The Miami Marlins have traded infielder Hanley Ramirez and pitcher Randy Choate to the Los Angeles Dodgers for two pitchers. (Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE)
As we near the MLB trade deadline, there is no shortage of deals being made well prior to the July 31st deadline. Usually teams wait until the 11th hour to send big names to new markets but this year that’s not the case. A day after Ichiro was sent from coast-to-coast, the Miami Marlins have shipped Hanely Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodger for — you guessed it– a minor league pitcher.
|
DODGERS GET: |
MARLINS GET: |
|
|
The Marlins also got a Major League pitcher in the deal but even with that piece, it’s clear that the Marlins are in the midst of a fire sale they claim isn’t going on.
Miami was attempting to be contenders when they made an early trade for Astros slugger Carlos Lee on July 4th, but a lot has clearly changed for Miami since then and it now appears they are sellers in the trade market. Why, just the other day Miami sent Omar Infante and Anibal Sanchez to the Tiger for basically nothing.
So Miami fans claiming that the trades are good ones and are buying into the no fire sale propaganda are clearly being misled as Marlins owner Jeffery Loria continues to bleed money.
As for the Dodgers, things change dramatically for them as well but in the most opposite way. Los Angeles sits 2.5 GB the San Francisco Giants in the NL West and with the addition of Ramirez, they now have defensive help in the infield as well as speed in the lineup. The Dodgers are making a serious push for the NL West crown this year and with setbacks due to injuries holding them back, a late season push with Ramirez on roster doesn’t seem as daunting.
With Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier returning to the lineup earlier this month, the Dodgers now have what they feel are the tools to overtake and suppress the Giants as baseball begins to near it’s home stretch.
It’s really a tale of two different teams on two totally different ends of the spectrum. For Miami fans, they can only watch Ramirez go to Los Angeles and wish things were better, because with the way this fire sale is shaping up, it’s going to be a long time before they’re in the kind of buying position the Dodgers are with their new toy.
