The San Diego Padres added second baseman Luis Arraez in a big trade with the Miami Marlins late Friday, but the deal is even better than it looks at first glance.
Alden Gonzalez of ESPN reported Saturday that the Marlins are covering the vast majority of Arraez’s contract, at least for this season. The Padres will only have to pay Arraez the minimum salary, with Miami paying the rest of the $10.6 million he is owed.
Source: The Marlins are paying Luis Arraez’s contract down to the minimum in their deal with the Padres.
He’s making $10.6M this season, in his second-to-last year before free agency.
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) May 4, 2024
The Marlins received three prospects for Arraez, but none are in MLB’s top-100 list and only one ranked in the Padres’ organizational top five. Dillon Head, the key piece heading to Miami, now ranks fifth in Miami’s system in MLB.com’s rankings.
Per @MLBPipeline, here’s where Miami’s new prospects rank:
OF Dillon Head: 5th
OF Jakob Marsee: 10th
1B/OF Nathan Martorella: 11th pic.twitter.com/QHUKAXvG4W— Isaac Azout (@IsaacAzout) May 4, 2024
The Marlins being sellers makes sense, as the team is 9-25 and keeps finding new lows. However, they essentially sold off their best player while still absorbing his contract and not getting a high-end prospect in return. That may say more about how other teams valued Arraez, but the reality is the team traded a two-time batting champion who is still just 27 without getting high-end prospects or salary relief.
Arraez, a career .324 hitter, is hitting .299 on the season for Miami.
