#30
It is a magical time of year. Pitchers and catchers have reported to Spring Training, and the rest of the players are not far behind. We are less than a week away from the first Spring Training game, and before we know it, we will be in the middle of another outstanding baseball season. This offseason has been unlike any other, with many of the top free agents still looking for jobs as camps open. Players are looking to cash in with big contracts while clubs are scared of signing the latest free agent bust. The trade market has been rich, with many teams searching for alternate solutions to upgrade their roster. As I start my pre-season profiles for each club, there are still many unanswered questions for many players and many teams.
As we go from last to first, we start with one of the most active teams of the offseason as they seemed determined to go from average and emerging to terrible and rebuilding.
My 2017 Predictions
4th in NL East
The Marlins will trade for Jose Quintana mid-season.
2017 Results
77-85, 2nd in NL East
The Marlins finished with almost the exact same record as they did in 2016, however the weak NL East had them finish in second. After tragically losing one of the faces of the franchise in Jose Fernandez at the end of the 2016 season, their other face, Giancarlo Stanton, had a career year that ended in him winning the NL MVP award. I thought the Marlins might make some moves to really try and compete, with the starting rotation being the biggest hole in their roster. Instead of making a splash for a guy like Quintana, the splash came in the new ownership group that was in place by the time the season ended.
Additions / Subtractions
With Derek Jeter & Co. now owning the Marlins, the philosophy of the franchise took a complete 180. Instead of trying to find new ways to complement their strong lineup, the new ownership group decided the status quo was not sustainable financially. If they needed to shed payroll, they needed to just blow up the current core and start over. That is exactly what they did. Gone are All Star caliber players like Dee Gordon, Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna, and reigning MVP Stanton along with the hundreds of millions of dollars committed to them. Prospects were brought back, but some of the trades were simply salary dumps when you see the level of prospects they got in return. The franchise had a complete reset, with second baseman Starlin Castro being the only established major leaguer brought back in any transaction.
Most Important Hitter
J.T. Realmuto
Along with Justin Bour, Realmuto is one of only two remaining members of the former Marlins core still on the roster, and he is not happy about it. He has been very vocal this offseason about the fact that he wants to be traded as well so he has a chance to compete. This makes him valuable to the Marlins because if they do decide to move him (which might be necessary if he becomes a cancer in the locker room) he should bring back a decent haul. Yelich brought back the best haul of the offseason trades. A similar haul might be in the cards for Realmuto, a 27 year old catcher with pop getting ready to enter his prime.
Most Important Pitcher
Jose Urena
In a year where the pitching staff was the downfall of the Marlins, Urena was a bright spot in 2017, going well over 100 innings for the first time in his career. He was effective in those innings, earning 14 wins, a 3.82 ERA, and a 106 ERA+. This makes him the only Marlins pitcher with more than 10 starts that was above league average (ERA+ 100). All of this is promising, considering he is only entering his age 26 season. This may be the future ace of the staff if he isn't already. He may be one of the few things Marlins fans have to look forward to.
Prospect to Watch
Lewis Brinson
By far, the best prospect the Marlins got in their wheeling and dealing this offseason was Lewis Brinson from the Brewers in the Yelich deal. He has been one of the top prospects for the last few years in all of baseball, and he is slated to be the Marlins Opening Day centerfielder. He has a real chance of becoming a star and a new face of the new Marlins for the foreseeable future.
2018 Prediction
5th in NL East
Almost by design, the Marlins have the worst roster in the league by a decent amount. They seem to be trying to employ the Astros blueprint of success. Tear down to nothing and rebuild around some top draft picks. The problem with this method is it takes several years to see any results. Expect at least two or three 100 loss seasons before the Marlins improve.
Fearless Prediction
Half of the Marlins Opening Day starting lineup will not be on the roster by season's end.
The Marlins can't be done unloading pieces. They should probably pick up a couple veteran players that are still in free agency to fill out their roster so they can at least look respectable on Opening Day. However, look for players like Martin Prado, Starlin Castro, J.T. Realmuto, Justin Bour, Dan Straily, Wei-Yin Chen, and whatever veterans they might pick up along the way to either be traded or dropped by season's end.
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