…unless Sherman and anyone else knows for a fact that Jeter and Denbo prevented her from making moves that she wanted to make in those two previous years.
The Arraez trade would not have been possible if not for her doing a great job overall.
So, in other words, ignore the screwups that happened just as or more frequently that necessitated the Arraez trade?
Ahem…Anthony Bass, Floro, Cimber, and numerous relievers she brought in to fail. Avi Garcia. Jacob Stallings and Joey Wendle (failing to see they were done). Refusal to get a legit, proven Closer while spending money on unneeded pieces. Her massive fail at the 2022 Trade Deadline and the 2022 Winter Meetings after talking up a big game. Her inactivity from the 2022 Trade Deadline all the way until she was a couple weeks away from pitchers and catchers reporting and Marlins FanFest where the team’s brass always takes questions from fans. Her refusal to give opportunities to younger players who can fill roles over the mediocre veterans she brings in to push into those roles – Closer, Catcher, corner OFs, etc.
Yeah, great job overall…when you pretend the bad stuff didn’t happen.
Garcis – Jeter/Denbo.
Wendle – Jeter/Denbo
Stallings – Jeter/Denbo
Thanks for pointing out all of Jeter’s failures. It’s why he and Denbo are gone and she is still there.
So who made De La Cruz?
Why did Ng say she would fix the bullpen, then take credit when the trades and signings of bullpen in the 2020-21 offseason?
She’s taken credit for all of the moves you mentioned when they were done.
I think you’re obssessed with bashing Jeter as the problem. While I’m not a Jeter fan, I’m not going to lay blame only on him.
And before you talk about why he and Denbo are gone, remember, this article is about the Marlins not having signed Ng to an extension…so…
Since she didn’t make any of the calls before this offseason, that means she has done a good job the entire time she has held the reigns.
While Jeter and Denbo were still there, Ng was a figure head. A PR stunt by Jeter. Unfortunately for him and his friend Denbo, as soon as they were shitcanned, the team she put together started to do well. Turns out she has a lot of talent as a GM.
She got a closer, AJ Puk. .Bass, Floro, Cimber were all Jeter.
Um, she was on her own from the 2022 trade deadline on. She earned the bashing she got because of the poor performance she had all the way until the Arraez trade.
And if you want to give her the pass you did, then she can’t take credit for the scattered good moves that she has taken credit for previously.
Who exactly did she miss on at the 2022 trade deadline and why would they have spent trade capital in a season they were 17.5 games back and with no shot at contending at the deadline?
She DID make trades. She dumped Floro for a 2022 All Star and dumped Anthony Bass and Zach Pop for a top 100 prospect, Jordan Groshans.
She has not taken credit for “scattered good moves” prior to that. You have given her credit for moves that she didn’t make.
It wasn’t that she missed acquiring anyone iat the 2022 deadline, it was that she didn’t move pieces that she should have. All she was able to do was move Bass. All the while she had the opportnity to move Wendle, Stallings, Aguilar,and other pieces, which was expected and the fan base stood in support of because we knew our circumstance required it. However, she did nothing but the one trade. Then weeks after she didn’t trade Aguilar (anything would’ve sufficed) she let him go for nothing in order to clear a roster spot for younger players…something that everyone knew at the deadline. Aguilar went for nothing. And as we look at others like Wendle and Stallings, we’ll be letting go of them for nothing after this season too.
She dropped the ball at the 2022 deadline…period.
As for moves she didn’t make, we know she made the Avi Garcia move and the Soler move. Remember that Jeter left after the Garcia move because he wanted Castellanos? Denbo didn’t make tht move. it was Ng. She also made it clear that all the bullpen moves were hers starting from Day 1. She also took credit for the Yimi Garcia for De La Cruz trade (which was a good one), but that was while Jeter and Denbo were still here. so I guess you think she didn’t take credit for it
You’re actually now telling a Marlins fan that follows his team closely what the Marlins and Ng do. You may want to rethink that. She’s taken credit for every move that has been done since Day 1, especially the good ones….not so much on the bad ones.
Jeter was fired. He didn’t have a choice in the matter. Sherman showed him the door. He didn’t leave because of Castellanos. Frisaro had a great article on that last year.
Who in the world would have taken on Stallings and his .530 OPS at the deadline last season? Ng did get rid of Aguilar the only way she could. He was on the market prior to the deadline as several pieces on this site pointed out and no one made an offer because he had a negative WAR at the deadline.
She moved Bass and Floro.
Denbo in an interview after he was fired said that the only thing Ng did was show up at press conferences. That he made all the trades. Most people wrote that off as sour grapes, but that gibes with the types of moves made prior to the 2022 offseason and the type of moves made from that point on.
I live in Jupiter and never once read anything where Ng took credit for signings or trades before this past offseason.
I’ll be sitting in FL5 tomorrow for the Mets and Friday and Saturday for the Brewers. Come on down and say hello.
She should get a 4-year deal, but more than that I’d like to see an organization hire her out from under Sherman just to give him something to think about. SD fans already hate me, so I’ll say it – fire Preller and replace him with Ng. Let’s see what she does with that roster.
@solaris602
I think your roster is more of the problem. And yes, it’s Preller’s fault because he built that mess. I don’t think Ng can really fix it, especially with the commitment to Tatis. He is so similar to Stanton. He has big contract while having an injury history at a young age, and even though Stanton has never failed a PED test, Tatis is a PED user just like his dad was. How do you rid yourself of that contract cleanly? I doubt a team steps in and takes on his contract like the Yankees did with saving us from Stanton’s contract.
Then you have so many other issues.
Well, whether it’s Ng or someone else who inevitably follows Preller, they have to set out deconstructing that roster. Not sure it’s possible to get away clean from Tatis’ insane contract unless he does something epically stupid like Franco has done in TB. If left in place Preller will just keep doubling down on the roster he has by overpaying everyone to stay way past their shelf life regardless of results. It may be that Ng is the only one with balls big enough to follow that act.
Based upon Tatis’ performance in 2023, his contract is better than Machado or Bogaerts. Past cheater yes, stupid accident yes, bad contract no – even with the risk Tatis is still immature.
There is an opening in Boston.
If she already worked in New York, Boston won’t be a problem.
But she should keep her job in Miami, she’s earned it.
It’s not surprising that the Yankees have been near the forefront of hiring women. Lord knows, they’re pretty lousy at hiring men.
hope she lands the Tiger’s job
As pitch person for Frosted Flakes?
If Marlins don’t lock her into a new contract, her phone will definitely be ringing. I’m very happy to see women making progress in the sports industry as a whole. There is still more work to be done and I hope MLB continues to pave ways for people outside the norm.
Mostly everyone is trying to make a new and better “norm” – equal opportunity for everyone. The same people that bash DEI don’t realize that they are taking the same exact stance as all the bigots that didn’t want Jackie Robinson in MLB.
Hopefully she goes to Boston to work for a team with actual fan interest
As a friend of mine says, a female has to be twice as good as a male to get the opportunity.
Ng had more than paid her dues before getting this job. No surprise they are in playoff contention.
It takes a while to build something.
I think she and Krall of the Reds should both ger serious consideration for GM of the year.
They both weill. Their managers will be in the running as well for awards with the D-Backs front office and manager.
“Having the resume” and “having the no doubt best, most qualified resume” are two different concepts. She can be in the running, and the Red Sox can hire someone else. Neither is wrong.
Frankly this shouldn’t be a conversation. And I’m not even talking about gender politics. I’m referring to the fact she’s done the job the Marlins hired her to do, and they should retain her. They shouldn’t let it get to where the Red Sox can even interview her. Unless Miami has a line on a big dog like Theo, I don’t see how the grass is any greener than what they already have.
We’ll see what happens.
But personally, I wouldn’t consider Theo a true “big dog” other than media hype. He’s like the Phil Jackson of MLB, with payroll being his MJ, Scottie, Shaq ands Kobe. Theo would fail with a market that doesn’t spend big…like Phil did in NY when he was with Carmeeeeelo instead of a real superstar like he had in Chicago and LA…like Theo needed with payroll in Boston and Chicago.
As for Ng’s status with the Marlins, while I’m surprised she wasn’t already extended, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s allowed to walk. Let’s be honest. Until the Arraez trade and this year’s trade deadline, she was a lot of hit or miss in transactions, and many from our fan base and media were calling for her firing and were prepared to wait out this season for her departure. However, the team came in and won games, and she’s done with with adding Arraez, Bell, Burger, and others, while ridding us of the like of Cooper, Floro and a couple of other scrubs along the way.
Rogue – If Kim interviews for Bloom’s job, it would be a promotion to POBO. It’s an unwritten rule that MLB teams allow their employees to leave for higher positions.
If Ng’s contract expires, then there’s no unwritten rules for Boston to worry about.
She wouldn’t need permission to leave because her contract is up in a few weeks with the Marlins and there’s absolutely no way her track record would warrant a POBO title. That’s only done when people think you are guaranteed to bring a title to the town and have done so in the past. Theo Epstein was considered a rainmaker and so he was given an extra title to lure him, but her record absolutely does not warrant that type of incentive, in fact just getting a GM job in Boston over Miami would be a promotion.
She’s a horrible GM and just listening to her talk about baseball makes me cringe. No, it’s not because she’s a woman, but one has to wonder if she’s really one of the 30 best potential GMs in baseball without being a woman. I know everyone wants to talk about affirmative action, but I believe in merit based hiring and promotions. There’s probably a place for her in the baseball world and if purely by merit standards a woman is as competent as a male candidate, I would be willing to hire the woman, but I don’t see merit or competence in her interviews. This is like all the excitement over a girl throwing 84 mph in Australia.
Forget the politics and the affirmative action of finding roles for women in men’s sports and the reality is that Kim Ng has had very pedestrian results as a GM. Ng has made a lot of really unjustified moves like taking a GG caliber 2B (Chisholm) who is injury prone and putting him in CF, taking a guy (Segura) who is essentially a career 2B and moving him to 3B, then taking a guy (Arraez) who really should be playing 1B and moving him to 2B. Then they take a guy who is a #2 or #3 starter (Alcantara) and making him off-limits when they have tons of pitching in their system and needed hitters.
I get Sandy Alcantara was coming off a Cy Young caliber season, but his peripheral numbers never painted him as a clear #1 or #2 despite a 100 mph fastball. The biggest question with a guy throwing that hard who only posts a 8 K/9 IP is what happens when he loses a couple miles per hour and his average movement/spin becomes an average fastball?! The answer is he’ll face struggles and a level of mediocrity where he flirts with success for short periods of time. Alcantara to me is Ubaldo Jimenez 2.0, everyone loves the stuff, but it never turns out to be as unhittable as the speed gun tells us.
A good GM would’ve navigated those things better, either she’s not capable of doing what it takes to make a winning team or she lacks a strong enough voice with ownership to do what she sees as good organizational decisions for the team. Either way incompetence or fear of speaking up to the owners of the organization leads to the same problem of a team that fails to perform on the field. I am even more bullish about this analysis with how they keep drafting pitchers even in 2023 with a draft class that was much deeper in hitters than pitchers. They took Khalil Watson only to trade him away when they couldn’t develop him, which are signs of poor roster construction, drafting, and development across the organization. It shouldn’t even be hard to get players to want to come to South Florida.
Yes, it’s because she’s a woman.
Players go where there is the most money, plain and simple. It doesn’t matter if the options are Cleveland or Miami, they are taking the money. There might be a handful of players every decade that take less money to be with a specific organization. So you get what you pay for. It’s why Jeter left the organization. He wanted to finally spend money to put veterans around a young core and ownership said nah we will just continue to do things the Marlin way so he said F off and left.
And after all you said it definitely sounds like the biggest issue you have with the situation is that she’s a woman lol.
Definitely doing a better job than Farthands.
I would say something about the dreaded Vote of Confidence, but it seems like she actually has the team on the right track. It would be silly not to bring her back unless she chooses to leave the organization.
Until she brings back the og uniforms on a permanent basis she is mid.
lol. I think us Marlins fans will always want those good ole teal jerseys, caps and helmets. I’d love to see a new creation of them with our current brand. That would be sweet! Also would love a the current brand version of the ole teal pinstripe uniforms with the teal caps and helmets.
i love their city connect unis does the fan base like them?
Yes we do. They have style.
I’m liking the D-Backs city connect. I’ve not seen beige/mustard uniforms look that good.
i agree it’s like a custard color great serpentine logo as well
You aren’t authorized wear those jerseys one a full-time basis. You’re the MIAMI Marlins. The only slim glory the franchise has left is the championship regalia of the FLORIDA Marlins. Yes, the 20th Anniversary WS Champ Season was this year, from the FLORIDA Marlins.
Lastly, she isn’t authorized to bring those back either. It’s the best uniform in baseball history and Loria ruined it. It’s been 12 years.
Uniform choice is obviously the most important criterion for evaluating a GM.
was waiting for some hysterical reactionary to bring marxism into the conversation
Marxism? You must mean the DEI nonsense mentioned a few times. Good grief.
Lol neither of you have the foggiest idea of what Marxism is do you? When the players and club’s other workers collectively try to take over ownership of a team then it might make sense to drop the m bomb. Till then keep dragging those knuckles fellas.
Lol you don’t have to be a Marxist to have a grasp on what Marxism is. You do have to have a brain, an inclination to learn things and pick up a book from time to time though. You done wallowing in your own ignorance yet champ?
Dear Peter Seidler: Fire Preller, hire Ng!
For some reason, I recall that the Padres either talked to her or the media was suggesting they should…
It’s obvious that Peter Seidler has an unhealthy loyalty to AJ Preller, because nobody can get away with that much crap without having some other motivating factor influencing them.
She’s done a great job. Certainly much better than her former boss Brian in NY 🙂
It’s so simple
Fire Cashman. Bye Felicia.
Hire Jeter. The Dark Knight returns.
Hire Ng. Let her build a elite system.
Become the Yankees again.
Boom.
“You merely adopted the dark; I was born in it, molded by it.”
She’s done alright.
I mean she’s done a lot better than the Mets and like any gm she’s made some good moves made some bad moves. But that’s true of any gm in this game.
She’s got them in a playoff hunt. I’d give her 1 2 3 more seasons see how she does. There’s definitely holes to fill but let’s give her a little more time.
Article doesn’t really mention what Miami’s budget is ng has to work
With or signing and developing draft prospects. But Marlins have certainly improved over the last few seasons.if all else fails, just relocate the team to New Orleans.
Amazing people still pay attention to gender race orientation.
Middle of the pack gm. Doesn’t stand out either way. That’s not bad and extension is justified. If salary demands are much higher I would move on. So many owners are awful at hiring gms so I would recommend keeping the solid one you have.
The Angels definitely need her!
The Marlins have some pieces. Josh Bell is coming back down to Earth. She’s seemed to unlock something more from Jake Burger. He’s a nice bat but should really be stuck at DH.
The long term problems are up the middle though. Chisholm was converted to a CF. He’s an exciting player but hasn’t been able to stay on the field. Don’t know if he’ll stick there long term.
They don’t have a catcher or a SS either. The best teams in baseball are solid up the middle.
But any team that can pitch will stick around. The Marlins can certainly pitch. The risk is that their more like the current Guardians than a legitimate contender. They haven’t developed a ton of their own young hitters to date and their system isn’t particularly strong in that category.
If she can make more savvy moves, like Burger and Bell, you may have a real team. But those guys are bat first corner players. They don’t require the outlay that a real catcher and SS will cost. She has work to do; but you have to be impressed with what she has accomplished this season. I was skeptical prior to.
Marlins are letting Ng twist in the breeze. She’s done well & that wayward franchise needs continuity. Also, acquire a few of Cuban players. The ballpark sits in such a strong Cuban community – seems like a no brainer, in terms of PR, to appeal to the local culture.
Soler & Gurriel say Hi.
Thanks, MJM, tell him I say “hi” right back. Never said they had no Cubans. Bring in more – great new call culture.
Gurriel said “ Que bola “
I hate the premise of Bringing in anyone because of their nationality. Who and what do they actually bring to the team? Should they add another guy who should be at DH like Lourdes Gurriel cause he’s Cuban? Hate that. Fill your roster holes.
Build a team that wins and you build up fan base support.
The Marlins have been trying to build a winning team for a while with limited success. Nothing wrong with bringing in guys from certain backgrounds. MLB is a business – strategies matter. Appeal to the local culture. Nobody has an issue with the Montreal Canadiens bringing in French players. Nothing wrong with representing the local culture, it just sounds good to be offended by such a notion.
Do you think the Red Sox come calling?
You know what might be really interesting? Instead of everyone saying how fantastic Ng is, or how unqualified she is, maybe try listing her best five and worst five moves?
Joe;
She was being condemned by Marlins fans here until 3 or so months into the season.
She hired Skip Schumaker to manage, and HE (and the coaches he brought in) is the reason for the Marlins turnaround. The game is played on the field. Schumaker has used his roster well, moving players around and putting them in good situations….as well as having his coaches working on their fundamentals.
It also helps that short of the top 2 NL teams – Braves and Phillies – all the others have major shortcomings.
MLB is played on a field. It’s not Rotisserie League.
Does the trade rumors team know that the Marlins’ park is far removed from South Beach? A 20 min drive in good traffic.