From ESPN.com insider...

 

It's funny how the more things are supposed to change, the more they stay the same (except when they don't, but we're going to ignore that for the moment).

 

Remember the talk before the season? The Devil Rays, invigorated by a new manager and all those excellent young players, finally were going to become ... well, if not competitive, then certainly something less than embarrassing. The Marlins, meanwhile, were supposedly a threat to lose 110 (at least!) games. The balance of power in Florida was shifting (supposedly).

 

It hasn't worked out that way. Thanks to an eight-game winning streak, the Marlins once again are winning the Battle of Florida. Their 29-37 record isn't actually much better than the Devil Rays' 29-41 ... but the Marlins have been outscored by only six runs, the Rays by 76 (only the Royals have been outscored by more). And suddenly the future's not looking particularly bright for the Devil Rays, either. Shortstop B.J. Upton, regarded a few years ago as perhaps the No. 1 prospect in the game, still is making too many errors in the minors and seems to have regressed as a hitter. One plus: Their No. 1 hitting prospect, Delmon Young, has his 50-game suspension for throwing a bat at an umpire end today. This news is especially good for Triple-A Durham because the Devil Rays just suspended Elijah Dukes, their No. 2 hitting prospect, for "unspecified disciplinary reasons."

 

And for all the talk about the Devil Rays' many young outfielders -- and I should admit I've done a lot of the talking myself -- yesterday, two-thirds of their starting outfield consisted of Greg Norton and Russell Branyan. I once believed the Devil Rays should trade Carl Crawford and Rocco Baldelli, if only to make room for the younger (and cheaper) outfielders on the vine. But now it looks as though the Rays will need all the outfielders they can get. Because what I thought were three future stars might become just one. And Scott Kazmir notwithstanding, they're still short of pitchers, too.

 

The Marlins aren't. The biggest question about this team this summer is whether it should trade Dontrelle Willis. The answer is that of course Florida should trade Willis, if it's offered a couple of top prospects. The Marlins' payroll this season is roughly $14 million, and it's not going to be much more next season. Willis earns a bit over $4 million, and with a decent season, that'll edge past $7 million next season. Obviously, it doesn't make much sense to spend roughly 50 percent of the payroll on roughly 4 percent of the roster.

 

There's this, too: the Marlins are absolutely loaded with young pitchers of promise: Scott Olsen, Yusmeiro Petit, Josh Johnson, Ricky Nolasco, Renyel Pinto, Taylor Tankersley ... all of them have reached the majors already, and all of them have legitimate shots at real major league careers. And right behind them are minor leaguers Anibal Sanchez, Aaron Thompson, Chris Volstad and Sean West. Only Sanchez is close to the majors, but I suspect no other franchise has more good young pitchers in its organization. You can never have too much pitching, and trading Willis will hurt, at first. But he's valuable, and the Marlins really could use a center fielder and maybe a second baseman (in case Dan Uggla turns into a pumpkin at midnight).

 

I suspect that if I were stuck in a room with Marlins president David Samson and general manager Admin Beinfest, before long we'd run short of common ground. But sometimes you have to simply respect the results. Samson and Beinfest won a World Series a few years ago, and now they've done a fantastic job of reloading for yet another run. Another good trade or two, and they'll be primed for 2008.

 

Pretty good piece, although I'm starting to fall into the "Don't Trade Dontrelle" camp. Neyer, love him or hate him, DOES know his stuff.

Great article...D-Train has been one of my favorite Marlins ever but if the price is right, then it makes sense to trade him.

 

Pitching is our strengh and to get 2 TOP prospects...would make the Marlins even better.

 

You would just hate losing such a great character guy....

The biggest question about this team this summer is whether it should trade Dontrelle Willis. The answer is that of course Florida should trade Willis, if it's offered a couple of top prospects.

 

I agree 100% if we do get the right package we should trade Willis (lets say Willis,prospect to Arizona for Young, Gonzales,Montero?)

 

Im going to go further, I believe we can get better faster if we trade Willis(right package) and still contend this year.

Neyer has no clue what he's talking about, with all due respect.

 

You don't trade a sure thing for 2 prospects (AKA could be's, remember, Borchard was meant to be a "can't miss" CF).

 

I'd go so far as to say I'd trade any single pitcher in our system or a combination there-of for an established major league star to fit our needs. There's so much unproven pitching depth that I'd much rather allow other teams to roll the dice.

 

If ever there was an appropriate application of a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, this is it. I'll keep the bird in hand, thank you very much.

Neyer has no clue what he's talking about, with all due respect.

 

You don't trade a sure thing for 2 prospects (AKA could be's, remember, Borchard was meant to be a "can't miss" CF).

 

I'd go so far as to say I'd trade any single pitcher in our system or a combination there-of for an established major league star to fit our needs. There's so much unproven pitching depth that I'd much rather allow other teams to roll the dice.

 

If ever there was an appropriate application of a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, this is it. I'll keep the bird in hand, thank you very much.

 

Absolutely agree. If we get that stadium and if they decide to compete and not be revenue share eaters, Id like to see our plethera of pitching used to get some major league players. But this is way too early for such silly speculation.

The only thing I disagree with him about is Uggla. He's been our best offensive player so far, and while I can't say that he will always be producing the way he is now, he seems to be more of a bet to continue to be a quality ML player than some of our more touted prospects like Hermida, Ramirez, and Willy.

I understand the practical side behind trading Dontrelle, but if we are ever going to establish a legitimate fan base at some point we must start having some continuity. In pure mechanical terms our baseball model is not bad.....it just doesn't do much for creating a fan base. I think trading Dontrelle would once again stick a dagger in the heart of some people who were willing to give ownership another chance.

 

Again, I'm not saying it would be a horrible move, I'm just saying at some point we ha e to stop trading stars away. These young guys are starting to create a bit of a buzz; if we can get a stadium, we are well on our way to getting fans back. If we trade Dontrelle, it's same old same old. It's impossible for any national writer to understand the dynamics of this market.

This article is just another reason why I think Rob Neyer is one of the better baseball analysts at ESPN.

 

His point about trading Dontrelle for the right package because of the pitching depth in this organization is dead on, even if it might be a bad P.R. move. Of course, in this market and with a stadium deal once again up in the air the bad P.R. is something that has to be considered.

 

I also agree with the above poster that said if we get the right package for Dontrelle we can trade him and get better faster than if we keep him and still have the black hole in CF along with no MLB-ready C of the future. Of course it might be possible to acquire a CF and/or C without trading Dontrelle, but for a package like Young/Montero/pitching prospect a trade is probably the better move to make.

I love D Train and do not want him to leave--He could potentially be one of our future 5, even with all the talent we have.

 

But if it's a question of trusting our management, I doubt we can be safe assuming he's not moving.

I figure I will add to this discussion and say that trading Dontrelle for the right monster package might make all the sense in the world on the field. I am still of the opinion that while Dontrelle is certainly a very good pitcher, he might be the slightest bit overrated because of his incredible season last year. I think that with all the pitching talent we have, we can fill his spot with somebody that will do the job just fine, while we can improve several other positions that we do not have longterm prospects for. I just that think Dontrelle's PR value is more important to this franchise than what we might get in improvement on the baseball field.

This article is just another reason why I think Rob Neyer is one of the better baseball analysts at ESPN.

 

His point about trading Dontrelle for the right package because of the pitching depth in this organization is dead on, even if it might be a bad P.R. move. Of course, in this market and with a stadium deal once again up in the air the bad P.R. is something that has to be considered.

 

I also agree with the above poster that said if we get the right package for Dontrelle we can trade him and get better faster than if we keep him and still have the black hole in CF along with no MLB-ready C of the future. Of course it might be possible to acquire a CF and/or C without trading Dontrelle, but for a package like Young/Montero/pitching prospect a trade is probably the better move to make.

 

 

I really don't disagree with the baseball side of trading Dontrelle........we have tons of young pitchers that look extremely promising, and at this point the one with the most value is the one that is the most proven. Trading Dontrelle could give us a big time catching prospect, centerfield prospect, and maybe a young arm. Assuming we are overloaded with quality arms, that's not a terrible move to make.....and it's one that could have us contending again in a hurry.

 

My problem is that this market is dying for a star/stars that will be the face of the franchise. It's an area that is already distrustful of the ownership - and IMO for good reason. After the scam job of season ticket holders this offseason and given the appearance that other parties are more committed to keeping baseball in South Florida than Loria, we need some good news. Getting a new stadium and committing to our two superstars will let fans know that this group is committed to South Florida and they're serious about putting a contender on the field. I just don't think the public will give this group the benefit of the doubt if they trade yet another star - especially one as universally popular as Dontrelle.

If you all think the PR damage from trading Dontrelle would be the only damage to the Marlins you are sadly mistaken. Besides being a proven star pitcher, he is also the leader of the club. You trade Dontrelle and you trade this club's heart and the Marlins do so at their own peril.

If you all think the PR damage from trading Dontrelle would be the only damage to the Marlins you are sadly mistaken. Besides being a proven star pitcher, he is also the leader of the club. You trade Dontrelle and you trade this club's heart and the Marlins do so at their own peril.

 

 

seriously, it's like tearing out someone's heart but putting them on the top of the list for a kidney incase theirs fails

wow poptart...thats a really good line...and i completely agree :thumbup

blah blah blah trade d-train to a NY or boston team so ESPN can enjoy their greatness more blah blah blah.

 

grrr.

 

no, no, no

 

tired of espn and their "trade dontrelle" and next year it will be "trade miggy"

It's easy for Neyer to look good arguing one side of an argument and ignoring the other, but it doesn't make it true when you look at the situation in it's entirety.

I have a feeling Dontrelle won't be a Marlin by the start of spring training 2007

Man I wish Dontrelle could turn out like one of those "hey guies, how bout I lower the amount of money I get so I can stay with the team" type of guy.

I have a feeling Dontrelle won't be a Marlin by the start of spring training 2007

 

damn, we're gonna have another fire sale after we win the world series this year?

Man I wish Dontrelle could turn out like one of those "hey guies, how bout I lower the amount of money I get so I can stay with the team" type of guy.

 

 

The problem isn't the amount of money he's making, it's if we get an offer that we cannot turn down consisting of a top prospect CF, C, and something else do we take it or not. I don't think the front office cares about how much Dontrelle makes. He's Dontrelle Willis bitch. lol