Miami Marlins: Three Offseason Blunders Made This Winter
By Tim Boyle
Jeff Locke Signing
Why, oh why, did the Marlins go after Jeff Locke? It’s the most questionable move of any made by Miami. An ex-teammate of Volquez during their time with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Locke has been rather unreliable his entire career. Yet for some reason, the Marlins thought signing him to a one-year deal worth a little over $3 million was the right move to make. To irritate Marlins fans further, the decision came only 10 days after the Pirates released him.
Locke had been a mainstay in the Pirates’ rotation since 2013. That first season he was actually very good and even managed to earn a spot in the All-Star Game. The decline began immediately after as Locke’s ERA went from 3.52 to 3.91 in 2014. Things got much worse with a 4.49 ERA in 2015 and a very unfavorable 5.44 ERA in 2016.
No one should expect Locke to suddenly do much at all with a change of scenery. His strikeout rate dipped to 5.2 K/9 last year. His 1.53 WHIP was another bad sign of things to come for the veteran lefty.
Since the Locke signing, the Marlins have made a trade for Dan Straily. This move was a far wiser one as Straily is coming off a great 2016 campaign with the Cincinnati Reds. By doing this, though, Locke no longer seems to have a place in the Marlins’ rotation. He should get some starts, but he is well behind other candidates for the rotation. This will leave the Marlins with a $3 million mop-up man or possibly even a costly Triple-A pitcher.