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MIAMI — The deconstruction of the Miami Marlins’ theoretical super bullpen has begun.
The club traded right-handed reliever David Phelps to the Seattle Mariners for four prospects on Thursday, the first of what could be several deals this month that ship high-leverage relievers from Miami to playoff contenders.
For the Marlins, moving Phelps, a significant roster piece, is the most straightforward acknowledgment yet that this season did not develop the way they had expected.
“This is obviously something we hoped we could have avoided,” president of baseball operations Michael Hill said. “As we looked toward the rest of the season, we wanted to see ifwe could get value for certain assets.”
Closer AJ Ramos is a strong candidate to also be traded before the July 31 trade deadline, with one source saying the Marlins have fielded calls from
as many as a dozen interested teams. Right-handers Brad Ziegler (currently on the DL) and Kyle Barraclough have also had their names bandied about in trade rumors.
Hill said the market for Ramos is similar to the one for Phelps.
“As clubs look for pieces to solidify their bullpens, he should be something they should have interest in,” Hill said.
The quartet of minor leaguers coming back to Miami in the deal is headlined by 19-year-old speedy center fielder Brayan Hernandez. Also included are three right-handed pitchers: Brandon Miller, Pablo Lopez and Lukas Schiraldi. All are in High A or lower and years away from reaching themajors.
Phelps, 30, had a 3.45 ERA and 1.34 WHIP in 44 games for the Marlins this season, his first pitching exclusively out of the bullpen after bouncing between starting and relieving for the first five seasons of his major league career.
Seattle will pay Phelps the rest of this $4.6 million salary this year, multiple sources told the Sun Sentinel. He will be eligible for arbitration for the last time in 2018.
Entering 2017, Phelps was arguably the top reliever in a bullpen that was expected to be a strength for the Marlins. That expectation did not turn into reality, with the Marlins’ relief corps ranking 19th in the majors in ERA (4.18), 24th in WHIP (1.42) and 21st in opponents’ batting average (.255) as the team underperformed overall.
“Bullpens are always a challenge. They’re always very fluid,” Hill said. “Unfortunately, even the best relievers in the game have occasional hiccups. Ourhiccups in the bullpen came at the most inopportune times. And no one’s at fault. It’s something that you have to deal with when you’re talking about the nature of a bullpen.”
Phelpswas a part of those struggles early on, allowing nine earned runs in his first nine innings, but has since looked much more like his breakout 2016 self, when he posted a 2.28 ERA and 1.14 WHIP while doing a little bit of everything — mostly middle relief, but some starting and closing.
SinceApril 23, Phelps has a 2.19 ERA and .195/.297/.289 opponents’ slash line, including one run allowed in eight innings this month.
Hernandez, a former top amateur from Venezuela, signed for a $1.85 million bonus in 2014. With shortseason A Everett this year, he hit .252 with a .306 OBP and .408 slugging percentage. MLB Pipeline ranked
him as theNo. 6 prospect in theMariners’ system.
“We like the package he represents,” Hill said of the speedy Hernandez. “He’s someonewe had seen in the international market a couple of years ago, so … someonewe had familiarity with. When we had the ability to [trade for] him, we were quite excited.”
Miller, 22, had a 3.65ERA and 1.18WHIP while working as a starter for Low-A Clinton. A low-90s fastball and above-average slider are his primary pitches. A sixth-round pick in 2016 after playing Division II college ball, Millerwas considered by MLB Pipeline Seattle’s 16th-best prospect.
Lopez, a21-year-old starting pitcher for High-A Modesto, has a 5.04 ERA and 1.26WHIPthis year, but has good control, averaging less than one walk every 7.5 innings. He signed as an international amateur (Venezuela) in 2012, but missed all of 2014 after Tommy Johns surgery and didn’t make his full-season debut until last season. MLB Pipeline ranked him 22nd on the Mariners’ farm.
Schiraldi, 23, has also spent 2017 with Modesto, posting 4.58 ERA and 1.50 WHIP in 28 relief appearances. He has struck out15.2 batters per nine innings and walked 6.5 per nine. He is the son of former major leaguer Calvin Schiraldi.
The nextweek and a half before the deadline couldbe an eventful one for theMarlins, but it remains unlikely they trade their top players in a full-blown firesale this month.
“We’ll approach it, as we’ve done many times before: We always listen on players,” Hill said. “If it’s something that we think makes sense, we’ll entertain it.”