News on an All-Star catching target for the Miami Marlins

The Miami Marlins need catching help, and who is better to acquire than Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez? With the issue at third base potentially improving, it makes sense for The Fish to focus on the catching situation. Kansas City GM J.J. Picollo made a statement on all of the trade speculation involving Salvy. What did he say? More importantly does he mean it?

The Miami Marlins would be better with Salvador Perez as the new catcher.

The Miami Marlins have two options at catcher, and neither is really a difference-maker. Jacob Stallings has barely been able to hit above .200, and has a -0.9 WAR over the last two seasons. Nick Fortes has a 0.0 WAR this season, seemingly barely even doing anything. The Fish could really bolster the lineup with a boost at that position. The answer is on the trade market.

The Kansas City Royals are turning into the Colorado Rockies. A team whose management holds on to hopes of contention, when everyone else can see that the team is in dire need of a rebuild. Kansas City has been rebuilding unlike Colorado, but are doing a terrible job at drafting and developing their prospects. They aren't helping themselves by refusing to make the trades that would help that rebuild.

Salvador Perez was 31 and nearing free agency in 2021. With Kansas City nowhere near the playoffs, they did the one thing any other rebuilding team would do....they traded their superstar 48 home run hitting catcher for a prospect haul! Wait, no that's not what they did, they gave him an extension instead. When they called up top catching prospect MJ Melendez last season, and he hit 18 home runs in 460 AB, he was ready to replace Perez. So naturally they moved Melendez to LF at the start of this season, and made Perez their captain.

Kansas City GM J.J. Picollo said that Kansas City has no intention of trading Salvador Perez. Judging by Kansas City's behavior towards him, it looks like he probably means it. Will he change his mind? He should. There's no reason for a rebuilding team to be annually paying a catcher in his 30's $20 million. More importantly, the Miami Marlins would look better with Salvy behind the plate.