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Reports released earlier today indicated that March starling rejected the Marlins’ offer of a three-year, $ 30 million contract extension, making it all the more likely that the outfielder would be dealt before the July 30 trade deadline. Contract negotiations are now complete between the two parties, according to the Miami Herald’s Craig Mish (Twitter connections), as Marte didn’t want the talks to become a distraction for him as the second half of the season progresses.
Jon Heyman of the MLB Network (via Twitteradds the detail that the Marlins’ extension offer was over three years and $ 30 million, but regardless, now it looks like the team will be focused on selling Marte. As might be expected, Marte is already attracting the interest of several suitors, as Heyman writes that the Astros, Philly, and Yankees are three of the teams that have been in contact with the Marlins about the former All-Star.
Marte would be an upgrade for just about any team, given his impressive .288 / .387 / .443 slash line, seven home runs out of 249 home plate appearances this season (although Statcast is hinting at some regression). In addition to his stick, the 32-year-old Marte also has 20 interceptions on 23 occasions and he showed impressive glove work in the middle of the field.
It’s music to the ears of needy teams like Houston, Philadelphia and New York. The Astros have had very strong results both offensively and defensively from Myles Straw and Chas McCormick in the middle, but there’s no doubt Marte would represent a great upgrade. For the Phillies and Yankees, central court has been a revolving door thanks to injuries.
In terms of contract, Marte owes around $ 5.1 million of his starting salary of $ 12.5 million for the 2021 season. This adds another wrinkle to the commercial market, as Marte’s three known suitors are all on the market. point of exceeding the threshold for the competitive equilibrium tax of $ 210 million. Marte alone could possibly be added with a bit of maneuvering below the tax line, but that would pretty much eliminate all the space available for other business needs like pitching.
The Yankees and Astros in particular have taken several steps in recent months that have indicated staying below the tax cutoff (and avoiding a growing repeat penalty) is a priority, although Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner and the Astros CEO James Click recently said they would cross the CBT line under the right circumstances. The Phils have never crossed the luxury tax threshold, but owner John Middleton has said in the past that he would also be willing to pay tax for an addition that will make a difference.
An argument can certainly be made that Marte is such an addition, although it is also possible that it could be acquired in a trade that would not require any CBT surplus. The Marlins might be more willing to eat most or all of Marte’s salary if they were offered higher-caliber prospects, although the question of the potential value one of the three teams would want to give up for a player from location then becomes a question. Marte could also be included as part of a larger business package that could consist of multi-player swap clubs, with perhaps a larger contract sent back to Miami as some sort of salary compensation.
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