For about a week before Dan Uggla’s trade, we had been hearing that the Marlins were actively shopping him and that teams like the Braves and Jays were interested in acquiring him. At that time, most around the baseball world agreed that a trade to the Braves would come at a hefty price and that it was a far-off dream.

 

Except it wasn’t.

 

On November 16, Dan Uggla was traded to the Atlanta Braves. As if that wasn't enough to send a shiver down any Marlins fan’s spine, seconds later we’d find out that the ‘hefty price’ the Braves paid was in the form of Omar Infante and Mike Dunn.

 

Wait, what? Did the Marlins just trade their slugging second baseman for a light-hitting utility infielder and a lefty specialist? They've gone off the deep end, right?

 

Not quite.

 

Perhaps at first it may have seemed like the Marlins were helping the Braves pack their bags for October baseball but more recently, signs indicate that the Marlins may be looking to pack bags of their own this season, and to do that they may have needed to give the Braves some extra luggage to carry around.

 

The Marlins’ lineup has been centered around run production through bulky power and not much else these last few seasons, and every time it has failed to propel them into the playoffs. They’ve set astounding power records since 2006, but have ultimately failed to reach the ultimate goal: October.

 

Where the Braves got the power hitter they’ve been looking for, the Marlins got a light hitter who swung for a strike 5.3% of the time last year (and no more than 6.2% within the last 3 years) and a power lefty with a career 0.78 HR/9 stat. These stats signify a very important change in the way games will be played and how (at least partly) they will be won in South Florida.

 

I say partly because offense and pitching is only a bit more than half of the story. Couple in the acquisitions of Dustin Richardson, Edward Mujica and Ryan Webb, and the Marlins are looking at an incredibly drastic shift in overall philosophy. They’ve essentially sacrificed power for defense, and hitting for pitching. While this has been talked about around the organizationfor years, the 2011 offseason marks the first significant effort in this direction, and the Dan Uggla trade is a full embrace of a philosophy from which there is no turning back now.

 

Serving as a parallel to the drastic shift in on-the-field philosophy, the Marlins have shown much aggression in acquiring talent. From day 1, the Marlins inquired on John Buck and have since then signed the All-Star catcher to a 3 year, $18 Million contract and have been involved intalks of trading for young phenom Justin Upton and signing veteran pitcher Javier Vazquez. Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria has promised that more moves are bound to come and is showing a deep commitment to competing this season.

 

Despite the refreshing certainty in the Marlins’ front office’s tone and commitment, there are still many questions left to be answered. Will top prospect Matt Dominguez be wearing teal come April of 2011? Will Emilio Bonifacio be given another chance to start regularly? Who will be that 5th starter? While many of these questions may not be answered until mid-April, Marlins fans can be certain of one thing thus far: The Fish have eyes set on October baseball and will walk there if necessary; they’re packing light this year.

 

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Good read. Definitely gives me some hope for next season. Still sucks to lose Uggla, though; especially to a division rival.

EXCEPT IT WASN'T

 

+

 

NOT QUITE

 

were excellent twists. had me on the edge on my seat. great article.

One thing is for sure, the whole Uggla traded to the Braves issue makes me angrier at the Braves. I hate them to begin with and it will make playing them even more interesting. Let's kick their "A"s....off their hats next year

Great article...I agree with all the points you make...

I don't understand this notion that the Marlins had to sacrifice power for pitching. Nonsense. Had the Marlins a bullpen last year, they would have made the playoffs. Uggla was a steal in Atlanta, as all the headlines read. Take it for what it is: with Uggla, the Marlins are a much better team, and if the roles were reversed, I'd pull the trigger in a heartbeat. The Marlins reluctance to actually sign free-agents is the problem.

 

Last season we gave up Rick VandenHurk for a rental that we're not even going to re-sign.

 

Think about all the leads we blew last season because we didn't have a bullpen. Now we have a bullpen, but with the loss of Uggla, the Marlins might have less leads to defend.

 

Then there's John Buck, whom the Marlins grossly overpaid for. He's not even that good! His defense is OK, his career BA is in the dirt and he can barely make it over the fence. He had 20 HRs last season (a career high for him), expect him to have 10 or less this season at the spacey stadium.

 

The Marlins let Cody Ross go for nothing instead of paying him and trading him in the off-season for some pitching.

 

Trading Maybin might have been necessary for some arms, so judgment has to be held on this one.

 

They brought back Perry Hill, which is a great thing and probably the best move the Marlins have made yet.

 

Still they want to sign Javier Vazquez, or so it seems. An inconsistent pitcher with not much upside left. As one Yankees commentator joked: "Yes Florida, please take that mediocre pitcher to your mediocre team. It's a perfect fit"

 

If the Marlins wanted to make a real splash they could have looked to add Victor Martinez, Carl Pavano, Cliff Lee, Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford.

 

The article was a good read though!

I don't understand this notion that the Marlins had to sacrifice power for pitching. Nonsense. Had the Marlins a bullpen last year, they would have made the playoffs. Uggla was a steal in Atlanta, as all the headlines read. Take it for what it is: with Uggla, the Marlins are a much better team, and if the roles were reversed, I'd pull the trigger in a heartbeat. The Marlins reluctance to actually sign free-agents is the problem.

 

Nope. Offered 4yr/48mil contract and uggla stupidly stuck to 5yr/71mil. He's not worth that much. Not even close. If he signs with the braves for less than 5/71 or close to 4/48 then it is obvious he just wanted to leave south florida. Fine with me if thats the case.

 

Last season we gave up Rick VandenHurk for a rental that we're not even going to re-sign.

 

RVH is not good. He is the perfect type of player to trade for a useful arm. He was never going to start, and now that our bullpen is stacked....well he wasn't going to pitch out of there either. If we don't sign ohman its no big deal.

 

Think about all the leads we blew last season because we didn't have a bullpen. Now we have a bullpen, but with the loss of Uggla, the Marlins might have less leads to defend.

 

Nope. His power is going to be replaced by buck, full seasons of stanton and lomo. Also, his sh*t defense is gone. Which means fewer runs allowed.

 

Then there's John Buck, whom the Marlins grossly overpaid for. He's not even that good! His defense is OK, his career BA is in the dirt and he can barely make it over the fence. He had 20 HRs last season (a career high for him), expect him to have 10 or less this season at the spacey stadium.

 

 

It can be argued that buck is overpaid. I can easily see this turning into a terrible signing, but at the same time, if he can hit 15ish hr's then it is worth it. Look at how many good catchers there are in baseball. Buck is right around the middle of the pack. Hes an upgrade. Thats the point of signing new players. Upgrading/replacing what you previously had.

 

The Marlins let Cody Ross go for nothing instead of paying him and trading him in the off-season for some pitching.

 

Falso. The marlins "traded" him for 1.1 million dollars. That money is going to fill REAL needs. Cody Ross created some memorable moments, but beyond those...meh. You want to talk about buck being overpaid, just wait until you see how much Cody is going to make next season. He will be truely overpaid because finding a cheap outfielder to meet or even beat his production is ez.

 

Trading Maybin might have been necessary for some arms, so judgment has to be held on this one.

 

 

I really don't see the judgement to be made here. If we didn't trade him our bullpen is just as sh*tty as it was last season. Remember how many games were lost after the 7th inning. I don't think maybin will be able to contribute anywhere near the amount of wins as those

 

They brought back Perry Hill, which is a great thing and probably the best move the Marlins have made yet.

 

Not the best but we're all happy hes back.

 

Still they want to sign Javier Vazquez, or so it seems. An inconsistent pitcher with not much upside left. As one Yankees commentator joked: "Yes Florida, please take that mediocre pitcher to your mediocre team. It's a perfect fit"

 

 

Hes not being signed to become an ace. We got one of those already. He would be a solid 4 starter. FFS what do you want? Not every FA signing is going to be huge.

 

If the Marlins wanted to make a real splash they could have looked to add Victor Martinez, Carl Pavano, Cliff Lee, Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford.

 

If the marlins wanted to be f***ing stupid and not run a baseball team properly, then yes they would have signed/traded for every big name player possible.

 

The article was a good read though!

 

 

 

 

 

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

My argument with VandenHurk is that we gave him up for a rental, and I absolutely hate rentals. We could have gotten someone somewhere else ala Vargas.

 

I didn't mean the Marlins should sing all of them. However, adding a bat and arm who puts up consistent quality numbers and bring veteran leadership to the team would be great on this young team. Carl Pavano would be a fantastic singing for the club and Victor Martinez could have been gotten for around Buck numbers. Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford would had added some explosiveness on offense and some sound defense in the OF. His base stealing abilities are enough to make one drool. I don't see how adding Crawford would run the team into the ground. That's what teams do to get to elite status: sign elite players. Lakers, Heat, Yankees, Phillies, Inter Milan, Real Madrid.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

And that reason is????? :mis2

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

And that reason is????? :mis2

 

#1... If Danny didnt wannt be here, he needed to go fast.

 

#2... To free up that money and move on from Uggla's BS so we can get to the moves that now are more important than Uggla's greed.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

And that reason is????? :mis2

 

Read the first sentence?

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

Great point. I'll say this: if it turns out that Uggla signs someone else for the same deal, it will show the immaturity of Uggla because he could have just said "I don't want to play in Florida", which is his right. But if someone is able to land his for something around 4-5 years 50-55 million, I think we have to look towards ownership and the FO for seemingly rushing the deal. If it was Uggla's stupidity, then at least we got something for him.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

Great point. I'll say this: if it turns out that Uggla signs someone else for the same deal, it will show the immaturity of Uggla because he could have just said "I don't want to play in Florida", which is his right. But if someone is able to land his for something around 4-5 years 50-55 million, I think we have to look towards ownership and the FO for seemingly rushing the deal. If it was Uggla's stupidity, then at least we got something for him.

 

Well there's two theories that I have but I hate to open the can of worms again. One is that Uggla didn't want to play with the Marlins anymore..perhaps there's a lot going on that we didn't even know about. Maybe he had some petty jealousy of how the Marlins were treating his ol' buddy Hanley (hence him believing he should be making the 71 million) and of course the whole Cody Ross thing with all the rumors that stated that Cody was telling Uggla not to resign with the Marlins. Yes it seems immature, and yes Uggla could've just said he didn't want to be with the Marlins any longer, but by asking for the deal that he wanted and sticking to it knowing the Marlins weren't going to give him it would make the Marlins look bad, not him. In other words, make it look like the Marlins fault he wasn't going to return rather than him just deserting the team. So instead of him looking like a jerk, he just looks more like a greedy player overpricing himself (or is that wrong for me to say?). If he really wanted to be with the Marlins, he might've actually tried compromising and not being so stubborn but whatever.

 

Do you guys really think Uggla will get as much as he thinks he deserves from another team? I've read some who say that if he doesn't accept a deal with another team that is close to what he wanted with the Marlins then it's proof that he just didn't want to be with the Marlins anymore. While this could be true, he might also realize that there may not be a team willing to offer him that much and he'll have no choice but go with something lower than he wanted.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

I pretty much agree with everything but that one partial sentence. Buck was on their radar and I strongly believe they had set $$$ aside for him. If not him, some other catcher within the same price range. The Uggla trade had nothing to do with it. That they happened close together fooled alot of people into thinking it did. Read the reports on that signing and they do everything but outright say the same thing.

 

From what I have read so far, the Braves seem intent on signing Dan to a 1 year deal and see how things work out. He's going to have to do better than his 2010 numbers to get something comparable (except a 4 year ) next off season to the deal he is looking for now. Same type year and he may settle for the 4/48 but get moved to 3B. (Would it really be a big surprise to anyone if they are trying to turn him into Chipper's replacement?) Or he may just be a 1 year rental. It's going to be on him again. Real big iffy situation for the Braves, IMO.

 

On the other hand, I'm not so sure Infante is a stop gap/1 year rental. If he could come close to last year's offensive production would it be so bad to have an IF of Dominguez, Hanley, Infante, and LoMo heading into the new palace? Sounds pretty solid defensively to me. And not bad at the plate.

 

Getting pen help made this trade very doable.

I prefer Coghlan at second base. If you are going to have Morrison at first base, there is a need for some major power bats in the outfield. Right now the Marlins have just Stanton.

I prefer Coghlan at second base. If you are going to have Morrison at first base, there is a need for some major power bats in the outfield. Right now the Marlins have just Stanton.

 

 

Gaby is still playing 1B as of now

I don't understand this notion that the Marlins had to sacrifice power for pitching. Nonsense. Had the Marlins a bullpen last year, they would have made the playoffs. Uggla was a steal in Atlanta, as all the headlines read. Take it for what it is: with Uggla, the Marlins are a much better team, and if the roles were reversed, I'd pull the trigger in a heartbeat. The Marlins reluctance to actually sign free-agents is the problem.

 

Last season we gave up Rick VandenHurk for a rental that we're not even going to re-sign.

 

Think about all the leads we blew last season because we didn't have a bullpen. Now we have a bullpen, but with the loss of Uggla, the Marlins might have less leads to defend.

 

Then there's John Buck, whom the Marlins grossly overpaid for. He's not even that good! His defense is OK, his career BA is in the dirt and he can barely make it over the fence. He had 20 HRs last season (a career high for him), expect him to have 10 or less this season at the spacey stadium.

 

The Marlins let Cody Ross go for nothing instead of paying him and trading him in the off-season for some pitching.

 

Trading Maybin might have been necessary for some arms, so judgment has to be held on this one.

 

They brought back Perry Hill, which is a great thing and probably the best move the Marlins have made yet.

 

Still they want to sign Javier Vazquez, or so it seems. An inconsistent pitcher with not much upside left. As one Yankees commentator joked: "Yes Florida, please take that mediocre pitcher to your mediocre team. It's a perfect fit"

 

If the Marlins wanted to make a real splash they could have looked to add Victor Martinez, Carl Pavano, Cliff Lee, Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford.

 

The article was a good read though!

 

 

at least 200 innings in 9 of his last 11 seasons is pretty consistent.

 

and one of those years he threw 198 innings

 

*edit I also forgot to mention that coming back to the NL wouldn't hurt his stats career era of 4.02 in the NL and 4.65 in the AL

I prefer Coghlan at second base. If you are going to have Morrison at first base, there is a need for some major power bats in the outfield. Right now the Marlins have just Stanton.

 

 

Gaby is still playing 1B as of now

 

Yep. Everything coming from within the Marlins organization is that they believe they wouldn't get much for Gaby anyways and with the numbers he put up last year, it's difficult to pull the trigger on someone who comes so cheap. But personally, I think Morrison should be the future at 1B, and this year is his year to prove Gaby is expendable, or not.

 

I do agree that Coghlan should now be given the shot at 2B if Dominguez proves to be ready for the majors. It's going to be one hell of a spring training.

I doubt anyone will give Uggla his 71 million. But reports were that Loria was "miffed" the Uggla turned it down. Negotiations could have continued until the December meetings. 71 million was never going to happen. I don't know what you're saying "nope" to. That the Marlins were unwilling to negotiate anymore because our owner is a prima donna? As one analyst put it on the radio the other day: "imagine what Admin Beinfest could achieve under an different owner."

 

 

 

 

 

The Marlins didn't wait to trade him because they wanted to use his money early in free agency. If Uggla wasn't going to sign here, they wanted to make sure that they at least got their catcher, and something else (probably a starting pitcher). In the meantime, they also got two players from the Braves who are ready to contribute in '11.

 

Dunn is a legit bullpen arm who will be here for many years. He's already proven in the big leagues that he can dominate lefties; he certainly has the stuff to be a future closer.

 

Infante is a stopgap; he'll start in '11, and hopefully have a good enough year to be a Type B free agent after the year.

 

All in all though, I agree that the trade was rushed (this trade was a rumor for like...no more than 15 minutes). However, there's a reason why they didn't want to waste time with it.

 

I pretty much agree with everything but that one partial sentence. Buck was on their radar and I strongly believe they had set $$$ aside for him. If not him, some other catcher within the same price range. The Uggla trade had nothing to do with it. That they happened close together fooled alot of people into thinking it did. Read the reports on that signing and they do everything but outright say the same thing.

 

From what I have read so far, the Braves seem intent on signing Dan to a 1 year deal and see how things work out. He's going to have to do better than his 2010 numbers to get something comparable (except a 4 year ) next off season to the deal he is looking for now. Same type year and he may settle for the 4/48 but get moved to 3B. (Would it really be a big surprise to anyone if they are trying to turn him into Chipper's replacement?) Or he may just be a 1 year rental. It's going to be on him again. Real big iffy situation for the Braves, IMO.

 

On the other hand, I'm not so sure Infante is a stop gap/1 year rental. If he could come close to last year's offensive production would it be so bad to have an IF of Dominguez, Hanley, Infante, and LoMo heading into the new palace? Sounds pretty solid defensively to me. And not bad at the plate.

 

Getting pen help made this trade very doable.

 

 

Buck was on their radar because they already knew that there was a good chance they were trading Uggla. The negotiations with the Braves began weeks ago when the Marlins had initially asked for Prado, and the Braves had rejected.

 

It's really not a coincidence that the Buck signing happened on the same day as the Uggla deal. Beinfest admitted after the signing that it would have been very difficult to sign Buck, without trading Uggla.

 

Would they have gotten a catcher, regardless? Yeah. Buck? Probably not.

 

As for the Braves, it's a smart "risk" because they didn't really give up any of their future to get Uggla; even if Uggla leaves, he'll be a Type A free agent, and they'll get picks for him; it's not as if they'll end up with nothing.

 

Regarding Infante, if he has a good year, he'll probably be looking for a good chunk of money that he's more than likely not worth in free agency. I'd rather have Coghlan at 2B/Cousins in CF, if anything. OR...with payroll getting a significant boost after '11...sign a real CF'er. If they try the Coghlan in CF experiment, it just isn't going to last.

 

As for "getting pen help made this trade very doable," I agree. It's clear that Loria is playing a part in some of these decisions, based on his comments about the pen last year. As I've said since the moment the trade was made, Dunn is the best part of the deal for the Marlins.