Miami Marlins: Four Moves to Become Playoff Contenders
By Jason Reed
3. Sign Ian Desmond
When discussing potential landing spots for Ian Desmond, I failed to mention the Miami Marlins. On the surface, the Marlins look set in the outfield and Desmond wouldn’t be needed. However, before becoming the slugging outfielder that he was in 2016, Ian Desmond was a shortstop. He was a good shortstop, too. If he could combine his above average fielding at the position with his bat from last season, he would undoubtedly be one of the better shortstops in the game.
Despite having Adeiny Hechavarria holding the reins at shortstop, the Marlins need improvement. Before really looking into it, I thought Hechavarria was a quality shortstop whose job was secure next season. However, Hechavarria’s hitting was very, very bad in 2016. Sure, he had stellar fielding that made up for his lack of offensive production, but in a league where shortstops are becoming some of the best hitters in the game, he is falling being. Adding Desmond may take away the star caliber fielding of Hechavarria, but he would still provide a better than average glove and a better than average bat at the position.
Like with Bour, Hechavarria could even become trade bait for starting pitching. A team seeking defensive help would undoubtedly look at Hechavarria as a great option. Look at the Angels’ acquisition of Andrelton Simmons. They gave up perhaps their only remaining elite prospect for a guy who has been statistically awful hitting the baseball. For a team that ranked in the top ten in fielding percentage, losing Hechavarria wouldn’t hurt them considerably, especially with Desmond taking over.