David Samson, former president of the Miami Marlins, joined “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” on Wednesday and didn’t hold back on several topics regarding his old employer.
Samson took shots at Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez, recalled once catching pitcher Ricky Nolasco eating pizza while drunk at 3 a.m. and shed some light on his interactions with former New York Yankees shortstop/current Marlins owner Derek Jeter before being fired last year.
One really interesting nugget, however, stemmed from host Dan Le Batard asking Samson about which players the Marlins came close to acquiring during his tenure with the club from 2002 to 2017.
Samson revealed the Marlins once nearly traded the late Jose Fernandez to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a blockbuster deal that would have sent fellow pitcher Patrick Corbin, outfielder A.J. Pollock and infielder Brandon Drury to Miami. The trade fell apart, according to Samson, because D-Backs owner Ken Kendrick didn’t want to part ways with the players involved in the deal.
Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald wrote Wednesday that the Fernandez trade nearly took place before the 2016 season because the talented right-hander turned down a contract extension that offseason and the organization wasn’t confident he’d re-sign with the Marlins upon becoming a free agent in 2018.
Hernandez was killed in a boating accident in September 2016 at age 24, ending an extremely promising Major League Baseball career. He went 38-17 with a 2.58 ERA in 76 career starts over four seasons, earning two All-Star selections and National League Rookie of the Year honors in 2013.
Corbin, also a two-time All-Star, reportedly agreed to a six-year, $140 million contract with the Washington Nationals earlier this week, while Pollock, an All-Star in 2015, remains a free agent. Drury currently plays for the Toronto Blue Jays after being traded north of the border by the New York Yankees in July.
