The Miami Marlins should sign a veteran OF

The Miami Marlins are building a core for the future. There are some exciting players that were recently acquired and could become part of that core as well. I'm really excited for the team's future, but in the meantime it makes sense to bring in some veteran leadership and strengthen the bench at the same time. In fact, giving players "try-outs" makes sense for various reasons.

Should the Miami Marlins sign Jason Heyward?

The Los Angeles Dodgers just designated OF Jason Heyward for assignment. The OF is now available to other teams for the minimum $740,000 salary for the rest of the season. This brings us to the question if The Fish should look into this?

Jason Heyward is a 35 year old veteran of 15 seasons in the Major Leagues. He started his career as a top prospect for the Atlanta Braves. He never really lived up to the expectations of being a middle of the order bat. That said, he still batted .262/.352/.429 from 2010 to 2014. He did however show off an elite defense. That defense helped him be worth 6.4 WAR in 2010 and 5.5 WAR in 2014. Both very impressive marks for the OF.

Heyward was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for the 2015 season. He was worth 6.9 WAR that season, playing his elite defense and batting .293/.359/.439, with just 13 home runs and 60 RBI in 154 games and 547 AB. In the off-season he signed with the Chicago Cubs. I remember thinking how this contract would end up being a bad on for Chicago. I was right. From 2016 to 2022, he batted just .245/.323/.377. His highest WAR during this period was 2.4 in 2019.

He played the last two seasons for the Los Angeles Dodgers, becoming more of a backup than a starter. He batted .249/.322/.446 in 187 games and 507 AB. Specifically this season, he's at .208/.289/.393. I would obviously not have him start over any of the current OF's on the Miami Marlins. Jesus Sanchez, Kyle Stowers, Derek Hill are all better players. I am however thinking of his veteran leadership and ability to be bench depth. He could be a useful pick-up perhaps...