2K24: Miami Marlins

[Controller Jacobs]

Baseball Reference Page
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cot's contracts - team page
cot's contracts - 2014 spreadsheet
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fangraphs - team page
fangraphs - park factors

prospects - rhd, with team highlighted

[joncarlos]

They are reportedly shopping LoMo, which would mean there is exactly one interesting hitter on this team. I like Yelich but I want to see some power or some speed or something before I go crazy.

The starting pitchers are really interesting - Fernandez obviously, but Eovaldi, Turner and Henderson Alvarez.

Which guy from High A will make an impact for them this year?

[Don Quixote]

Rumor has it that the Marlins are talking to Garrett Jones. If true, this would probably mean they're going to deal Morrison.

Other than signing Saltalamacchia, the Marlins haven't done anything of note this off-season. I thought the Clippers in their "prime" were the classic going-nowhere-but-content-to-make-small-money backwater in the major sports; I stand corrected.

[Don Quixote]

From Rotoworld--

"Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports that the Marlins have discussed internally the possibility of trading for Sean Rodriguez to fill their void at third base.
The Rays are known to have interest in Logan Morrison, whom the Marlins are expected to deal, so the two teams could easily line up for trade purposes. The 28-year-old Rodriguez, who has been known to destroy left-handed pitching, is a career .228/.304/.360 hitter."

Rodriguez is a lifetime .252/.352/.398/.750 hitter vs. LHP, which to me hardly qualifies as "has been known to destroy left-handed pitching". Against RHP, he's .211/.268/.335/.603. For this as a regular 3B, they'd give up the highly-regarded (but injury-prone and probably overrated) Morrison?

[Moonlight J]

Sean Rodriguez isn't an everyday player. He cannot hit RH

[Don Quixote]

Sean Rodriguez isn't an everyday player. He cannot hit RH

The Marlins are reportedly interested in signing Juan Uribe to play 3B. That would be more like it. The drawback is that Uribe wants a three-year deal, which I doubt Miami will give him.

[mgwiz22]

From Rotoworld--

"Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports that the Marlins have discussed internally the possibility of trading for Sean Rodriguez to fill their void at third base.
The Rays are known to have interest in Logan Morrison, whom the Marlins are expected to deal, so the two teams could easily line up for trade purposes. The 28-year-old Rodriguez, who has been known to destroy left-handed pitching, is a career .228/.304/.360 hitter."

Rodriguez is a lifetime .252/.352/.398/.750 hitter vs. LHP, which to me hardly qualifies as "has been known to destroy left-handed pitching". Against RHP, he's .211/.268/.335/.603. For this as a regular 3B, they'd give up the highly-regarded (but injury-prone and probably overrated) Morrison?

As a Marlins fan, I read this report with some disgust as I also felt that Morrison should fetch more back than Rodriguez. Perhaps if Tampa threw in a prospect they could work out a fair deal, but hey look what the Marlins took from Tampa for a decent shortstop before last year.

[Don Quixote]

From Rotoworld--

"ESPN's Buster Olney hears Michael Young is drawing interest from four different teams.
Young's days of being a productive starter are probably over, but the 37-year-old can still be a useful bench player for someone. He hit .279/.335/.395 between the Phillies and Dodgers in 2013 while playing primarily at third base. The Orioles and Red Sox were said to be interested in the infielder earlier in the offseason, but it's unclear which four teams are currently in on Young."

Miami was my first thought here. The Marlins could do worse than Young on a one-year deal. I'm not saying he's much good anymore, but he's better than what they have now and probably wouldn't cost much.

[mgwiz22]

I understand why you feel this way but I hope they find another solution. Young would be an expensive player who I don't think would be better than AAAA solution.

From Rotoworld--

"ESPN's Buster Olney hears Michael Young is drawing interest from four different teams.
Young's days of being a productive starter are probably over, but the 37-year-old can still be a useful bench player for someone. He hit .279/.335/.395 between the Phillies and Dodgers in 2013 while playing primarily at third base. The Orioles and Red Sox were said to be interested in the infielder earlier in the offseason, but it's unclear which four teams are currently in on Young."

Miami was my first thought here. The Marlins could do worse than Young on a one-year deal. I'm not saying he's much good anymore, but he's better than what they have now and probably wouldn't cost much.

[Erik]

We know what Young is at this point: a defensive butcher who hits into a lot of double plays. The Marlins can find someone else to do that for way cheaper.

[Don Quixote]

From the Miami Herald via Rotoworld--

"The Marlins are looking at Casey McGehee and Wilson Betemit in their attempts to land a third baseman.
McGehee, 31, is coming off a big year in Japan in which he hit .289/.371/.512 with 27 homers, but it sounds like he'd rather play in MLB if the money is similar. That probably means a team will have to offer him at least $2.5 million-$3 million. Betemit is the better bet of the two offensively, but defense is a big issue there, making him a less-than-ideal option."

Casey McGehee. Wow, there's a bad extension name from my past. Had him for a buck, talked myself into extending him a year after that one terrific year he had, wound up with a $6 sh** sandwich that last year. Good defender IIRC.

Betemit has always been a "great almost" to me. Almost a regular, almost a good hitter. Something always has kept him from landing a really full-time gig--injuries, untimely slumps, being blocked by a similar player, indifferent defense, etc. He's always been interesting, dating back to his days as a Braves prospect.

Neither would turn the Marlins into a winner (God Almighty Himself, if He exists, couldn't do THAT), but either would bear watching should one sign and win the 3B job. You take your Roto numbers where you can get them.

[Bodhizefa]

At least the Mariners aren't the Marlins. What a f*cking embarrassment of an organization.

[Fresno Bob]

the Marlins are the reason there should be a salary floor to go with the luxury tax ceiling

[mgwiz22]

the Marlins are the reason there should be a salary floor to go with the luxury tax ceiling

I disagree with your criticism. It could be that I am simply naturally penurious but I do not believe that teams have spent money wisely this off season-including the Marlins.
Free agents are receiving sums that their skill levels do not justify. Who would you have signed to play third base? Should they have signed Cano, Cruz, or Ellsbury?

The Marlins should have kept Lomo and Webb, not signed Jones and released Ruggiano. This would have saved them money and, I feel, made them a better team. At the third base position the options simply haven't been worth signing. Of the possible third basemen, that have been available in free agency, none are of the quality to be a sure difference maker. The best might be Youkilis who might not be able to play third base any longer and wants to stay on the West coast. I cannot say that Uribe is a better player than McGehee or Betemit and the Dodgers gave him a pretty nice contract. It seems better that the Marlins didn't beat the Dodger offer for Uribe so that if a player who can help them becomes available they still have those resources. The Marlins are not at the stage of team development where they should be spending to sign the people that are and were available.

[Hornsby]

I disagree with your criticism. It could be that I am simply naturally penurious but I do not believe that teams have spent money wisely this off season-including the Marlins.
Free agents are receiving sums that their skill levels do not justify. Who would you have signed to play third base? Should they have signed Cano, Cruz, or Ellsbury?

The Marlins should have kept Lomo and Webb, not signed Jones and released Ruggiano. This would have saved them money and, I feel, made them a better team. At the third base position the options simply haven't been worth signing. Of the possible third basemen, that have been available in free agency, none are of the quality to be a sure difference maker. The best might be Youkilis who might not be able to play third base any longer and wants to stay on the West coast. I cannot say that Uribe is a better player than McGehee or Betemit and the Dodgers gave him a pretty nice contract. It seems better that the Marlins didn't beat the Dodger offer for Uribe so that if a player who can help them becomes available they still have those resources. The Marlins are not at the stage of team development where they should be spending to sign the people that are and were available.

I'm not here to disagree with your assessment of the quality of the signings, just your statements about the amount of dollars spent. People have to realize that the game is now simply awash in money, each and every franchise has loads of cash, enough to sign virtually anyone they wish. And is the players don't get some of it in the form of increased contracts and free agent deals, it goes into the owners pockets. Now a businessman is certainly entitled to make a profit, but in the entertainment industry, which sports is a part of, I'd demand that the product be as good as possible. And that comes with increased spending...