Miami Marlins – Toronto Blue Jays Trade Mid Season Update

June 24, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar (5) at bat against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

With the news that the Marlins have called up outfielder Jake Marisnick and the season entering the second half, I thought it would be a good time to catch up on the numbers so far from the Blue Jays – Marlins trade from this past offseason.   Are the Marlins still winning the trade?  Seems like a dumb question at this point.  Or to quote Bryce Harper  “That’s a clown question, bro.”

The Blue Jays season continues to be a disaster, so far, as they remain stuck in the cellar of the AL East standings.  The trade could not have turned out worse for them considering the team’s results and the amount of money that remains committed  in future seasons to the players acquired.  In view of the high expectations coming into the year, I would expect some people will be getting fired at season’s end.

The Marlins similarly find themselves in last place, but with expectations having been extremely low the team has to be very pleased by the development of their young players.  The future seems bright as the Marlins continue to promote one prospect after another to the Major League level.

Let’s take a look at how the players have fared for their new teams so far:

Blue Jays

Name

Level

G

PA

AVG

OBP

SLG

wOBA

HR

R

RBI

SB

WAR

MLB

33

149

.321

.369

.474

.368

5

23

17

10

1.1

Emilio Bonifacio

MLB

81

246

.211

.251

.307

.247

2

27

15

11

-0.6

Name

Level

W

L

GS

IP

K/9

BB/9

ERA

FIP

WAR

MLB

1

6

13

68.1

9.09

3.16

5.66

4.26

0.8

Mark Buehrle

MLB

5

7

20

123.0

6.00

2.41

4.83

4.35

1.2

Marlins

Hitters

Level

G

PA

AVG

OBP

SLG

wOBA

HR

R

RBI

SB

WAR

MLB

84

327

.253

.289

.334

.274

2

22

25

6

0.0

Jeff Mathis

MLB

34

121

.204

.275

.324

.257

2

6

18

0

0.3

Derek Dietrich

MLB

57

233

.214

.275

.405

.296

9

32

23

1

0.0

Jake Marisnick

AA

67

298

.294

.358

.502

.390

12

43

46

11

Pitchers

Level

W

L

GS

IP

K/9

BB/9

ERA

FIP

WAR

MLB

0

1

4

24.2

4.01

2.55

3.28

3.00

0.5

Justin Nicolino

A+

5

2

18

96.2

5.96

1.68

2.23

3.03

Anthony Desclafini

A+/AA

6

3

18

86.1

8.24

1.57

2.92

3.08

The Blue Jays have received a combined WAR of 2.5 from the 4 players they received in the deal.  Jose Reyes has been limited to 33 games on the season due to an early season ankle injury, but has been productive when in the lineup posting a slash line of .321/.369/.474 (wOBA .368) with 10 steals.  Of course the risk with Reyes has always been injuries and with 4 more years remaining on his contract the Jays have to be concerned.  Both Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson are having the worst seasons of their careers.  Buehrle has at least been healthy and had seen his ERA improve each month before hitting a rough patch so far in July.  Johnson, on the other hand, missed a month and half and has seen a significant drop in velocity which may indicate that more DL time is on the horizon.

The Marlins have received just 0.8 WAR at the big league level, but the trade was not expected to provide much major league value this season.  Henderson Alvarez’s 0.5 WAR in 4 starts tops the list for players received in the trade, but the fact that Derek Dietrich and Jake Marisnick will even play in the majors this season counts as a win for the front office.   Adeiny Hechavarria’s exactly replacement level 0.0 WAR has to be the most disappointing return on the Marlins side.  Even that has been tempered, though, as Hechavarria has hit for a scorching .417 batting average in July.

On the minor league side, Marisnick had an outstanding season at AA Jacksonville before being promoted to the majors.  He ranked in the Southern League’s top 10 of every significant offensive category while manning centerfield.  Pitchers Justin Nicolino and Anthony Desclafini have both also been outstanding with ERAs under 3.  Both pitchers started the season at high A Jupiter and have already earned promotions to AA Jacksonville.

Overall, the trade continues to be a landslide victory for the Marlins on the field.  All of the young players they received have continued to show positive results while the Jays have gone in the tank.  The true test for the Marlins, however, will come in subsequent seasons when it remains to be seen if the players they received provide the wins needed to become a contender.  Maybe more importantly, it remains to be seen if the front office will be willing to spend some of the money saved to keep these players and bring in free agent reinforcements when needed.

By the way, ironically the best season of all the players involved in the trade so far belongs to Yunel Escobar who has provided a 2.4 WAR for the Rays as their regular shortstop.  Escobar was sent from the Jays to the Marlins before eventually being dealt to the Rays in exchange for Derek Dietrich.