Miami Marlins trade talk: Best trade targets at catcher
The Dream: Salvador Perez
The odds on the Miami Marlins pulling off a Salvador Perez deal are admittedly longer than the odds were on the Florida Panthers and Miami Heat making any noise in the playoffs this season when the postseason started.
But those teams did end up making some noise, didn’t they? Sometimes you have to allow yourself to dream. Also, if you’re the owner of a cynically viewed franchise in a market where every team has surpassed expectations, sometimes you have to swing for the fences.
Make no mistake — Salvador Perez would be that swing for the Miami Marlins.
He’d check all the boxes for the fan waiting for Bruce Sherman to prove he’s a different breed of Marlins owner. Star player. Expensive, and not just this for this year. He’s earning $20 million this season, and he’ll do that two more times before an option year. Perez reaches free agency in 2026. It’s a move that unmistakably screams commitment, which is not something the Miami Marlins have traditionally screamed at that price point under this ownership.
However, it’s also kind of just doubling down on being committed for as long as they’ve already planned on being committed.
Perez’ contract would line up quite nicely with Sandy Alcanatara’s best in baseball deal. Same goes for Luis Arraez and Jazz Chisholm. It’s a massive salary by Marlins standards, yes. But by MLB standards? By top tier free agent standards? It’s actually a pretty reasonable figure, and is roughly equivalent in annual salary to what the Marlins were rumored to be willing to pay Jose Abreu this offseason.
You’ll noticed I’ve spent no time extolling his on the field virtues here. The man’s a legend. Seven All-Star appearances, five Gold Gloves. He’s hit double-digit homers every season he’s played going back to 2012, already has 11 homers in 2023, and would be the biggest positional upgrade the Marlins would be remotely capable of making.
The only problem is that here have been zero reports he’s on the market. All there is to go on here is that he’s a pricey veteran playing for a horrible team, and isn’t one of their two young stars. Standard practice for rebuilding MLB teams would suggest he’s available, but there is also the possibility Perez is not a standard veteran. He could be a lifer. Not a very Marlins concept, and not likely one that I think the Royals will end up pursuing, but it can’t be dismissed.
If he is a Royals lifer though, maybe KC decides to dangle MJ Melendez? Not a very good catcher to date, but he boasts far more power potential than either of Miami’s current backstops. It would be a step back to the Jorge Alfaro mold at the position, but Melendez would also be under team control until 2029. Which makes it more likely KC decides at some point to give him another extended look behind the plate, and move Perez for more young pieces.
In short, don’t sleep on those Royals catchers.
Far more likely to happen though would be a move like this next one.