The Marlins are still in the middle of a playoff race in 2023 but there’s at least one thing already on their to-do list this winter. Per a report from Barry Jackson, Jordan McPherson and Craig Mish at the Miami Herald, the Marlins are planning to try to upgrade at shortstop this winter.
The plan is a fairly logical one, as most of their playing time at that position has gone to Joey Wendle, who is an impending free agent. The club would likely be considering alternatives at short even if he weren’t bound for the open market, given his poor season. The 33-year-old has hit a meager .222/.257/.323 this year, which translates to a wRC+ of 54. That indicates he has been 46% worse than the league average hitter. Among those with at least 250 plate appearances this year, only eight hitters have a lower wRC+ than Wendle.
He’s still considered strong with the glove by Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating, but his Outs Above Average dropped to -3 this year. “It’s been a challenging year for me,” Wendle says in the report. “I’m more frustrated than anybody else about it. Just been unable to make some adjustments.”
With Wendle set to depart, the Marlins will be left with internal options like Jon Berti, Garrett Hampson and Jacob Amaya. Berti has hit .253/.330/.354 in his career and is at .278/.316/.355 this year. He can provide value with his legs, having stolen 41 bases last year, but that’s down to just 14 so far this season. He’s generally considered a strong defender all over the field but his subpar bat makes him a better fit for a utility role off the bench than an everyday shortstop.
It’s a fairly similar story for Hampson. He’s having decent results here in 2023 but his .398 batting average on balls in play is giving him a boost. His career batting line of .242/.303/.375 amounts to a wRC+ of 70. He’s also considered strong with the glove but is best suited to a multi-positional gig.
Amaya made his major league debut this year but got into just four games. He’s hit .254/.344/.409 at Triple-A this year for a wRC+ of 89, or 11% below the average at that level. He still has one option year remaining after this one and could be kept in the minors as depth if the club doesn’t think he’s ready for a lengthier big league audition. There’s no obvious solution deeper in the system, with prospects like Yiddi Cappe and Nasim Nuñez having poor years at the plate in the minors.
Given all those factors, it makes sense that the Marlins will look for exterior solutions, but there will be challenges in doing so. The upcoming free agent class is light on position players and the crop of shortstops is no exception. Amed Rosario is one of the top options, though his defensive marks are quite poor and he’s also having a down year at the plate. Each of Defensive Runs Saved, Ultimate Zone Rating and Outs Above Average have put a negative sign on his shortstop defense this year. He’s shown some offensive prowess in the past but is hitting just .259/.300/.374 this year for a wRC+ of 85.
Beyond him, the options include utility/depth guys like Gio Urshela, Paul DeJong, Nick Ahmed and others. Tim Anderson could be available if the White Sox turn down his option, but that’s no guarantee and the only reason it’s possible is that he’s also having a poor season. He’s hitting just .240/.284/.294 for a wRC+ of 59 with subpar defensive marks across the board.
Turning to the trade market would be another option, but everyday shortstops tend to be highly valued and aren’t easily surrendered. The Orioles and Guardians have plenty of young infielders but the best ones would likely be close to untouchable, leaving the Marlins to choose from unproven options. Ha-Seong Kim has been moved to second base by the Padres signing Xander Bogaerts, but he is having a quietly excellent year and likely wouldn’t come cheap. He’s also only a short-term solution, with 2024 being the final guaranteed year of his contract. Players like Vaughn Grissom, Maikel Garcia and Tommy Edman are theoretical trade candidates since they are blocked on their respective clubs, but they don’t have to be traded since they can each be moved to other positions. Even if anyone in this group is available, the Marlins would likely be competing with other clubs in need of shortstop help, such as the Giants or Dodgers.
Regardless of the difficulty, the Marlins will have to come up with solutions if they have designs on competing again next year. Their shortstops this season have hit a collective .232/.267/.317 for a wRC+ of 56, the worst offensive production in the league.
The Yankees have a few and could use some pitching help….
The Padres have even more but they’ll probably buy a few more this offseason.
Are any of them better than Wendle?
Reds are flush with shortstops and need pitching.
Reds have a few great options for SS. They should deal Marte for pitching. Keep de la Cruz, he seems very special.
Maybe the Marlins would like Javy Baez? Probably wouldn’t cost much and he has the potential to be a solid player… worst case, he’s a glove first SS.
That would most certainly involve the Tigers taking Avi Garcia off the Marlins hands to accommodate some of the salary.
Even with that, Baez has two additional years, so the Tigers would still need to add money…and that’s assuming that the Tigers want a second run of Garcia after the first run.
Ok, it’s a simple case of supply and demand. To get a good shortstop, who are the Fish willing to part with? And would they even remotely consider trading Eury?
How about a Ceddanne Rafaela for Eury Perez trade? I could see some hesitation on the Marlins’ part given the results of the Chisholm trade but the Marlins need a shortstop and the Red Sox need an ace.
Great idea, aside from the fact that he’s a CF not a shortstop.
Rafaela has multi position eligibility and has already played 28 innings at shortstop in the majors.
And in that brief showing at SS, he’s looked in over his head. I agree with Seam, I think he’s soon to show he’s an outfielder only.
He’s had a strong defensive reputation throughout his time in the minors. It would be pretty foolish to make a permanent decision on his future position based on such a small sample.
And why would the Marlins trade an Ace (you said it) for a poor defending SS?
The case is even worse thinking that Sandy might need TJ and miss next year.
Rafaela for Cabrera sounds more reasonable.
You should really read the scouting reports firsthand as he has consistently graded well above average defensively at SS. His range has been characterized as excellent. The issue is consistency, which can be addressed with further playing time at the position. The Red Sox believe in him enough to give him the reps.
This is not fantasy baseball. No such thing as multi-position eligibility. Can he play SS? probably. He played it well in the minors.
Would the Marlins trade a starting pitcher for a prospect? Probably not just one. They are also likely to want pitching back. So, what MLB ready pitcher does the pitching poor Red Sox org send along with Rafaela?
“Boston’s Minor League defensive player of the year in 2021 and 2022, Rafaela can provide quality glovework with advanced instincts almost anywhere on the diamond. He saw most of his action last year in center field, where he’s a Gold Glover waiting to happen with outstanding range along with plus arm strength. He’s also a plus defender at shortstop and has spent time at second base, third base and both outfield corners in the past.”
Marlins need to send Sandy along with Eury for Rafaela, and since Sandy will probably miss next year (possible TJ), Marlins need to pay off his entire salary.
Fish might need to include some supplemental draft pics and/or future international pool money for the future if Sandy doesn’t come back in late ‘24 or early ‘25 for the future MVP in Rafaela.
I think the Marlins should also put Arraez in the trade just to get the Red Sox fans interested and willing to part with Rafaela. Maybe even throw in a Udonis Marlins jersey, and see if they can include Messi as well.
Johnny Cueto is available.
We all understand the wRC+ stat by this time so why does MLBTR explain it at least once in every article they write?
Do you know X was formerly Twitter? Good God, every news caster that quotes someone off of X has to add that in. We know already.
What I don’t know is if it’s still called “tweeting” if it’s on X? It is “Exting”
Because there are new readers here every day. The site is not just for long time readers.
Awful idea
Soto is 24 he’s not moving to the least athletic position that he’s never played before. Also why would they sign a 1B too in that scenario. And trading arguably your best position player this year makes no sense for a team that needs all the help they can get.
He was way more value with below average defense in the outfield than at first base. He probably loses 100 million is free agency if he can’t play the outfield there’s no way he’d agree to that in his contract year. And might as well have your best team possible in Soto’s contract year which Kim would be a big part of.
Burn
Soto being 24 and absolutely horrendous in the outfield are not mutually exclusive. He has no business being out there but will likely continue to play there for some odd reason. His defensive value is negative. He might as well DH.
You were confused about moving Soto to 1B and them signing a 1B as a free agent? I was confused by “But Padres playing in South Korea next year so doubt they move Kim.”
Padres are moving to South Korea?
So trade Soto. He’s a bat only player, in his option year. There is little offence in FA. There would be a line waiting to make offers.
What 1B FA was better this year than the one they have? Cronenworth stunk. How does he compare to the other options? This site has already listed the couple that are available and I don’t see them being better.
Soto is much more valuable in the OF than at 1B.
Kim is not only their best position player this year, he is their most marketable player regardless of the Korea Series. He is 4th in MLB in endorsement money and that correlates to sponsorship dollars. He is not in Ohtani range, but 4th is outstanding. Baseball is a business. If I’m their owner I’m not moving a player that is not only good on the field and a fan favorite, but one of the biggest corporate favorites in the game.
Why would the Padres be hard pressed to extend Kim? They already drew over 3 million, sold out a record number of games, by all accounts increased their TV revenue and sponsorships, and according to their CEO are pulling in a profit this year even with that huge payroll. Another one I just don’t see.
He’s not absolutely horrendous. Over the last 3 seasons he has a -2 DRS. Below average but not terribly far below. He ranks 26th of players with a qualifying number of innings played in the OF. That includes all 3 positions. He is not Taylor or Kwan but he is also not Schwarber or Castellanos.
Chan Ho Park works for the Padres.
Bellinger, but he will be paid to play CF somewhere.
Maybe Candelario, but he will be paid to play 3B somewhere.
If Hoskins had not suffered a horrific injury that caused him to miss all of 2023 and that will significantly impact his already bad range at 1B, he might fit the bill at 1B. But then he was not much better of an offensive player in 2021-2022 than Cronenworth was.
The biggest issue for the Padres is Cronenworth’s contract. Unless they can trade him to a team that wants him to play 2B and that sees him as the player that put up 4+ WAR in 2021-2022 then he will be the Padres 1B.
Soto will continue to play OF, although I believe they will move Tatis to CF and play Soto in his more comfortable RF in 2024. Grisham then becomes a 4th OF if the Padres sign Lee.
Maybe, like Ohtani, he wants to play on a winning team. Padres may want to sign him, and are fiscally capable, but his opinion matters. He might want to play SS. Can’t do that in SD.
Padres are at $174 million including all their arbitration eligible players and pre- arbitration players. Add $5.5 million for Carpenter and $8 million for Martinez because both will exercise their player options. So $187 million total. Their owner has said that payroll in 2024 will be the same as 2023, so around $275 million. That leaves them $92 million to spend and stay at 2023 level of spending.
You are trying to say they should pay Kim $20 million AAV?
Soto is still arbitration eligible so they are not losing him.
Padres are the kings of extending pitchers they like so none of the others with player options are certain to be gone. Wacha and Lugo were their #5 and #6 starters coming into the season. Those are guys that can be replaced if they do leave without breaking the bank.
Hader is going to get $20 million AAV and I don’t think the Padres will pay that for a reliever. When this season started most Padres fans on here thought Suarez was his heir apparent.
Snell is the one they will miss if he leaves and he is going to get something close to what Rodon got in FA. 6 years with an AAV in the $26-28 million range. Maybe the Padres do what they have done with so many others and give him the same money over 8-9 years?
All that is to say the Padres well still have a very good team and have all the money they need to fill the holes.
Tatis wants to play CF. He will be an exceptional defensive player regardless of position and his offense in CF is more valuable because there are fewer CF that hit even as well as he did this season.
Grisham can’t hit so he is better suited to backup or 4th OF duty.
Lee is probably going to get posted by the Heroes and the Padres are a big favorite to sign him.
No way cheapskate Reinsdorf will pay anyone more than $3m a year, so the Sox will go for the $1m buyout. Anderson could go to Miami and be reunited with Burger and Cueto, and I’d finally have a team I could be proud of supporting.
Collecting White Sox players isn’t anything to be proud of.
TA was almost traded to Miami until Kenny got in the way
Call Minnesota about Correa. Twins and Marlins seem to like trading with each other.
Well, the Twins would no doubt be happy to unload Correa’s contract already, no team is picking it up in full so the Twins would have to eat a lot of the contract or toss in talent going back to Miami. Both of those scenarios are Derek Falvey cutting bait and admitting another big mistake when he’s already on the hot seat.
Why exactly did they sign Correa, anyway? MIN just seemed beholden to provide him a landing spot without concern for why the Giants and Mets bailed.
Because he was considered to be in the discussion of best shortstop in baseball, under 30 years old and they got him at 6yrs guaranteed, and the Twins needed a good shortstop.
Royce Lewis coming off his 2nd ACL tear and poor defensive marks with all the errors and definitely not ready for the start of the year. Brooks Lee? Just drafted in 2021, surely not expected to be ready by this year, and questionable at SS even if he was. Austin Martin? Dreadful year last year and very, very pushed to play SS with his weak arm and poor error rate.
Shouldn’t have traded Khalil Watson
About as “not a shortstop” as infielders get.
How’s he doing in the minors?
4 words… trade for Javy Baez!!!
Marlins fans might think this is a horrible idea but I personally don’t. Things are not clicking for Javy offensively in Detroit although his defense, for the most part, has been great. Tigers would end up eating most of this his contract and he’d probably hit better in FL. He’s still young enough to rebound. Plus, he lives there. Tigers have at least three middle infielders waiting in the wings who will probably be MLB-ready in 2024 and are going to have to figure out something to do with them.
Unless the Tigers pay a good chunck of the remain of the contract, that is not happening.
Sherman’s money will go to retaining Bell and maybe, maybe offer a QO to Soler.
Yeah, like every last dollar of the contract. Baez is MiLB roster filler at this point.
I love the idea, but none of those IF in Detroit are best played at SS. Zack Short is Javy lite, with both the bat and glove. He’d likely be the replacement, if that occurred.
Eddys Leonard and Ryan Kreidler both play a decent shortstop and could be potential replacements. Kreidler seems to finally be healthy and turning a corner – hit 3 homers for the Hens last night.
Any trade of the Marlins getting Baez will start with two lines…
1 – Tigers take on Avi Garcia.
2 – Tigers send money to cover extra years beyond Avi Garcia contract.
If you guys are looking at a potential trade, consider this.
Three-way deal of contracts teams want out of.
Braves get Avi Garcia
Tigers get Marcell Ozuna
Marlins get Javy Baez
And money exchanging hands to close the deal.
How do you see this trade suggestion? And who says no (if any says no)?
Pads should give the Marlins Boegarts. Eat a bunch of his salary and get a few prospects…
They should be pleased with Xander and they are trying to contend as far as I know.
It’s such a ridiculous take to get rid of Boegarts. He’s going to end with close to 4 bWAR when the season ends. Even if he had put up MVP numbers, it wouldn’t have changed the Padres’ fate this season.
Their best SS is Kim. As long as Mr Ego is on the team, you can’t play your best SS at SS.
Bogaerts was better at SS the last couple of seasons overall. There are 2 sides to the game and no one can see into the future.
GM’s make decisions based on what happened in the past. It is all they can go on. Bogaerts was far better than Kim in 2021-2022. 5.5 WAR average vs 3.5 WAR average. There was no reason to think that someone as consistent as Bogaerts would drop off from the 5.5 WAR he averaged the previous 2 seasons to around a 4.0 WAR this season.
Better than Kim?
Yes, there was a reason to expect it. He was changing leagues.
Bogaerts was significantly better than Kim in 2021-2022. Even in just 2022 he was a better overall player.
With the balanced schedule there is little that would predict that kind of change in performance. Nothing.
The fact is that all the predictive models showed him continuing to play at the same level.
Again…this is why I would have liked to see certain guys get opportunities since all the way back in May/June b/c you should find out what you already have in the organization before wasting a bunch of money on Avisail Garcia when you never needed it in the first place…
Agreed. Avi Garcia no longer has a spot on the Marlins other than being a potential distraction at this point.
The point was to see what you have before wasting money/assets on someone you dont need
The FA class is very meh this year so maybe they can do another prospect/prospect trade with a pitcher going out
What about trade w/Cardinals for Edman, Herrera & O’Neill for young Lefty Garrett & Max Meyer(sp)
Joey Ortiz and Jorge Mateo for Max Meyer.
J.P. Crawford for James Wood..
Come on Jerry, get it done.
Nats don’t need a SS
If Joc Pederson is improving your outfield, you are in deep trouble.
Tim Anderson hitting in front of Arraez would make the Marlins a menace
Tim Anderson has been a dumpster fire this season. He is not anyone’s solution at SS for 2024
Javy Baez sure would look great in a Marlins uniform!
I actually think Willy Adames back to the Rays would be a nice, short term match. I expect the Brewers to try to trade him before his last arby year. Brewers will want to move Turang to SS as soon as possible and have a lack of upper level pitching depth in the minors (marlins are in a much better spot). I would assume the brewers would part with him for a few cost controlled middle of the line pitching prospects. IE. Serviceable arm ceilings.
A less expensive salary option might be to ask the Mets for Ronnie Mauricio, a natural Shortstop blocked by Francisco Lindor. But he would also be a much more expensive option from a talent/prospect standpoint going back the other way, certainly based on all the other options listed in this story or the comments. But he would be the youngest most controllable option mentioned.
It may also depend on how much the Mets value Jett Williams in their system, who if he continues to develop would be blocked behind Mauricio/Lindor provided that by the time Williams is ready, Lindor hasn’t been moved to another position.
Or trade for Tristan Gray from the Rays. He had now had two very similar seasons at Durham, been at AAA 3 years now without a sniff of Big league coffee brewing much less a cup.
Can play 3d and a little 2b, but primarily a SS.
W comes with 20 HR potential and just may be worth a shot.
Marlins are not looking for another MiLB SS, who is unproven at the MLB level. They already have those.
Joc and Taylor do not make this team better. Soto may not be a good fielder but his bat more then covers up any defensive issues.
If they sign lee they move Tatis to center and trade Grisham.
I don’t think the padres trade Kim but they maybe be able to acquire Jackson Merrill. Which fits the marlins better because he will be cheap for years.
He is a top 10 prospects in baseball and likely can make the jump to the majors next year. This gives the marlins a long term cheap high end talent at the position. They would have to trade a lot to get him but that’s probably one of the better options. Free agent shortstops aren’t going to be out there this year. Heck most of the good ones outside of Kim are locked up for awhile. I also expect the padres to extend Kim as well.
White Sox are the most unlikable team in sports, they traded the one player fans liked in Jake Burger and kept Moncado and Anderson who they jate
@Jack Buckley
We like Jake Burger in Miami too.
Tell your GM that us Marlins fans say thank you!
A far less exciting option is Kyle Farmer from the Twins for a BP arm or two. 99 OPS+, 1.6 WAR compared to Wendle’s numbers that’s a pretty big upgrade for likely not much cost. Also, the Twins have a few other utility players and infield prospects they need to make room for and at least two BP spots to fill. Cheap and fits both team’s needs. Like I said not exciting but probably another good baseball trade like Arraez/Lopez.
Yep. The Twins picked up Farmer because he was a known quantity and could adequately play starting SS for cheap. Over the course of a full year, he’s a cheap 1.5-2.0 WAR shortstop.
Also, I’d be shocked if the Twins didn’t move him this offseason.
Which starter from the Marlins would be most likely to be dealt for a starting shortstop?
I think Correa would be a good fit there. But, the Marlins are cheap. Maybe a trade with the Reds?
The Guardians would make sense here. At some point they’ll have to make a decision on at least one of Arias, Rocchio, or Freeman. Whoever they decide to move could be a fit with Miami.
Gimenez is the most expensive, has the least control, so is most likely the one traded.
Nick Ahmed is solid defensively and isn’t terrible at the plate and can probably be had pretty cheap.
DeJong’s offense has cratered since leaving St.Louis and should only be offered a minor league deal.
Best advice any can give Ng is to avoid “Jackie” like the plague
Joey Wendle has a fun trade tree that sees the Rangers eventually net Jonah Heim from the A’s via the Rays.
Atkins will trade them Bo for 2 relievers and a right handed Dalton Varsho. Wait they just need to sign Randal Grichuk back. So just 2 relievers. Probably will throw in Orelvis Martinez to sweeten the deal.
I really think the Marlins are not going to be shopping at the top of the market either in terms of MLB players or prospects.
Think a trade for that good backup SS that will cost them a minor league pitcher or a reliever or two.
With Wendle putting up a 0.2 WAR and 56 OPS+ they don’t have to set the world on fire to get significantly better at SS.
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This is what I’ve been thinking. The Marlins have contended this year with a statue SS who is an automatic out at the plate. They don’t need to reinvent the wheel there. However, they will need to address another item – a stable run producer in the middle of the lineup.
they will also need to look at an upgrade at Catcher – whether that be a vast improvement in a starting Catcher or getting a quality platoon/backup type to replace Stallings.
With Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg doing so well, I can see Jorge Mateo in MIA for pitching.
Soto might not be a good defensive outfielder, but the guy has never played 1B before. Chances are, he’d probably be worse at 1B than lF. Trust me, as a Pirates fan who’s last 1B to post back to back seasons with 2.0 fWAR was in the 80s, and has watched the likes of Josh Bell and Pedro Alvarez at first base, having a horrible defender at the position is extremely noticable.