Miami Marlins Acquire Carlos Lee from the Houston Astros

Not even a week removed from Carlos Lee‘s rejection of a trade to the Dodgers, the Houston Astros have

found a new team to which they will send him.  Matt Snyder of CBS Sports is reporting that the Miami Marlins have acquired Lee for minor leaguers Matt Dominguez and Rob Rasmussen.

Carlos Lee has a limited no-trade clause written into his contract where he could veto trades to certain teams.  One of those teams in which he had veto power over was the Los Angeles Dodgers.  Lee made it known last Saturday that he would likely nix a trade to the Dodgers.  He made it official on Sunday despite the Dodgers pulling out of the trade before hearing from Lee.  The Astros have been desperately trying to dump at least a portion of Lee’s contract as part of their rebuilding process, and it is reported that they will have to eat a large chunk of his contract in this trade to the Marlins.

Lee started today against the Pirates but was removed after the third inning.  His locker was later cleaned out according to Astros beat writer Brian McTaggart.  The official word on how much of Lee’s contract the Astros will absorb is not yet out.  However, it’s sure to be a significant amount.  Lee was making $18.5 million this season and is a free agent after this year.

So far in 2012, Lee is hitting .286/.336/.412 with five home runs.  He still has some pop in his bat, and he’s still a big contributor to any lineup.  The Astros simply couldn’t afford him any longer and needed something in return to assist in their rebuilding effort.  Matt Dominguez and Rob Rasmussen will do just that.

Dominguez is a 22-year old third baseman.  He played 17 games for the Marlins in 2010 and hit .244/.292/.333.  He was currently at Triple-A New Orleans, struggling.  So far this year, he has hit .234/.291/.357.  He was rated as high as the 64th best prospect in baseball by Baseball America in 2009.  In 2001, he was rated number 81.  Prior to this season, he was unranked.

Rob Rasmussen is a 23-year old lefty who has yet to make his Major League debut.  He was pitching for High-A Jupiter of the Florida League at the time of the trade.  He is 4-7 with a 3.90 ERA this season.  In his minor league career, Rasmussen has a 16-17 record with a 3.67 ERA.

Lee’s addition to the Marlins is designed to help them get over the hump and start competing in the National League East.  The Marlins are currently 38-42 and 9.5 games back of the Washington Nationals.

For more on the Astros, be sure to check out Climbing Tal’s Hill. 

For more on the Marlins, be sure to check out Marlin Maniac.