The Marlins have claimed infielder/outfielder Otto López off waivers from the Giants, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. The Giants had designated him for assignment earlier this week when they selected Nick Avila. The Marlins announced the claim and that they have transferred righty Eury Pérez to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move. It was reported earlier that Pérez will require Tommy John surgery and miss the remainder of the season.
López, 25, provides some speed and a great deal of defensive versatility but it’s unknown how much he will hit. In each of the past five years, he has been able to get his stolen base total in the minors into double digits. He’s also bounced around the field to play the three infield spots to the left of first base and each of the three outfield slots.
On offense, he definitely puts the bat on the ball but the power is very limited. From the start of 2021 to the present, he’s had 1,273 minor league plate appearances and hit just 10 home runs but his 16.4% strikeout rate is quite low. He’s slashed .288/.355/.396 in that time for a wRC+ of 101.
López came up as a Blue Jays prospect but was designated for assignment when that club signed Yariel Rodríguez a couple of months ago. He was traded to the Giants for cash but got bumped off that club’s roster this week.
The Marlins effectively had a roster spot to burn with the news of Pérez requiring surgery and they will now use it to fill in some of the utility depth they sacrificed when they traded Jon Berti to the Yankees last week. López still has an option remaining so the Marlins could send him to Triple-A for regular at-bats or bring him to the big league squad to give them some cover at multiple positions around the diamond.
Marlins will have a spot for him.
Not like they have any team chemistry to worry about preserving. Or a shortage of players to bump out because they aren’t getting things done.
This makes me very grumpy; great potential pick up for the fish
Yeah, I think Giants should have held on to him, but roster crunch is what it is.
The world we live in now. He does everything right but doesn’t hit home runs. Sounds fine to me!
He’s perfectly mediocre.
Marlins GM: that sounds like the kind of improvement we need!
MLB doesn’t want you if you don’t have the power. Go to the gym or talk to A-Rod and Barry Bonds about getting more power. Problem solved.
@Old York
The only power hitters I’d want on my team are those who can hit at least .260, with a strikeout rate of under 20%. Oh? You can’t do that? More of a three-true-outcomes kind of guy? Take a hike.
Can Otto pitch? We need some relievers to hold the leads we hand to the bullpen.
That OTTO turn the Marlins season around
Rockies fan (we have our own problems) so maybe I’m missing something. But the Marlins are 17th in runs scored, 12th in homers, their team BA and OBP at least isn’t the worst, and they are 0-8. Their bullpen is atrocious. Why is everybody saying “OMG they should trade everyone!” when acquiring a few quality bats and shoring up the bullpen would get them to at least not suck as much and possibly contend in the NL?
In point of fact, we have the bats, either with the big club or at AAA Jacksonville. I actually like our lineup. They’re pressing, though. They need to get untracked and execute more consistently in game situations. The bullpen is talented but overworked and coming unglued. With two of our top starters returning soon from the IL, that problem area should be addressed.
In our 31 years of existence, we’ve had only 7 winning seasons. Despite two WS titles, we’ve gone through four owners – all of them bad. Fans of other teams can bash the Marlins all they want. I don’t care. I’m a South Florida native, I love baseball, and I’ve been a Fish fan since Day One. We’ll be making some moves to shore things up and stay in contention.
Thanks, Bro., for your positive attitude and balanced perspective. Too many “glass half-empty” guys around these days.