Miami Already Shopping Yunel Escobar

Last week’s blockbuster trade may still be resonating across the baseball landscape since it took so long to become official, but it would appear as though the Miami Marlins weren’t wasting any time trying to continue with other moves. Yahoo!’s Jeff Passan reports that the team has been shopping newly-acquired shortstop Yunel Escobar for much of the past week.

It’s no surprise that Escobar could be on the move again.

Yunel Escobar’s tenure as a member of the Marlins may prove to be a brief one. (Image Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE)

One one hand, he’s slated to earn just $5 Million this coming season, with a pair of team options for 2014 and 2015 for the same amount. Such a team friendly deal could appeal to a number of teams in need of upgrades at shortstop. Escobar is just 30 years old, so he could/should be somewhat serviceable for the next three seasons at a relatively affordable cost. Of course, on the other hand, this is Miami and suddenly anyone making anything over the league minimum is deemed expensive, thus the natural expectation that he could be moved in another deal.

He’s also a .282/.353/.390 hitter over six seasons in the Major Leagues, with decent but not spectacular defensive abilities. Escobar has been a shortstop for his whole career, aside from 22 games at third base during his rookie season in Atlanta. Should be remain in Miami, it’s unlikely that he’ll be the team’s starting shortstop with Adeiny Hechavarria in the picture, meaning Escobar would need to move either to third base or into a utility role in order to earn any playing time for the Marlins. It would appear that the team is uncomfortable with such an idea if we’re to believe Passan’s Tweet.

There are no shortage of teams who could have interest in Escobar, depending on the cost, as an upgrade at shortstop. Oakland has been linked to him in the past and it’s well-known that the Diamondbacks and Red Sox are evaluating the market. Detroit, New York, and others could all potential come into play as well.