MLB trade grades: Marlins begin fire sale, deal Luis Arraez to Padres

It may only be a month into the 2024 season, but that doesn't mean it's too early for trades to take place. Even blockbuster trades.

When it comes to teams underachieving thus far, the Miami Marlins stand out. Entering Friday night, the Marlins held a 9-24 record, sitting dead-last in the NL East division. One month into the season, the expectation was that they would be one of the teams selling. After all, they did have some talent that contenders would look to poach. But no one would have expected that the Marlins would deal their best hitter one month into the season.

Luis Arraez trade details: Padres and Marlins strike a deal

On Friday, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported that the San Diego Padres were nearing a deal to acquire second baseman Luis Arraez from the Marlins. In exchange, the Padres would be sending over three prospects and a relief pitcher.

Craig Mish of the Miami Herald filled in the details. Heading over to the Marlins were prospects Dylan Head (No. 6), Nathan Martorella (No. 13), and Woo-Suk Go, and outfielder Jakob Marsee (No. 9).

MLB trade grades: Who won the Padres-Marlins Luis Arraez deal?

Now we get into the portion where we determine who won the trade between the Padres and Marlins. Of course, it's way too early to tell, and we will undoubtedly revisit this down the road. But let's take a crack at it.

Padres trade grade: A

The Padres are getting one of the best pure hitters in the game currently in Arraez, who won the batting championship for the past two seasons. Oh, and the fact that Arraez will be under contract through the 2025 season? That's an automatic A for the Padres.

This season, even with the Marlins struggling, Arraez recorded a .299 batting average, a .347 on-base percentage, a .372 slugging percentage, five RBI, 22 runs, and 41 hits in a major league-high 137 at-bats.

Through his six seasons in MLB, Arraez is slashing .324/.377/.423 while recording 24 home runs, 206 RBI, 309 runs, and 688 hits in 569 games played.

With the Padres in win-now mode, making a deal for Arraez makes too much sense. But it does leave a bit of a logjam in the middle infield alongside Xander Bogaerts and Ha-Seong Kim.

Marlins trade grade: C

Punting this early in the season is not exactly going to boost confidence in the fanbase, but the Marlins have determined that selling was the best course of action. Sure, the Marlins are moving on from their best hitter, but they do get a return. Three top 15 prospects? That's something.

Head is the highest-ranked Padres prospect in the deal, currently playing for San Diego's Single-A team. The outfielder has a long ways to go, as MLB Prospect Pipeline has his ETA set for 2027.

Marsee, meanwhile, is playing for Double-A and is on track to be called up at some point this season. Thus far, Marsee is slashing .179/.333/.321 while recording two home runs, five RBI, 15 runs, 15 hits, 23 strikeouts, and 18 walks in 84 at-bats (23 games).

Martorella provides flexibility, playing first base and outfield. Through the first 24 games Martorella has played, he recorded a .287 batting average, a .815 OPS, two home runs, 14 RBI, 18 runs, and 25 RBI.

Go, meanwhile, was just signed by the Padres this year. Spending time in Double-A, Go has a 4.38 ERA, a 1.46 WHIP, an 0-2 win-loss record, 15 strikeouts, and four walks in 12.1 innings (10 games).

Yes, the Marlins get back four players in return for Arraez, but they all have lofty expectations now that they were acquired in exchange for the back-to-back batting champion. Three top-15 prospects in San Diego's farm system seem good, but surrendering one of the best hitters in the game is hard to stomach. Plus, none of those three prospects are ranked in MLB.com's Top 100 list.