Posted December 10, 201113 yr There has been a lot of chatter about how desperately the Marlins need to upgrade the rotation. The most common train of thought has been "Sign one, trade for another". The Marlins already accomplished the first part of the ideal plan by signing the southpaw Mark Buerhle to a 4 yr/$58M contract, although C.J. WIlson got away. But should the Marlins really focus on trading for another? Before we get in to that, here is how the rotation, if the season started tomorrow, would likely shake out. Current Rotation Josh Johnson Mark Buerhle Anibal Sanchez Ricky Nolasco Chris Volstad Not terrible, eh? Of course, it is a little rough to pay $9M to a #4 pitcher. But the Marlins have shown that money is no object for the 2012 season so that shouldn't matter. Now the top 3 of the rotation are locks. And it is a pretty solid top 3 I might add. However, health is a huge issue, especially with ace Josh Johnson and Anibal Sanchez. So Ricky Nolasco and Chris Volstad are candidates to be replaced. Here are the options, as I see it. Free Agents Javier Vasquez Yu Darvish Paul Maholm Edwin Jackson Hiroki Kuroda So I see three realistic, but still improbable, options here. Perhaps Javier Vasquez could escape the clutches of retirement with nice incentives, not all monetary. He has never won (nor made it to) a World Series and that could be tempting to a pitcher whose career has spanned 14 seasons so far. Yu Darvish could fit that "International" feel so desperately wanted by Loria & Co. He would be pricey, but if the Marlins offered Pujols over $200M, a posting fee and a contract resembling Mark Buerhle's would be reasonable for the 25 year old Japanese phenom with a career ERA under 2.00. Paul Maholm is coming off the best season of his career, yet no one has noticed. With an ERA in the Mid-3's, he could be a solid fit for a short term contract while he tries to impress on a larger scale. Edwin Jackson and Hiroki Kuroda are likely seeking long term contracts, and one has to believe that there will be better options down the road. Trade Targets Gio Gonzalez Wandy Rodriguez Hialeah native Gio Gonzalez is without a doubt the cream of the crop for trade targets. He's young (still 26), consistent (past 2 seasons with 200+ IP), but most importantly - cheap and controllable (till 2015). But whenever something this good comes along... there is going to be competition. Almost every team which believes it will compete next year has inquired on Gio, and rightfully so. Getting the deal down would likely require the Marlins to ship off Logan Morrison, as well as a couple of highly touted prospects. The Marlins seem reluctant to meet that ransom, so sadly, Gio will likely be dealt to another team. Wandy Rodriguez is what Ricky Nolasco should be. He delivers near 200 innings while keeping an ERA in the mid-3's. He'll come with a hefty price tag, but because of that, only a few mid-level prospects would likely have to be dealt. In-House Options Brad Hand Alex Sanabia Wade LeBlanc Brad Hand, the youngest player on the Marlins' 40-Man, held down the #5 spot last year pretty well. The Marlins definitely wouldn't want to give it to him right away, but he is a solid backup plan if someone in the rotation should falter or get injured. Alex Sanabia is basically the Brad Hand of 2010. Wade LeBlanc is a lefty Chris Volstad. In conclusion, Ricky Nolasco and Chris Volstad certainly aren't bad 4th and 5th pitchers in the rotation. Both have ton of room for improvement along with the capacity to actually make that improvement. Nolasco's ERA always skyrockets due to a few bad outings. He had 19 games with 3 ER's or less to compliment his 7 games with 5 ER's or more. And Volstad improved on almost all of his peripherals except for H/9 which could be due to his career high BABIP (a peripheral that also plagued Nolasco). If the Marlins really want to make an impact - make it grand and sign someone like Yu Darvish. They shouldn't sign someone just for something to do. The Front Office should honestly believe that the impact will be worth it. When mid-July rolls around, starting pitchers will be made available. Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither are World Series calibur teams. This offseason has been the most exciting one in team history, but I believe one of the most exciting parts is knowing when to not add pieces. The Miami Marlins starting rotation has a lot of potential and promise, whichever way it shapes up when the dust from this exciting offseason eventually settles.
December 10, 201113 yr Author TL;DR The Marlins could obviously use upgrades to their rotation, but it isn't a necessity just yet.
December 10, 201113 yr I disagree with your assertion that our current lineup is not terrible. Having Nolasco and Volstad at #4 and #5 is pretty terrible.
December 10, 201113 yr I disagree with your assertion that our current lineup is not terrible. Having Nolasco and Volstad at #4 and #5 is pretty terrible. Off the top of my head, I would have to assume Nolaso is one of the better #4 starters in baseball...
December 10, 201113 yr i don't mind volstad as the 5th starter, he's had stretches of good performances. the thing i don't really like is anibal as the 3rd starter and i'm not sold on buehrle as the number 2 guy. if we could somehow package nolasco with other pieces and get a proven number 2 guy i'd be much more comfortable and then you move buerhle and anibal one spot down. that would be a solid rotation that could lead us into the playoffs
December 10, 201113 yr i don't mind volstad as the 5th starter, he's had stretches of good performances. the thing i don't really like is anibal as the 3rd starter and i'm not sold on buehrle as the number 2 guy. if we could somehow package nolasco with other pieces and get a proven number 2 guy i'd be much more comfortable and then you move buerhle and anibal one spot down. that would be a solid rotation that could lead us into the playoffs Wait a second... you're OK with Volstad, but not sold on Anibal or Buehrle? HUH?
December 10, 201113 yr I thought that the issue was the lack of lefties in the rotation as well as talent level. I am ok with the rotation as it stacks up from a slot perspective but I wouldn't mind one more leftie in that 5th spot. Sorry Chris V.
December 10, 201113 yr i don't mind volstad as the 5th starter, he's had stretches of good performances. the thing i don't really like is anibal as the 3rd starter and i'm not sold on buehrle as the number 2 guy. if we could somehow package nolasco with other pieces and get a proven number 2 guy i'd be much more comfortable and then you move buerhle and anibal one spot down. that would be a solid rotation that could lead us into the playoffs Wait a second... you're OK with Volstad, but not sold on Anibal or Buehrle? HUH? no, i'm okay with volstad at the number 5. not sold with buehrle and anibal as the 2 and 3......i'd prefer if there was someone we could slot in front of them
December 10, 201113 yr i don't mind volstad as the 5th starter, he's had stretches of good performances. the thing i don't really like is anibal as the 3rd starter and i'm not sold on buehrle as the number 2 guy. if we could somehow package nolasco with other pieces and get a proven number 2 guy i'd be much more comfortable and then you move buerhle and anibal one spot down. that would be a solid rotation that could lead us into the playoffs Wait a second... you're OK with Volstad, but not sold on Anibal or Buehrle? HUH? no, i'm okay with volstad at the number 5. not sold with buehrle and anibal as the 2 and 3......i'd prefer if there was someone we could slot in front of them There's this guy named Josh Johnson...
December 10, 201113 yr i don't mind volstad as the 5th starter, he's had stretches of good performances. the thing i don't really like is anibal as the 3rd starter and i'm not sold on buehrle as the number 2 guy. if we could somehow package nolasco with other pieces and get a proven number 2 guy i'd be much more comfortable and then you move buerhle and anibal one spot down. that would be a solid rotation that could lead us into the playoffs Wait a second... you're OK with Volstad, but not sold on Anibal or Buehrle? HUH? no, i'm okay with volstad at the number 5. not sold with buehrle and anibal as the 2 and 3......i'd prefer if there was someone we could slot in front of them From a pure slot perspective, I understand what he is saying. I am not sure if I agree with him 100% but I understand it.
December 10, 201113 yr You don't think a guy who has thrown not one, but two, no-hitters -- including a perfect game -- deserves a No. 2 spot, and a guy who has also thrown a no-hitter isn't worthy of a No. 3 spot? Really?
December 10, 201113 yr Author What I'm basically saying is that not every need SHOULD be fixed this offseason, because better opportunities will present itself down the road. If we don't win the Yu Darvish bid or bring Javy back, then there will be better options in the future. This team has a core that will be together for a few seasons, at the least. I honestly don't see a #2 person who is available right now that we could slot behind JJ and ahead of Buerhle/Sanchez. That person could have been C.J. Wilson. And Gio Gonzalez might fit the mold, but as I said before, he seems like an even bigger long shot at this point. As Marlin fans, patience should be something we are used to. Let's not let this offseason change us.
December 10, 201113 yr You don't think a guy who has thrown not one, but two, no-hitters -- including a perfect game -- deserves a No. 2 spot, and a guy who has also thrown a no-hitter isn't worthy of a No. 3 spot? Really? throwing no-hitters has alot to do with luck. recently pitchers like dallas braden, edwin jackson, ervin santana, jonathan sanchez, and even francisco liriano through a no hitter. not exactly what i'd call elite pitchers. yes buehrle is a very good pitcher, but if you have him as the 3 then you have an advantage because he's gonna be better than the opposing number 3. same thing with anibal at the 4. but if you have them as the number 2 and 3 then they're just average rotation, rather than a very good rotation that has depth from 1 to 5
December 10, 201113 yr What I'm basically saying is that not every need SHOULD be fixed this offseason, because better opportunities will present itself down the road. If we don't win the Yu Darvish bid or bring Javy back, then there will be better options in the future. This team has a core that will be together for a few seasons, at the least. I honestly don't see a #2 person who is available right now that we could slot behind JJ and ahead of Buerhle/Sanchez. That person could have been C.J. Wilson. And Gio Gonzalez might fit the mold, but as I said before, he seems like an even bigger long shot at this point. As Marlin fans, patience should be something we are used to. Let's not let this offseason change us. yeah i totally agree. a whole team can't be revamped in one offseason. we'll have more chances near the trade deadline and the near future. but i was just stating what i thought be the the piece that would take us to the next level of championship aspirations. but i totally agree with what your saying
December 10, 201113 yr Author What I'm basically saying is that not every need SHOULD be fixed this offseason, because better opportunities will present itself down the road. If we don't win the Yu Darvish bid or bring Javy back, then there will be better options in the future. This team has a core that will be together for a few seasons, at the least. I honestly don't see a #2 person who is available right now that we could slot behind JJ and ahead of Buerhle/Sanchez. That person could have been C.J. Wilson. And Gio Gonzalez might fit the mold, but as I said before, he seems like an even bigger long shot at this point. As Marlin fans, patience should be something we are used to. Let's not let this offseason change us. yeah i totally agree. a whole team can't be revamped in one offseason. we'll have more chances near the trade deadline and the near future. but i was just stating what i thought be the the piece that would take us to the next level of championship aspirations. but i totally agree with what your saying Yeah, I know what you mean too. And you're right, but #2 guys are pretty rare. Most of them are already snatched up and their teams are content with them. Also, I doubt a package involving Nolasco could net us a #2. Trading Nolasco (if we do) would be a move to help restock our farm system. But I'm more than comfortable with keeping him even as a #5 if we somehow do find another great arm. Money is no issue this season. Worry about Nolasco's contract in 2013 when other salaries will make a big jump.
December 10, 201113 yr No chance at Oswalt? There may be. His name has been rather quiet since free agency started.
December 10, 201113 yr Paul Malholm intrigues me. Good seasons in 08 and 011, with two bad seasons in between.
December 10, 201113 yr I think they will add another arm. Losing out on wilson shows they plan to spend more $ on the rotation. I think the question may be will they hold what they have for this season and go after one of those great starter FA's next offseason.
December 10, 201113 yr Yeah, our rotation consists of Josh Johnson who keeps flirting with no-no's an two other guys who've done it before. I do agree however, we need to acquire one more.
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