New SS target for the Miami Marlins

Neil Raymond

Paul DeJong / Joe Puetz/GettyImages

The Miami Marlins could use an upgrade at SS. I already wrote about an interesting trade target for The Fish earlier. The team needs better hitting and some work is already being done to fix that. There is more that can be done however. The Miami Marlins need a better SS than Joey Wendle. Could that SS be available in a tradde with the St. Louis Cardinals?

The Miami Marlins should make a trade with the St. Louis Cradinals.

Joey Wendle currently has a -0.1 WAR, with a .143/.200/.262 batting line in 15 games and 42 AB. He's definitely not this bad and does have a career .268/.320/.396 batting line. His home run high in a season is 11 (2021). An upgrade over Wendle would be pretty useful to say the least. Could the solution be coming from St. Louis?

The St. Louis Cardinals have been shopping SS Paul DeJong for a while now according to rumors. DeJong had a pretty shaky career so far. He debuted in 2017 with a .285/.325/.532 batting line, with 25 home runs and 65 BI in 108 games and 417 AB. This was an explosive debut and seemingly set him up as the next St. Louis star hitter. He couldn't follow it up very well, hitting .242/.313/.433, with 19 home runs and 68 RBI in 115 games and 436 AB.

In 2019, DeJong exploded with a .233/.318/.444 batting line with 30 home runs and 78 RBI. Things crashed for DeJong soon after unfortunately. He batted just .196/.280/.351 from 2020-2022, in 235 games and 718 AB. By this point he had an extension from St. Louis, and it quickly turned into a seemingly bad contract. He's owed $9.2 million this season, $12.5 million next season and $15 million in 2025 as a 31 year old.

The 2023 season has so far been saving DeJong's career. He's batting .282/.364/.590, with 7 home runs and 14 RBI in 23 games and 78 AB. He has a .313 BABIP so far (.277 career). I believe that his results are legitimate and that he might keep this up this season. He has a 0.2 dWAR so far, and has traditionally been an elite defender (3.1 dWAR high in 2019). It's possible that St. Louis will be willing to get out from the contract while they still can at a discount. Should the Miami Marlins take the risk. I think so depending on the price.

Neil Raymond

Neil Raymond has been a lifelong Miami Marlins fan, with the 2003 playoff run being one of his favorite childhood memories. Neil has been called a "walking encyclopedia" for his knowledge of MLB statistics and the sport's history. He follows every game and actually invented his own statistic for player value on his side project BaseballAnalyzed.com. Writing for Fansided's Marlin Maniac since 2022, he also loves Fantasy Baseball and as such is an FSWA member. Neil also loves to travel, read and follow "Futbol" teams: Germany, Argentina, Greece, Inter Miami, Bayern Munich and NYC FC.