A pair of potential suitors may have fallen out of the Edward Cabrera race. Houston and Baltimore are no longer trade candidates for the talented right-hander, reports Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. Jackson adds that Miami doesn’t want to sell short on Cabrera in a deal.
The Marlins’ starting rotation has been a frequent subject of trade rumblings throughout the offseason. Reports emerged in early December that the club was listening to offers on all of its starters, outside of Eury Perez. Sandy Alcantara has been the subject of frequent rumors the past few seasons, while Cabrera and Ryan Weathers have been floated as possible trade chips recently. It would take a massive offer to land Alcantara, notes Jackson.
The Orioles were specifically linked to Cabrera a few weeks back. The club has been connected to almost every high-end name in free agency and on the trade market, from Framber Valdez and Ranger Suarez to Freddy Peralta and MacKenzie Gore. President of baseball operations Mike Elias was able to land a significant rotation upgrade last week, flipping several prospects and a draft pick for right-hander Shane Baz. Elias has said the organization will continue working to strengthen the rotation, though the recent trade might have ended their Cabrera pursuit, given the capital it took to pry Baz from Tampa Bay.
Baltimore and Miami joined forces on a deal at the 2024 trade deadline that worked out for both teams. The Marlins sent lefty Trevor Rogers to the Orioles for outfielder Kyle Stowers and infielder Connor Norby. Rogers broke out as Baltimore’s top starter this past season, while Stowers delivered an All-Star campaign with his new team.
Houston has been in the market for young, controllable starting pitching this offseason. The club’s rotation was destroyed by injuries in 2025, with Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski, and Brandon Walter all needing Tommy John surgery and Luis Garcia going down with another elbow injury. With Valdez hitting free agency, the Astros entered the offseason with Hunter Brown and a slew of unproven options to fill out the staff.
Just like the Orioles, the Astros made a notable move to address their pitching needs last week, acquiring Mike Burrows from the Pirates in a three-team trade headlined by Brandon Lowe. Similar to Baltimore, Houston spent significant prospect capital to land a young starter. Outfielder Jacob Melton and right-hander Anderson Brito went to the Rays in the deal. Melton was among the organization’s top prospects, while Brito was an up-and-coming name, albeit with minimal professional experience. Parting with both Melton and Brito to land Burrows likely affected Houston’s ability to put together a Cabrera package.
After periods of brilliance frequently cut short by injuries, Cabrera finally put together an extended stretch of strong results in 2025. The 27-year-old recorded a 3.53 ERA across a career-high 137 2/3 innings this past season. Cabrera maintained a solid 25.8% strikeout rate while pushing his walk rate into single digits for the first time.
Cabrera went down with an elbow sprain in early September, but returned in the final week of the season for a pair of outings. The brief comeback could’ve been an audition for trade suitors, showing interested teams that Cabrera was good to go for 2026. The righty is under team control through 2028. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Cabrera to earn $3.7MM in arbitration. An acquiring team would have him for three seasons at a reasonable cost.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
🙏 go get ‘im, AJ. I want to see what Niebla can do here!
Miami would have to be in love with Salas or want farther off pitching prospects. Pads definitely don’t have a stockpile of chips any longer.
Aloha Bradduh! I would like Cabrera but I don’t think we have enough in the farm system. If anyone can pull off a trade it’s Preller! Hana hou! Mahalo!
How about Alcantara and Cabrera, in return for Merrill and Schoolcraft? 😉
Just kidding!
🤮🤮🤮 T-100
🤣🤙🏽
Aloha M-100, I was hoping that was a joke 🤣! I know Gwynning wouldn’t go for it!
Now if Jed could trade Kevin Alcantara who I like straight up for Cabrera, lol! That won’t happen either! Mahalo!
No Dominguez or Jones traded here. Do the right thing Ca$hman, and just hang up the phone for once. Ca$hman Is family. He isn’t going anywhere-Uncle Hal.
Yankees fan be like”Can’t we just sign the Japanese sensation, Imai instead”?
AJ is never afraid of moving unproven hot prospects for major league talent. Go get’em.
Miami has to be alright with guys further off though. That’s the thing. Preller has cleaned out the upper level prospects.
I would love him on the Yankees. What’s the cost, though?
Not as “expensive” as you might think, but you do have to give to get. For the inevitable (not from you, Sal) suggestion… Yes, Jake Cronenworth straight up for Cabrera is an overpay by the Pads. Miami would have to toss in a high prospect. Use as comparison? Cheers 🍻
Wait, what?
Jake Cronenworth is an OVERpay? The Padres would give JC away to anyone who will pay his salary.
Seam
I will bet you ten cents that the Padres will not give Cronenwerth to the Dodgers for nothing in return.
Yeah sorry Gwinning, hate to disagree with you, but Jake’s just not a very good player anymore. Can’t hit a lick.
Not true, Seamer.
108 OPS+
2.4 WAR in ’25
Signed (affordably, all things considered…) thru ’30.
Mucho value-oso, bro bro.
There’s no way cronenworth gets a 5/60 deal if he was a free agent this year. No team is taking that in through age 36 and giving up a prospect + affordable starter.
As suggested here and elsewhere, it’s not a logical one-for-one. But I could see our teams line-up one way or another…
For sure. But, it would probably hurt you bullpen.
@gwynning that’s a good one. A real cronenberg trade suggestion
Gwynny, respectfully I have to disagree there. Quite the opposite. It’d have to be Cronenworth + for the Marlins to bite I’d imagine.
I know it sounds crazy to most Sal, and that’s fine by me… but the numbers and team valuations speak for themselves.
Had to check twice! Jake held at, ummmm let’s say a 5.8 score and Cabrera at a 3.2. Honest!
(Couldn’t edit my previous comment)
@Gwynning
I can assure you that the Marlins aren’t giving you Cabrera and other pieces for Cronenworth – not even in a straight 1for1 trade.
I think you got a little Homer in your eye.
I can assure you the same back, Banned! Jake is an overpay for Cabrera on paper, but neither team is doing that trade anyhow. I just wanted to provide context before it was suggested.
Apologies, but a .241 average with minimal pop? No one is giving up a Cabrera let alone Cabrera + for 5(!) more years of that. He’s a very average to mediocre player.
@Gwynning
Was it context? It felt more that you’re trying to convince someone – perhaps yourself – that was a legit trade suggestion.
To add, even if Peter Bendix had a mental lapse for the moments needed to make the trade, first, where would Cronenworth play for us? Second, why would we add another lefty bat when we need righty bats? Third, why add someone without HR power when the Marlins clearly stated they need HR power – not WAR power?
It seems that you didn’t take much time to add these considerations to the context prior to your statement.
The premise would have been proposed by a fellow Padre fan, Banned. I assure you. And nobody is saying this is a viable construct, to or fro! Neither team is doing this, we both know this.
Are you sure that’s an overpay G? Merry cheery festivities and everything!
For Lease Navidad Brewski 🤙🏽
Sorry everyone, and all, no way, we’re not trading Jake. He’s just too reliable and a fixture at 2B. Second-highest OBP on team, 3rd highest OPS among NL 2b, plays elite defense. Team-friendly contract.
No deal
It’s ok Brew, nobody needs convincing here. Haha
But you nailed it.
@Brew 88
The only thing agreed is no deal.
You keep Cronenworth. We keep Cabrera.
Do you think we line-up through some other constructs, Banned? Who would you like to see involved from my Pads if you were to hypothetically move Edward? Being vigilant in agreement to disagree… doesn’t provide much trade context.
@Gwynning
I don’t see anything the Padres have as being a match for the Marlins.
We could use a RH power-bat, but the guys you have would require us trading many pieces along with Cabrera for guys making a fortune on huge contracts (Machado or Tatis). We both know there is no universe where that’s happening. Nothing else in your organization matches our team’s needs enough to give up Cabrera.
Teams often aren’t a match. This is why sometimes people need to temper their thoughts before they make what turns out to be illogical trade suggestion posts when you look at things from both persectives. After all, this is MLB in the real world – not MLB the Show. I feel that many posters make these trade suggestions as though they were playing MLB the Show where you can make trades for your team that makes no sense for the team you’re getting the player you want from.
Fair enough, but i might suggest there are a myriad of ways my Pads *could* attain Cabrera without involving any big names… but let’s just see how this rumor pans out irl! Cheers 🍻
@Gwynning
Among that myriad, they would have to involve the Marlins getting what they need in return. The Marlins need a RH power-bat, that is proven at the MLB level – not a prospect that isn’t established at the MLB level. Besides the Padres’ two highest paid players, they don’t have one of those. Unless the Padres find a third team for a trade that gives the Marlins the RH power-bat that fits them, the Marlins and Padres are not a match.
Just to make sure this is clear, here are the Marlins position players with their batting side in parentheses:
C – Agustin Ramirez (R); Liam Hicks (L); possible Joe Mack (L)
1B – Christopher Morel (R); Eric Wagaman (R)
2B – Xavier Edwards (S)
SS – Otto Lopez (R)
3B – Connor Norby (R); Graham Pauley (L)
LF – Kyle Stowers (L)
CF – Jakob Marsee (L)
RF – Griffin Conine (L); Heriberto Hernandez (R)
UT – Javier Sanoja (R)
Hopefully this helps with understanding the Marlins side of things.
Please try to be serious.
He was a 2.8 WAR pitcher last year with three years of cheap control, have to think it would take Lombard.
I could see the ask there, Top, though I’m not sure it’s a deal breaker if the Yankees said nope. Plenty of others that could make a deal work.
Salzilla: The Yankees have decimated their farm of their best prospects in recent years. They probably don’t have the goods to offer.
@Alfred
Decimated or simply graduated?
Decimated? Nah. They have a pretty good farm in stock, Al. Plus the guys on the current roster that came up recently mostly have made a good enough impression on the system as a whole. For Cabrera I think we have more than plenty.
Salzilla: But not nearly as much, especially young pitching, as top systems like the Cubs, Dodgers, and Mets.
Sal- Dominguez or Jones in a package. Hopefully Cabrera stays right where he is my man.
I like Cabrera a lot, and would definitely entertain sending one of those and more for him, 99.
Would you trade Dominguez for Mark Vientos, as one of the WFAN talking heads suggested? It might have been Sal Licata.
A veritable mangrove rivilus
MLB Top 100 Commenter: Throat Warbler Mangrove?
I do not have a luxury yacht, but I do have a favorite color.
OK Arthur.
They, the Marlins could have gotten the package that the Orioles send to Tampa. I think that was available for the fish. Also I believe that was a good one longn and shorterm. Hopefully Cabrera will continue success and Marlins can capitalize in a near future with a great trade.
Fr21: How do you know that?
It would take a fair amount more. Cabrera is a far more valuable asset than Baz.
Glad that Miami “does not plan to sell short” on Cabrera in a deal. Because most execs head into negotiations planning to sell an asset for less than they might get. Brilliant.
What am I missing? Why would it take a “massive” offer to nab a pitcher, fresh off of major arm surgery, a 5+ era in his first year back who’s 2 years away from FA and is owed $20 mil?
Who are you talking about?
@seam
Sandy Alcantara
I see some of these articles and commetns and come to the following conclusions:
1 – The posters that respond with discussion about what trades would work for the Marlins, especially the ones for rebuilding, clearly didn’t notice the Marlins season. They are in a different part of the rebuild. Also, why continue to trade away pieces for a rebuild when they just signed Pete Fairbanks? It doesn’t take long to see that the Marlins aren’t in sell mode.
2 – The writers putting together these Marlins articles are just going with the tired old lazy narratives about the Marlins to get clicks and responses. They cover this game, so they know even more so that the Marlins aren’t in sell mode.
If the Marlins are looking to move Edward Cabrera, it would be because they get an insane offer that they absolutely can’t refuse. Or, they aren’t sold that Cabrera’s 2025 is legit, so they want to cash in at his peak value because they expect a regression to his previous years.
Come on guys! Don’t be so foolish about this. It doesn’t take much logic to figure these things out.
@Banned: Bravo. The fundamental problem is that fans are lazy thinkers. There is a group of 8 or 9 teams, including the Marlins, which they assume are ALWAYS rebuilding and ALWAYS eager to trade their best players to “good” teams. They didn’t notice the Marlins’ improvement last season because they don’t really watch baseball. The Marlins have a decent chance, or maybe better than decent, to make the playoffs next year, and very likely will at least be in the mix late.
@Alan53
Exactly on all fronts.
When I see these posters make their comments, I see them as the types that get their news from the podcasters and YouTubers who are fans of the teams they root for, so they get that misinformation reinforced within them – that is after ESPN has spewed it over and over in the few seconds they are forced to mention the Marlins in between their Pop Culture “sports coverage”.
Sheesh! How lazy can a poster be? It only takes a couple of minutes to look up last year’s standings, certain team rosters, and look on this website at the latest transactions to conclude that their suggestions are just plain stupid before they post them.
Many of the posters on what trades would work for the Marlins aren’t actually Marlins fans. They’re just delusional fans trying to formulate a steal for their favorite team, as if the Marlins front office is dumb enough to accept any lowball offer they toss out there.
@Alfred E Neuman
Agreed.
They are either delusional or they spend too much time on MLB the Show to where they think that equates to real life.
Not to be snarky but they don’t have an excellent track record of keeping talent. They ARE perpetually ‘rebuilding’ (pocketing money) and let go a GM the same off-season they made the playoffs. If the Marlins truly believe they’re that close then sign a FA pitcher or make a move for a bat and I’ll be convinced. Until then 3 decent prospects is plenty for a pitcher that walks the whole world and is never healthy, not a kings ransom like Skenes would cost.
Get it done A’s. Henry Bolte, Brett Harris , Joey Estes, and Zane Yalor for Cabrera should get it done.