9:44pm: Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel was assured this evening that Dan Uggla will not be traded this winter. Additonally, Mike Berardino says the Marlins won’t be signing Ivan Rodriguez for a second stint.
6:34pm: According to ESPN’s Peter Gammons, the Nationals acquired Scott Olsen and Josh Willingham from the Marlins for second baseman Emilio Bonifacio and two minor league players, pitcher P.J. Dean and shortstop Jake Smolinski.
Bonifacio was the prospect the Diamondbacks traded straight up for Jon Rauch. He fits into the "speed and defense" plan. Smolinski was ranked 11th among Nationals prospects heading into the season according to Baseball America. They consider him a polished hitter with gap power. Dean was ranked 30th, but he projects well and could become a mid-rotation starter according to BA.
I have to say, I thought the Marlins would get more for these two players. There’s not really a sure thing in the bunch. Did Jim Bowden pull a heist, or was this the true market value of these two players? Olsen’s peripheral stats weren’t great this year, while Willingham has back problems.
Tim Dierkes also contributed to this post.
