Major reveal about a former Marlins batting champ

I just recently wrote about San Diego Padres DH Luis Arraez wanting an extension with the team. The trade made by Peter Bendix that sent the fan favorite from the Miami Marlins to San Diego is still one that bothers many. Arraez's seemingly declining production in a lost season seems to have precipitated this move. We now know that there is even more to this story.

Former Miami Marlins hitter Luis Arraez had an injury during the season.

Luis Arraez was a major part of The Fish this season. He was a major Miami Marlins fan favorite and the starting second baseman. The slugger made a name for himself in 2022, when he won the American League Batting Title with the Minnesota Twins. Last year, Arraez was a key part of The Fish's playoff team. He batted .354/.393/.469, though with just 10 home runs and 69 RBI in 147 games and 574 AB. He was also however worth an impressive 4.9 WAR. The season earned him the National League Batting Title.

This season went much differently for the slugger. It saw Arraez bat .299/.347/.372, with an atrocious 0 home runs and 5 RBI in 33 games and 137 AB. He was worth a below average -0.2 dWAR and a pretty poor 0.1 WAR. Bendix seemingly panicked and shipped him to San Diego. Moving on to The Friars, Arraez batted .318/.346/.398, with 4 home runs and 41 RBI in 117 games and 500 AB. He was worth a an even more terrible -0.9 dWAR and a below average 1.0 WAR.

We now know that since June, Luis Arraez played with a torn ligament in his thumb. This seems to make his poor production more clear. He just had surgery for the ailment, and is expected to be healthy in time for Spring Training in the 2025 season. I hope that he is indeed going to be fully healthy. It is however frustrating to think that perhaps his value would've been higher had he been healthy. Could Peter Bendix have gotten more for him after surgery? That doesn't erase all of his flaws, but is definitely something to think about.