Competitive Miami Marlins looking to add starting pitching

Firmly in the playoff hunt, the Miami Marlins are looking like potential buyers at the trade deadline. A few starting pitchers are reportedly in their sights.

In a season that has already featured some unexpected twists and turns, the Miami Marlins have been one of the league’s most quietly surprising teams. The Fish currently own a 38-34 record, a manageable 4.5 games behind the Washington Nationals in the NL East and only one game out of the second Wild Card spot.

While overtaking the Nats may be a bit optimistic in the long term, the Marlins are definitely in the postseason mix, and according to reports they are focused on making additions before the trade deadline to boost their chances. That’s a significant change from the fire sale approach Miami has become known for throughout its history.

At the top of their wish list? Starting pitching.

The Marlins rotation has been solid overall, posting a 4.07 ERA that is good for tenth in MLB. However, that has a lot to do with the dominance of staff ace Jose Fernandez. Remove his 2.36 ERA in 87.2 innings pitched, and the Marlins starters’ ERA rises to 4.54, which would place them down at 19th.

While young lefty Adam Conley has done a solid job (3.56 ERA, 83.1 IP) in his second big league season, offseason free agent signee Wei-Yin Chen has been a major disappointment, managing an uncharacteristic 5.22 ERA across 79.1 frames.

If Miami wants to avoid fading down the stretch, getting some more backup for Fernandez would be a good idea. Already a few names are being mentioned in connection to the Marlins’ search. Jon Morosi of MLB.com reports that the Tampa Bay Rays’ Jake Odorizzi and the San Diego Padres’ Drew Pomeranz are on the club’s radar.

The 26-year-old Odorizzi has really come into his own the last two seasons, posting a 3.44 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 3.18 K/BB ratio in 43 outings since the start of 2015. His name popped up in trade rumors over the winter but nothing every materialized. With the Rays falling further out of the playoff picture, they could now be motivated to move the right-hander.

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Pomeranz has been a revelation in San Diego this year. After spending much of his career jumping between the rotation and bullpen, the 27-year-old lefty is spinning off some impressive numbers as a starter in his first campaign with the Padres. In 14 starts (81 IP), he has posted a 3.00 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. His 4.2 BB/9 could definitely use some work, but the 10.7 K/9 is a career high.

Both pitchers are young, controllable arms that would surely improve the Marlins rotation, which is also why the team may have trouble acquiring them. With a farm system widely ranked near the bottom of the league, Miami may not have the pieces needed to meet the likely asking prices of the Rays and Padres.

They might have better luck with a lower-tier impending free agent like Bud Norris, who Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball reports is also drawing interest from the Marlins. “Effectiveness” is probably not the first word that jumps to mind when fans think of Norris, but the 31-year-old veteran is performing much better of late for the Atlanta Braves.

After an ugly April (8.74 ERA in five starts), Norris was sent to the bullpen to get himself back on track. It appeared to help, as the right-hander worked a 1.96 ERA over 18.1 innings in 12 relief outings. In the four starts he’s made since rejoining the rotation near the beginning of June, he has a 2.82 ERA and has held opponents to a .210 batting average.

While he probably won’t maintain that level of play, Norris at his best has been a league average hurler who can eat some innings. He’s only two years removed from winning 15 games for the Orioles with a 3.65 ERA in 2014. As Miami combs the market, Norris could be a relatively cheap option to try.

Next: Marlins passed on Syndergaard in 2012 trade

In any case, the Marlins look like they will be buyers at the deadline, which would be a welcome development for their long-suffering fanbase. Which pitchers do you think they should target? Let us know in the comment section below.