How Marlins did in Arraez, Chisholm, Burger deals. Several prospects are struggling
Marlins executive Peter Bendix has had promising early returns in trades of more than a half dozen pitchers, as detailed here.
But in trading four starting position players during the past 13 months, Bendix has landed at least one player who looks like he could be a high-impact starter (Agustin Ramirez) but several others who are struggling to hit minor-league pitching, at least so far.
A look at those four trades and where things stand with the prospects acquired:
Luis Arraez to San Diego
Miami received four prospects: outfielder Dillon Head, outfielder Jakob Marsee, first baseman Nathan Martorella and right-handed pitcher Woo Suk-Go.
At the time of the deal, Head was listed as the Padres' No. 6 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline, Marsee ninth and Martorella 13th.
MLB.com now ranks Head as the Marlins' No. 8 prospect and Marsee 22nd. Martorella and Suk-Go aren't rated among Miami's top 30.
The question has become less about whether Arraez is worth a big long-term contract (more teams seem to be concluding that he's not), but whether the Marlins received an eventual difference-maker back. It's too soon to know, but none of the four prospects is flourishing this season.
Head, a 20-year-old left-handed hitter, is hitting. 219 (.312 on base), with three triples, two homers and 21 RBI in 56 games and 249 plate appearances at Low A Jupiter. Speed remains his greatest strength; he's 20 for 23 in steals.
MLB.com's evaluation says Head is 'at his best when he tries to hit balls from gap to gap and focuses on getting on base. He's not very physical and won't be a slugger, but he has enough bat speed and strength to hit 12-15 homers per year and be more than just a slap hitter.'
Marsee, a 23-year-old left-handed hitter, is batting just .214 (.362 on base), with seven doubles, four homers and 17 RBI in 64 games and 284 plate appearances at Triple A Jacksonville. On the positive side, he's 38 for 45 on stolen base attempts. And like Head, he has hit much better in the past week.
On the flip side, Marsee is hitting only .232 in four minor-league seasons, and MLB.com said beginning last season, he 'made worse contact, both in terms of frequency and quality, and did very little damage.' That has remained the case this season, tempering enthusiasm about his upside.
Martorella, a 24-year-old left-handed hitter, is batting just .201 (.292 on base) with four homers, 22 RBI and 10 doubles in 59 games and 240 plate appearances in Double A Pensacola.
He's 5 for 7 on steals, meaning the three position players acquired for Arraez are 63 for 75 on steals.
But that won't do any good if they can't hit minor-league pitching consistently, let alone major-league pitching. It's too soon to know on any of them, but significant progress is needed during the next year or two.
Suk-Go has a 4.11 ERA in 12 games and 15 1/3 innings for four Marlins affiliates this season; he's now at Triple A Jacksonville. All but two of his 56 minor-league appearances have come in relief.
Arraez, meantime, has seen his production decline heading into free agency. He's hitting .274, down from his .319 career average. His on-base percentage (.308) also is well below is career average of .366.
The Pablo Lopez-for-Arraez trade ultimately didn't work out, factoring in the Marlins' return from flipping Arraez last May. Lopez has a 3.72 ERA in 75 career starts for the Twins, including 2.85 in 11 starts this season.
Jazz Chisholm to the Yankees
The Marlins received Agustin Ramirez, infielder Jared Serna and infielder Abrahan Ramirez.
Ramirez, in his first few weeks in the big leagues, was everything that Miami could have expected and more, emerging as a contender for National League Rookie of the Year. (Only Atlanta's Drake Baldwin has shorter odds.)
It has been a struggle recently, with his average dipping to .232 and on-base average dropping to .288. But he rebounded during the weekend against Washington — going 6 for 15 with two homers against the Nationals — and he's now at .240, .291, with 10 homers, 11 doubles and 21 RBI in 45 games, with 13 walks and 32 strikeouts and 196 plate appearances.
He began June as the only MLB catcher this season with seven-plus homers, 11-plus RBI and an .800-plus OPS. For a while, he was crushing fly balls at velocities among the best in the league, and his contract rate was well above average before his recent swoon.
'He needs to get a little more control of the strike zone,' Marlins TV analyst Tommy Hutton said off the air. 'He's a wild swinger. He needs to make more contact. And he needs to improve his work behind the plate, which he works on behind the scenes. If the defense doesn't improve, you can have yourselves a DH.'
Ramirez has allowed 27 steals in 30 attempts. If Joe Mack becomes the Marlins catcher next season, Ramirez could be the designated hitter or possibly a first baseman (he has played 27 games at first base in the minors).
Offensively, Hutton said he could see Ramirez hit 25 homers a year.
Serna simmered at the plate for the first month after last summer's trade but has cooled considerably since. This season, he's hitting just .212 (.303 on base) with a homer and 11 RBI in 59 games and 255 plate appearances at Double A Pensacola. On the plus side, he was 5 for his last 11 heading into Monday.
Serna, 23, has no errors in 15 games at second base and eight errors in 43 games at shortstop this season.
At 5-7 and 168 pounds, he's hardly imposing. MLB.com ranks him the Marlins' No. 14 prospect and said going into this season, 'he still makes consistent contact with his compact right-handed stroke, though more patience would help against more advanced pitching.
'Serna's max-effort swing slows him down coming out of the batter's box, but he can flash solid speed underway and looks to make things happen on the bases. More dependable than flashy at shortstop, he has fringy range and arm strength, making him better-suited for second base. He also has seen action at third base and both outfield corners in the past, adding to his versatility as a potential utilityman.'
Meanwhile, Abraham Ramirez, a 20-year-old left-handed hitter, is batting .261 (.386 on base) with no homers and 27 RBI in 50 games and 228 plate appearances at Low A Jupiter. Ramirez — who has nine stolen bases in 12 attempts — has two errors in 18 games at second base and seven errors in 26 games at third base.
MLB.com ranks Ramirez No. 19 among Marlins prospects and said 'he's learning to turn on pitches but hits a lot of ground balls and may not provide more than 10-12 homers per season. Though he puts the bat on the ball with ease, he makes good swing decisions and draws a healthy amount of walks. His average arm and range are best suited for second base... He projects as a utilityman with a sparkplug mentality.'
As for Chisholm, he has been an infielder ever since the Yankees acquired him and he's hitting just .212 (.325 on base) with nine homers and 24 RBI in 40 games (and 163 plate appearances).
Bryan De La Cruz to Pittsburgh
Miami received right-handed pitcher Jun-Seok Shim (the Pirates' No. 17 prospect) and infielder Garret Forrester, their No. 18 prospect.
This deal made little sense at the time and less sense now.
Shim has rarely been healthy over the past four years, had a 9.10 ERA in the Arizona Fall League and has allowed four runs in 4 ⅔ innings in rookie league for the Marlins. He began this season injured and is now injured again.
Forrester, a 23-year-old right-handed hitter, is hitting .264 (.404 on base average) with one homer and 12 RBI in 27 games and 109 plate appearances at High A Beloit. He played first base, third base and catcher this season.
The Marlins had little use for De La Cruz, a competent hitter who has been terrible since leaving Miami (.200 in 44 games for Pittsburgh, .191 in 16 games for Atlanta this season). The Braves cut him, and he's now in the Yankees' minor-league system.
Jake Burger to Texas
The Marlins received infielders Max Acosta and Echedry Vargas and left-handed pitcher Brayan Mendoza.
Acosta, 22, impressed everyone this spring and played well early this season Triple A Jacksonville, hitting .315 (.439 on base) with seven RBI in 15 games, while going 8 for 8 on steals.
But his average has dipped to .231 (.320 on base) with two homers, 22 RBI and 10 doubts in 62 games and 256 plate appearances. He's 17 for 20 on stolen base attempts.
'Acosta has the natural athleticism that makes him an above-average shortstop defender,' Bendix said before a game earlier this season. 'He's really good bat to ball, and he added power over the course of the year that continues to show up in games. He really has the complete package and he's still really young.'
Acosta has 26 homers, 180 RBI and 122 steals (in 162 attempts) and a .330 on base average in 401 minor-league games.
Vargas — a 20-year-old right-handed hitter who can play second, third and shortstop — is hitting just .173 (.216 on base), with four homers and 12 RBI in 46 games and 185 plate appearances at High A Beloit. Last year, he hit .276, with 14 homers and 48 RBI in Low A Down East.
MLB.com ranks Vargas as the Marlins' No. 16 prospect and said 'though he's just 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds, Vargas hits the ball much harder than most players his size. He uses a big leg kick and an aggressive right-handed stroke to turn on pitches and launch them in the air, allowing him to get the most out of his solid raw power. He'll need to tone down his approach against more advanced pitching after his chase rate ballooned to 42% last year and he struggled against non-fastballs.... He fits better at second base, also can handle third base and profiles as a power-hitting utilityman.
Mendoza, 21, has a 5.45 ERA in 10 games (four starts) at High A Beloit this season and had a 2.12 ERA in two levels of A ball for the Rangers last season.
MLB.com ranks Mendoza 30th among Marlins prospects and noted 'Mendoza's fastball sits at 91-93 mph and tops out at 95, standing out more for its low release height than its velocity or life.. Despite some crossfire in his delivery, he has had no difficulty filling the strike zone early in his pro career. His floor is much more notable that his ceiling but he could become a back-of-the-rotation starter.'
Burger, demoted by the Rangers to the minors for a time earlier this season, is hitting .226 (.261 on base) with 10 homers and 28 RBI in 61 games.
Here's part 1 of the series and what the Marlins got back for veteran pitchers during the past year.
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