No matter the result, the Miami Marlins did the right thing at MLB trade deadline

If social media is to be any judge, it sure looks as if plenty of Miami Marlins fans out there would do well to remember that old saying about not being able to have it both ways.

Marlins starting pitcher Edward Cabrera went on the injured list Sunday afternoon with a sprained throwing elbow, per Craig Mish. It's the kind of injury that certainly sounds bad, and it shouldn't come across as a shock if by the time you read this, his Tommy John surgery has already been announced. Even if he avoids major surgery, it's hard to imagine he throws another pitch this season, and thus does anything to convince twenty-nine other MLB general managers they should give up major assets for the young right-hander.

Consequently, there has been plenty of handwringing about how foolish the Miami Marlins were to not have traded Cabrera when they had the chance. A similar sentiment was expressed a couple weeks ago when Miami moved on from Cal Quantrill. Heaven help the internet should any injury befall staff ace Sandy Alcantara over the season's final month.

To be disappointed or upset about the injury is, of course, understandable. I mean, let's face it. Being a promising Marlins pitcher is starting to feel up there with being on the Madden cover when it comes to curses. Cabrera was one of the best stories of the seasons, and tons of fun to watch. But to actually be bemoaning the decision of the Miami front office to not start selling off parts when they had won five straight series heading into the MLB trade deadline?

It would be hard to fault Marlins President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix for screaming "what more do you want" into the closest microphone he could find.

Those same fans that are so irate, that feel so forsaken right now? Nearly all of them would have been picketing outside the gates of loanDepot Park should Miami's front office have so actively demonstrated the disinterest in winning games such a sell off would have signified. Let's put it another way. If Miami had sold off parts in July, most of you wouldn't have noticed this injury had even happened until baseball's winter meetings rolled around in December. The fact you noticed a September Marlins injury at all is in no small part due to the fact the team didn't throw in the towel a month ago.

Obviously, the remainder of the season hasn't played out the way Marlins fans hoped that it would when those decisions were made. Obviously, this is a terrible luck for a franchise that seems to frequently encounter it. Yet the fact that the team tried to win, tried to keep the momentum rolling, remains just as commendable today as it was on July 31st. On paper? In a vacuum? It might not have been the right move. The thing is, baseball decisions in South Florida can't be made that way if the franchise's fortunes are to truly start changing for the better.

Overall, the Marlins were right when they decided to keep fighting this deadline. Should they find themselves in the same situation next summer, here's hoping they do the right thing again.