This is probably going to hurt - A Marlins franchise

[kinsmen7]

Marlins voted as "MLB's worst franchise"

How can a team that recently traded away superstars Christian Yelich, Giancarlo Stanton, and Marcell Ozuna have Bleacher Report's 28th ranked farm system?

A recent poll has the Marlins ranked as MLB's lowest ranked franchise. A number of factors including major league talent and farm system ranking were taken into account.

While some had the Orioles ranked lower, due in part to the albatross contracts of players such as Chris Davis, the O's ended up ranking slightly higher given their influx of near-MLB ready prospects.

The O's are given the faintest of hope with young players such as Chance Sisco and Dylan Bundy sitting as bounce back candidates, and having top 100 prospect Yusniel Diaz on the cusp of his MLB debut.

Others, such as DL Hall, Ryan Montcastle and Austin Hays aren't quite there yet, but all have immense talent, and could be called upon in the near future.

As for the Marlins, it looks like it's going to be another tough season for their fans (or lack thereof).

Miami actually projects to have a slightly higher win total than Baltimore, and have a number of interesting arms and projects to experiment with, but with one of the leagues lowest payrolls, it will be a long haul to get this franchise back to any sort of respect level when it comes to the day to day operations.

The Marlins feature only two top 100 prospect. One of those prospects, recently aquired pitcher Sixto Sanchez (#27), should see time in AA, but his ETA looks like 2020 at this point. Cuban international Victor Victor Mesa (97), was signed as an international free agent, but he has yet to take his first professional at bat. MLB.com has his ETA as 2020 as well, but a lot will have to go right in order for that to happen.

Other prospects, such as Monte Harrison, Nick Neidert, Zac Gallen, and Isan Diaz could all see their debuts in 2019, but there's certainly not an abundance of intrigue around most of these guys.

Rule 5 pick Riley Ferrell looks like he'll stick with the club throughout the season. He has a plus rated fastball and slider, but his walk rate of 5.9/9 last season may end up leaving the Marlins looking foolish some nights. Given the lack of hope surrounding the club, they'll likely look foolish most nights regardless.

When it comes to trade chips on this team, there really aren't many. Dan Straily looked like a decent bounce back candidate, but was released from the team last week. Pitcher Wei Yin Chen could see some interest near the deadline, but coming off of a bad season, and coupled with an albatross of a contract, any trade would have to see an equally poor contract coming back. Veteran Curtis Granderson, as well as Martin Prado could see a tiny bit of interest closer to the trade deadline, but everything will have to go right in order for that to happen.

Star power? It's really Brian Anderson or bust at this point. The almost 26 year old slashed .273/.357/.400 last year with 11 homers. Hardly mind blowing stats, but between him, Starlin Castro and Miguel Rojas, they currently represent what should be a pitiful offense. Lewis Brinson will be back for his second full season, and while he brings plus defense and speed to the table, if he doesn't improve on his .199/.240/.338 line early in the season, he could quickly find himself back in AAA.

Overall, the Marlins look like they'll be an absolutely dreadful team. This should be painful.

[kinsmen7]

Bleacher Report releases Marlins top 10 prospects

Coinciding with their annual farm system rankings (The Marlins rank 28th), BR released their top 10 list for Miami.

Tier 1/Top 100 Prospects: Prospects who have elite skill sets and All-Star potential. This is the cream of the prospect crop. These players are identified by where they will fall in our first top 100 prospect list of the year, which will be released later in the offseason.
Tier 2: Prospects who have a good chance of becoming impact contributors at the MLB level. These are the guys who were in consideration for spots on the leaguewide top-100 list and could eventually end up there.
Tier 3: Prospects who profile as fringe MLB contributors or young players who are still too raw to project any higher. This tier represents the bulk of prospects around baseball, though more than a few are capable of climbing to the next tier.

1. RHP Sixto Sanchez 20 Top 50
2. OF Victor Victor Mesa 22 Top 100
3. RHP Nick Neidert 22 2
4. RHP Sandy Alcantara 23 3
5. OF Monte Harrison 23 3
6. OF Connor Scott 19 3
7. RHP Jorge Guzman 22 3
8. 2B Isan Diaz 22 3
9. RHP Jordan Yamamoto 22 3
10. C Will Banfield 19 3

[kinsmen7]

All quiet on the Kimbrel/Keuchel front: Could Marlins be players?

Here's an interesting scenario: If Dallas Keuchel or Craig Kimbrel can't get the offers that they're looking for, could the Marlins overpay one of the two stars with a promise to move them to a contender closer to the deadline?

A lot of factors would be at play here. 1) Would either guy settle for a high value one year deal? 2) If they would, how many other teams would be interested? And 3) Given their continual front office issues, would there ever actually be interest from either of these guys join the team?

Veteran manager Don Mattingly certainly garners plenty of respect among his peers, but that's likely not enough to intrigue either player.

Kimbrel seems the most likely of the two to end up with a multi-year deal somewhere. He's on pace to be a HOF closer, and despite a drop in velocity last season, he still held his own for the world champion Red Sox.

Keuchel on the other hand could be a possibility. With a down season in which he posted a 12-11 record to go along with a 3.74 ERA and 1.314 WHIP, he may not be in as high demand as he would have hoped.

Most people around the game continue to be confused by the seemingly lack of interest for both pitchers, but if the Marlins can play their cards right, they could end up getting the steal of a deal that they've needed since the ill fated Stanton/Yelich/Ozuna deals.

[kinsmen7]

So, I'm a sucker and broke down and picked up 19, so I'm going to restart this with Ridin's roster.

I was having a good go with 18, but just couldn't hold off anymore.

Feel free to post as well!

[kinsmen7]

Chen to the Pen

(VIA MLB.COM)

JUPITER, Fla. -- Wei-Yin Chen paces all starters on the Marlins’ roster in MLB starts with 170. But the 33-year-old will enter 2019 with a different role on the staff.

The organization on Sunday morning announced that Chen will be moved to the bullpen, while also not ruling out that the left-hander could still have opportunities to start at some point during the season.

Chen is accepting the decision and says he will do his part to help the team.

“Given the choice, I'd like to be a starter for the Marlins, because starting is what I've always been doing,” Chen said through his interpreter. “It's more natural and comfortable for me. But, of course, I'm in the bullpen and I'll try to make the best of the decision. I will not let it affect me mentally. I will look to fit into that role and help the team as much as possible.”

Chen also is the highest-paid player on the Marlins, making $20 million this year.

[kinsmen7]

Keuchel and Kimbrel come off the board

Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel's lengthy free agent holdouts have come to an end.

Keuchel (31) has signed a 3 year, $51 million deal with the San Diego Padres. He'll step in immediately to bolster a very young, albeit very talented rotation.

The move continues a wild off season for the Padres, as they also shocked most with the Manny Machado signing.

Kimbrel, a likely future hall of fame closer, signed a 4 year $72 million contract with the Phillies, and will immediately take over the closer role for a team that should challenge for the NL East crown.

While unclear in their level of interest, the Marlins were rumored to have checked in on both players.

[kinsmen7]

Griffey Jr. hired as new Marlins General Manager

In a surprise move by CEO Derek Jeter and President of Baseball Ops Michael Sherman, the Marlins announced this morning that Hall of Fame center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. would be joining the Marlins as their new GM.

Griffey Jr. brings a wealth of knowledge to the organization, but will have to learn on the fly when it comes to helping to rebuild the hapless Marlins.

"We expect to field a respectable lineup, build a contender, and bring the fans back!", said Griffey Jr. in his introductory press conference. "We know that there will be some painful nights, but we have a ton of surprising young talent in the organization, and we intend to continue to build on that."

[kinsmen7]

Miami Blockbuster!

Marlins trade Anderson to Tampa

Another day, another shocker out of Miami, as the Marlins send their all star third baseman Brian Anderson to Tampa Bay, along with prospects Isan Diaz and Robert Dugger, in exchange for lefty Brendan McKay, outfield prospect Jesus Sanchez, third baseman Andrew Velazquez, shortstop Christian Arroyo, and second base prospect Vidal Brujan.

Anderson heads to Tampa as Miami continues the trend of trading away their top players. He follows star players Christian Yelich (MIL), Marcell Ozuna (STL), JT Realmuto (PHI), and of course slugger Giancarlo Stanton (NYY).

The Marlins add the number 28, 36, and 96 top prospects, as well as two recent graduates of the top 100 in Arroyo and Velazquez.