With starting center fielder, Emilio Bonifacio out for 4 to 6 weeks, the Miami Marlins needed outfield depth. The Marlins today completed a trade with the Houston Astros to get some outfield depth.
The Marlins and Astros completed a trade Saturday that sent outfielder Justin Ruggiano to Miami and Minor League catcher Jobduan Morales to Houston.
Justin Ruggiano congratulates Evan Longoria. (Image: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE)
Ruggiano, 30, has appeared in 98 games of Major League games, with the Tampa Bay Rays, in which he hit .226 with 23 RBIs and six homers. This season with Triple-A Oklahoma City, he has hit .325 with five home runs. During his Rays’ tenure, Ruggiano saw time at all three outfield spots.
Ruggiano will initially will report to Triple-A New Orleans and could be an option for the Marlins to call up soon.
Jobduan Morales was selected in the ninth round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft by the Miami Marlins. Morales, 20, hit .275 in 55 games between Single-A Greensboro and Rookie Level Jamestown last season. Morales has spent the 2012 season in extended spring training, and will likely do the same for the Astros.
Topics: Emilio Bonifacio, Jobduan Morales, Justin Ruggiano, Miami Marlins
Ever since I can remember, I have loved the game of baseball. I literally breathe, eat, and sleep baseball. Have been a huge Marlins fan since the day I watched my first game in 1999. When I combined my passion for writing with my passion for baseball and the Marlins, I found a role as the Editor of the Marlin Maniac. Hope is to one day become a national baseball journalist. Currently resides in Birmingham, Alabama, but was born and raised in South Florida.
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