Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Miami Marlins are off to a strong start in early April despite low attendance at home games, but their ace Sandy Alcantara could be trade bait.
- The Los Angeles Dodgers could target Alcantara to shore up their injury-plagued starting rotation.
- This potential deal could reshape both teams' playoff chances depending on how the season unfolds.
Sandy Alcantara has made two starts so far this season, looking much like the NL Cy Young winner he once was. In 16 innings pitched, Alcantara has given up just one earned run. This includes a complete game shutout against the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. While contenders around baseball have been watching Alcantara closely, the same cannot be said of Marlins fans, as just over 6,000 were in attendance at loanDepot Park.
But it doesn't have to be this way. The Marlins could very well be a good regular-season team this year – they finished 2025 hot and are off to a strong start in early April – but the odds are against them keeping Alcantara long term. A player of his talents, especially if he's regained his past form, deserves to be adored by more than a few thousand fans on a by-start basis. Enter the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Why the Dodgers are an ideal fit for Sandy Alcantara
Dodgers starting pitchers Blake Snell and Gavin Stone are on the injured list. As great as Snell is when healthy he, like Alcantara, cannot be relied upon to make 30-plus starts a year. Alcantara has just four seasons in his career where he made over 30 starts. Snell has reached that plateau just twice in his illustrious career. Thus, there are some parallels between these two.
The Dodgers are blessed to have a deep starting rotation. They've invested plenty in their farm system to acquire arms, whether it be Emmet Sheehan, Roki Sasaki or Justin Wrobleski.
Player | 2025 ERA |
|---|---|
Yoshinobu Yamamoto | 2.49 |
Tyler Glasnow | 3.19 |
Shohei Ohtani | 2.87 |
Emmet Sheehan | 2.82 |
Roki Sasaki | 4.46 |
Justin Wrobleski | 4.32 |
The bottom half of that group leaves a lot to be desired, despite the promise of players like Sheehan and certainly Sasaki. Trading for Alcantara would be expensive, but he has two years left on his contract and is affordable at that.
What a Dodgers-Marlins trade for Sandy Alcantara would look like
This would be quite the haul for Miami. The Marlins could land a top-60 prospect in Sirota who is closing in on the big leagues. Ryan is coming off Tommy John surgery, but should be nearing a full bill of health in the not-so-distant future. Miami could buy low on Ryan, who at 27 years old projects as a middle-of-the-rotation starter. Root, who throws from the other side, could slide into the Marlins rotation as well. At 22 years old, it's unclear if he projects more as a bullpen asset or back-end rotation pitcher.
Would the Marlins trade Sandy Alcantara for this package?
The Marlins shouldn't trade Alcantara this early in the season. Yes, he appeared to call out the fanbase after his most recent complete game (while claiming the team still loves them), but Miami should take a major step forward in 2026. Given they already traded Edward Cabrera to the Cubs this past winter, sending Alcantara to the Dodgers would be utterly defeating for a small-market fanbase that has dealt with a lot over the years.
There's something to be said of selling high on a player. Alcantara won the NL Cy Young in 2022. That was a long time ago! If the Dodgers are willing to send that kind of trade package to Miami for his services, they'd have a tough time saying no. Just look at his inconsistent numbers the past few years (much of which is due to injury).
Season | Starts | ERA |
|---|---|---|
2022 | 32 | 2.28 |
2023 | 28 | 4.14 |
2024 | 0 | --- |
2025 | 31 | 5.36 |
Verdict: Yes
Would the Dodgers give up this much for Sandy Alcantara?
The Dodgers are blessed to have a deep starting rotation. However, starting pitchers are unpredictable – especially injury-plagued starting pitchers. The Dodgers have four of those in Snell, River Ryan, Tyler Glasnow and even Shohei Ohtani. Yamamoto is about the only given.
What Los Angeles can offer are resources in abundance. The good news for Alcantara – a pitcher who has already undergone Tommy John surgery – his injury history isn't all that extensive beyond the obvious. Just take a look at that four-year stretch above.
But this is a lot to give up for one player, especially one that was last relevant around award season back in 2022. If Alcantara is dealing this well for a bad Marlins team in July, then perhaps this trade has a better chance of happening.