The Marlins aren’t known for free-agent splashes, though they could add least make a notable short-term move(s) this winter, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network.. The Marlins are interested in first baseman Jose Abreu, according to Heyman, who adds they could also try to improve their outfield via the open market.
It has long appeared unlikely that Abreu would leave the White Sox, with whom he’s a franchise icon. But while the two sides have discussed a long-term contract, no deal has come to fruition yet. The soon-to-be 33-year-old Abreu has until Thursday to decide whether to accept the White Sox’s $17.8MM qualifying offer. Of course, the fact that Abreu has a QO hanging over him arguably makes it even less likely for a contract to come together with the Marlins. After all, the Marlins probably won’t contend over the one or two years they would presumably give to Abreu. Furthermore, adding him would cost the Marlins a significant amount of money (MLBTR projects a two-year, $28MM guarantee) and their third-highest draft pick in 2020.
There is an argument it would be illogical for the Marlins to splurge, at least by their standards, on Abreu. On the other hand, he’d give the club a credible bat at first base and enable the Fish to move Garrett Cooper to the outfield. Abreu’s a four-time 30-home run hitter coming off a season in which he slashed .284/.330/.503 with 33 HRs across 693 plate appearances. He’s also a revered veteran clubhouse presence, which could appeal to a Miami team with plenty of young players, and the fact that he hails from nearby Cuba may somewhat enliven the Marlins’ alienated fan base.
Co-owner Derek Jeter has said the Marlins need to get more fans in the seats after drawing the fewest in the majors in 2019. Signing Abreu (or another quality hitter, whether it’s someone like local product Nicholas Castellanos or ex-Marlin Marcell Ozuna) may help them accomplish that.
No way, the White Sox are defiantly snagging him again
yes, defiantly
Definitely defiant.
I defy your definiteness.
Deftly delineated.
There’s better options out there. The only reason it makes sense for the Marlins is because he can probably be had for the cheap since there’s better options out in the market
And because he’s Cuban, which goes over In Miami
Mark Cuban is in Dallas with his Mavericks.
lol that what killing die had fan and attendance is low.
ans it work so far
I hope he does sign with Miami. He is the one guy that I hope changes teams this off season if for no other reason then fact everyone seems so certain he will stay in Chicago. I also hope that Ozuna and Will Smith turn down their QO’s and then sit around on the market until June just to make Tony Clark look like the fool he is. Will Smith would have to be an idiot to think any team would be willing to give up draft compensation just for the right to give him a contract worth more than $17.8 million. He is a good reliever and all been there is no way teams expect him to be more valuable than they expected Keuchel to be going into last off season and Keuchel had to wait a long time just to get a $13 million deal.
You were saying…? Will Smith 3 years, 39 million to Atlanta and they had to beat our many other suitors. Not only do you sound lame for being so petty but you were very incorrect, too.
But he can go play in Little Havana and have all them Cubans not come and see him; can’t do that in Chicago…
After being the best player on a dismal team like the Tigers, I cannot see Castellanos jumping on board with the Marlins. As much as it makes sense on paper, I think hes bound for the AL. If the Marlins were smart they’d go after a value play in C. Dickerson, sign a reliable source of innings like R. Porcello and take a flier on King Felix.
Any smart team would avoid King Felix
I agree
Why would the marlins do this? Honestly they are doing the rebuild the wrong way…. they are a horrible team and have no real “bright future” ahead of them. So giving up a draft pick and paying him what he’s worth doesn’t make sense. Just continue to stick to your plan and get ur players some experience
Miami has won more World Series then altanta has in the same time. They get into the playoffs and then win it all.
The Marlins are getting a lot of pressure from MLB and the player’s union to spend more money. I think their projected payroll next year is around $32 million.
Maybe they should make the rays and As spend too
According to Sports’s Rays and As currently set to spend 2 and 3x as much as Miami next season
would not matter if your a playoff team.
and have some of top pitcher in al .
Shouldn’t the white Sox be getting that same pressure from MLB? Oh wait, Reinsdork is the boss.
According to Spotrac White Sox payroll for 2020 currently sitting at 50% more than Marlins, so they might have pressure to get to the same range but Miami has to spend a lot more to get there…
Theres a bright future. Great farm. So many toolsy upside players and intimidating pitchers. Yeah they can all bust but if half hit their floor they will be exciting to watch.
It’s going to be a very exciting division in two years. It’s going to be a matter of what they do with what they have and the salary.
If you go on the Baseball America site for their prospects and look at the potential 2022 team it’s actually very exciting.
I can definitely see the cultural appeal of Miami
The Marlins probably want to sign him as a fan.
that would make 7
I think that Abreu is a great addition to a team like Minnesota. They will get a nice bat (power) and a big improvement at first base. Rosario, Cruz and Abreu… difficult lineup to fase for any pitcher.
The Marlins couldn’t draw with a really good team. They could move to Louisville and draw more. We drew over a million here for a AAA team. Louisville Redbirds broke the minor league attendance record by drawing 868,418 fans. In 1983, the Redbirds were the first minor league team to draw over one million fans in a single season (1,052,438). My point being, there are so many more places that would actually support the Marlins. Kinda sad.
Sad that Marlins fan have had to endure so many fire sales under every single regime none bigger than the previous resulting greatly destroying trust and support with the teams fan.
Even more sad is that the biggest draw in Louisville is a minor league baseball team.
Fortunately the Marlins aren’t going anywhere any time soon. And under the new regime, aside from the Yelich, I’m happy with how the team has reshaped the organization from bottom to top. Much is yet to get done, but I’m cautiously optimistic, which is far better than I felt when we had a star studded OF.
The Kentucky Derby, geez…
I personally wouldnt want to allocate money towards 1b, but would consider a bench bat in that area behind Cooper, although there are a couple of other options to get ABs there. I would rather that roster spot go to a young guy or someone more versatile, and spend that money on more important areas
Briefly looking at free agency, the Marlins have a lot of money to play with, without much on their payroll for this upcoming season and nothing committed past this year. They could theoretically add on 1-3 year deals, and improve this team, and retain the flexibility they need moving forward, to allow them to spend as their young players develop in a few years. Off the top of my head, Didi Gregorius, Cole Hamels, Yasiel Puig, Avisail Garcia, Felix Hernandez, maybe a Howie Kendrick or an Alex Gordon or Jon Jay, or a Julio Tehran, or like a Gio Gonzalez and then 2, or possibly 3 bullpen arms (David Phelps, Steve Cishek,etc?) , are all gettable on those 1-3 year deals, and would be a significant improvement, assuming health. Not saying it has to be those guys; I havent had a chance to go over free agency yet, and look at some low cost options, but none of them are attached to qualifying offers, and the Marlins can afford them. I would assume a bunch of other teams could be interested in a couple of those guys, but if the Marlins are aggressive with what they’re looking for, I think they can sign some people this offseason that dont interfere with the plan moving forward, but help develop a winning culture for young players to continue to push towards the big leagues towards….
Marlins could use 1-2 Starting pitchers that can give them innings, 2 OFers, middle infield help, and a couple of bullpen arms. Those guys fill those spots, and give them depth, as their young players push towards the big leagues. I hope to see them do stuff like that, rather than make any bad forced signings or trades. They also probably need more guys that get on base, but hopefully improvement from within and health around potential additions, they can figure that out. They have a lot of money to work with, so there is no reason they cant put a more competitive product on the field around their young guys, as long as it’s in that 1-3 year contract length
Everybody’s talking to everybody!
what did jeter expect? fans to flock to the games because he bought them? they are a horrid awful no name team that nobody cares about, your 2 best players are gone, 1 was traded and one is deceased , i couldnt imagine living in a city where a team just does nothing every year to get better, not that baseball is number 1 on your ‘to do’ list if you live in Miami, but they could atleast try.
1) Trade Urena to a team in need of a number 5 starting pitcher, for a prospect. Or maybe a swap of Urena and a prospect (such as Brian Miller or Tristian Pompey) for Jackie Bradley Jr. Cuts off a solid 5-6 million from BoSox payroll and gives them a nice bullpen/back of the rotation piece for cheap.
2) Non-tender Conley
3) Cut Chen.
Then,
1) Sign Abreu to a 2 year deal for 45-50 million with a vesting third year option. No way he turns down that type of money.
2) Sign Avasail Garcia to a 2 year, 20 million deal (10 million annually). He has an offseason home in Miami and signed with the Rays to be closer to his family, so Marlins would likely be appealing to him.
3) Sign Gio Gonzalez to a 1 year, 8 million deal. Miami native.
4) Sign Dellin Betances or Sergio Romo to a 1 year, 7 million deal (or a 2 year deal for 12 million). Betances could use the size of Marlins park to rebuild his value. Romo liked pitching in Miami and is open to a return.
6) Sign Eduardo Nunez and Josh Harrison to a minor league deal to compete for bench role.
Puts Marlins payroll around $75 – 80 million, nice veteran depth on contracts not clogging up future payroll.
Lineup
SS Rojas
2B Diaz
1B Abreu
3B Anderson
LF Cooper
RF Garcia
CF Bradley Jr.
C Alfaro
Bench
UT Berti,
OF Ramirez,
OF Brinson,
C Wallach,
UT Riddle/OF Dean/OF Sierra/UT Nunez/UT Harrison
Rotation
SP Alcantara
SP C Smith
SP P Lopez
SP G Gonzalez
SP E Hernandez/Yamamoto
Bullpen
CP Romo/Betances
RP Steckenrider
LP Garcia
RP Kinley
RP Dugger
RP Brice
RP Guerrero
RP Stanek
If they sign Abreu I doubt they’d want to sign another guy that would take up everyday at bats. If Abreu is the guy, then no Garcia. And cmon, Abreu making 25M/year? Let’s be realistic. They still want to let the kids play, so trading for Bradley Jr. doesn’t make sense, especially having to give up a prospect, even if it’s a 40-45 prospect.
The Marlins, regardless of the quantity or quality of the free agents they sign this offseason, they will not be contenders. Jeter and Co. know this. They’re going to stick to the plan of letting the kids play. That’s why I won’t think 1 spot is open in the outfield/First base for every day at bats via free agency. And then maybe 2 Spots in the bullpen.
Thats a lot for Abreu. I dont think it takes that much to sign him for whoever he ends up with, and I assume he stays with the White Sox
I’d much rather use the money on multiple useful pieces
offer 1-3 years, with the final year being an option year $16 million AAV for DiDi Gregorius
Same for Cole Hamels, although the options arent necessary for him
(Alternative 1 year/$6-8 million for Gio Gonzalex, 3 years/$35 million with 3rd year option worth $10 million and $2 million buyout for Julio Teheran)
2 years/$16 million for Avisail Garcia
2 years/$23 million with 2nd year mutual option for Yasiel Puig
2 years/$15 million (1 year/$8 million with 2nd year option worth $7 million with $1 million buyout) for Howie Kendrick (this one not entirely necessary)
whatever it would cost for a year of Felix, David Phelps,and Steve Cishek (1 year/$5 million, 1 year/$4 million, 2 year/$13 million with 2nd year option for $7 million)
Those numbers are mostly off the top of my head, and I could be overvaluing or undervaluing in some areas, but I would imagine their absolute best offers to be around those numbers. Maybe I’m wrong, but thats all doable, especially in this current climate of teams in free agency
Thats like $60+ million added, but the amount currently on the books for 2020 is very small, and there is nothing really committed past this season. Marlins could also non tender Urena and lower it a bit more, and the number comes in around the mid-high 80s-low 90 millionish, which is still close to $10 million lower than it was in 2018 and only $10-16 millonish more than 2019, and would still leave them in the bottom 3 or 4 in payroll…and most importantly, their payroll sheet would still be relatively clean moving forward, and they would also have some interesting trade assets they can use
I may have accidentally not factored in pre-arb players on the roster, but that isnt entirely clear
Rangers get him after striking out on Rendon
Do what you want but would love to see Cooper back in Milwaukee playing first how about a Cooper for Shaw swap.
I think the Brewers would want Rojas more than Cooper.
I think a plausible trade could be made around a package of Caleb Smith and Miguel Rojas. Idk for what. Maybe Arcia comes to Miami as a change of scenery type thing. Or as you mentioned, Shaw.
Losing Jose Abreu would be devastating to the White Sox 20-year rebuilding plan.
lol
Right but Jose is not interested in the Marlins.
Marlins would probably be better off acquiring Eric Thames to play 1B. Abreu is too expensive for them.
Get that NTC Jose!
Abreu is most likely staying with the White Sox unless the Red Sox are talking with Hahn and Williams about a possible Mookie Betts deal! Abreu signing with the Marlins does not make sense right now in his career.
I see the fit, but doubt they give up a draft pick. Miami should sign some one year deals and take a couple bad contracts. A rebuild doesn’t have to be minimum wage.
Marlins Interested In Jose Abreu more talk