Marlins: Corey Dickerson could still be in play in the outfield

Will the Miami Marlins acquire Corey Dickerson as a “fall back” option if other free agents sign elsewhere?

Let’s not shut the door completely on the notion that Corey Dickerson will not sign with the Miami Marlins.

As news travels throughout baseballs landscape that Miami’s front office is looking to sign veteran outfielders to one-year contracts, which may be hindering their ability to sign players during free agency, it’s still a real possibility the Dickerson could be “the guy“ who makes South Florida his home for the 2020 MLB season.

The growing consensus amongst analysts centers around Yasiel Puig and Miami’s fascination with the slugger becoming the centerpiece of the team’s offense. There are other teams who have expressed interest in Puig, including the Chicago White Sox, who have been very busy adding puzzle pieces to their potent lineup.

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As we all know, Puig has some interest in Miami as well, and there has been some form of courtship going on the past few days, but no contract has been offered or signed that we know of.
This is where Dickerson comes in, who could be a fascinating bridesmaid with plenty of upside.

According to Richard Justice of MLB.com, as he wrote on December 19, there is some interest sell by the Marlins in Dickerson and his ability. Whether that has waned or not it’s a question. But the fact is the soon yo be 30-year-old has not signed a deal with anybody else.

"Per Justice, “There’s interest here, preferably on a short term contract it would not block the path of top prospects to the big leagues. Dickerson would also be a big-league upgrade for a club working its way through our rebuilding process.”"

The Marlins according to some sources, including Joe Frisaro, may not view him as an everyday player based on his issues with injuries last year, but he still could provide quite a pop in the meat of the batting order.

Based on the time he spent with the Pirates and then with the Phillies, Justice believes it’s hard to evaluate what kind of season the veteran actually had.

"“His 2019 season is hard to evaluate. Dickerson was healing third for the Pirates when he suffered a right shoulder strain of hindered him for two months…,” Justice wrote. “He had a .940 PS in June and July and then was traded to the Phillies at the trade deadline. He had eight home runs in .886 OPS in 34 games before he fouled a ball off his left foot on September 11, breaking a bone inside lining him for the final 17 games.”"

Dickerson’s production could be compared to Garrett Cooper, who is highly thought of within the Marlins organization but has suffered injury woes last year like his potential outfield meet. Cooper hit 15 home runs last year but spent a significant amount of time on the Injured List.

As of right now, according to Marlins manager Don Mattingly, the front office and the coaching staff do not foresee Cooper as an everyday player because of his injury history.