While there are plenty of free agents still out there in Major League Baseball, there also isn’t a dearth of guys on the trade block.
Chief among them is Miami Marlins catcher, J.T. Realmuto. A solid defender with some impressive pop, it’s not exactly a surprise many teams reportedly are inquiring about him.
The New York Mets reportedly had a one-for-one Realmuto-Noah Syndergaard trade in place, but it was nixed by team ownership. So with teams back to the drawing board, what exactly would it take to pry the Realmuto out of the Sunshine State?
While the complete package isn’t totally clear, The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo in his “Sunday Baseball Notes” explained something that needs to be in the deal and why.
“According to industry sources, (CEO Derek) Jeter is letting his baseball ops people know that he needs a major league player back in return for catcher J.T. Realmuto,” Cafardo wrote. “The feeling is the Marlins got burned in the Christian Yelich deal with the Brewers and they’re going to make sure they get a young, controllable, proven major leaguer in a package for the sought-after catcher. The Astros and Braves seem to be hanging in there on talks that seem endless.”
You can’t blame the Marlins for shooting high and wanting someone that can play in the top flight right away, because there always is an inherent risk in just stockpiling prospects who haven’t yet played a big league inning. And considering Yelich went on to win the MVP in his first year with Milwaukee, you can’t blame Jeter and Co. for being reticent to just deal guys away.
