The Florida Marlins‘ haul when they traded away Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera was questionable at the time. Now, in the past two days, the two key components that they received have been sent packing in separate deals.
Yesterday the team traded left-handed pitcher Andrew Miller to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Dustin Richardson, according to mlb.com (click here for the article).
Miller has never lived up to expectations, going 15-26 with a 5.84 ERA and 1.74 WHIP over 294.1 career Major League innings. His control has always been the major issue, with a walk rate of 5.3. However, the sixth overall selection in the 2006 draft has a ton of potential. He stands at 6′7″, and taller pitchers tend to take a little bit longer to figure things out.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him mature in Boston, though his upside in 2011 is minimal, at best.
Richardson was a fifth-round selection in the 2006 draft and has only pitched 16.1 Major League innings. He has a career minor league K/9 of 10.0 to go with a 3.95 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. He certainly has potential, but has been working strictly as a bullpen arm since 2009. He’s likely going to be a middle reliever in Florida, meaning he’s a name we can ignore for now.
Now, onto today’s trade, where the Marlins shipped Cameron Maybin to the San Diego Padres, according to Tom Krasovic via Twitter. In return, the Marlins will receive relief pitchers Ryan Webb and Edward Mujica.
From a fantasy perspective, neither will have much value unless they develop into a closer (the Marlins job is certainly wide open at this point). Still, you have to like the strides the Marlins are taking to solidify their middle relief corps. If they can find a way to cover those last few innings successfully, their elite starting pitchers like Josh Johnson and Ricky Nolasco will look significantly more attractive.
As for Maybin, he has been a perennial disappointment. He has hit .246 with 13 HR and 19 SB in 548 AB over parts of four seasons. His defense is what most likely appeals to the Padres, but the wide expanses of Petco Park could help Maybin maximize his speed.
Don’t look for power, but if he can put the ball into the gaps and out of the air (he actually has a career flyball rate of 31.2 percent), there is reason to believe that he can utilize his speed and improve his outlook. I’ll take a much more detailed look at him in the near future, but he certainly should be viewed as a high-upside sleeper in deeper formats at this point.
In Other News
The A’s claimed Edwin Encarnacion off waivers, all but ending Kevin Kouzmanoff’s tenure in Oakland. Unfortunately for Encarnacion owners, he goes to a park that is extremely tough on power hitters, so don’t anticipate his power surge from 2010 to be replicated.
What are your thoughts on these moves? Who is the big winner? Who is the big loser?
Make sure to check out our early 2011 rankings:
2011 Fantasy Draft First-Round Breakdown
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