Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Prado took security over free agency
JUPITER — The Miami Marlins’ most important move of the offseason might have been their first.
On Oct. 5, at a news conference inside a quiet Marlins Park, president of baseball operations Michael Hill made official what had been known for about a week: Third baseman Martin Prado signed a three-year, $40 million extension to stay in South Florida.
For the Marlins, it meant retaining their unofficial captain and a significant piece of the position-player core they think so highly of. For Prado, it meant professional and personal security, but at the cost of forgoing his opportunity to be a free agent.
“I always wanted to experience free agency, but there’s a lot of stuff that [affects] me,” Prado said. “And I said, you know what? I’m going to stick with my boys.”
Why skip a chance to hit the open market? Prado almost didn’t.
The Marlins first approached Prado and his agent, Peter Greenberg, about a possible extension by early September. Prado’s initial reaction was hesitancy. He didn’t want negotiations to bog down the final few weeks of his season, and he was already so close to becoming a free agent for the first time since going pro a decade and a half prior.
But Prado decided to hear out the Marlins’ pitch. Turns out, the money worked. The length worked. And the club gave Prado a $1 million assignment bonus clause, extra cash the player gets in the event he is
traded.
The deal was, in effect, done before Jose Fernandez’s death in late September. It was finalized days later as one of the Marlins’ first orders of baseball business as they regrouped.
“I was part of everything at the end of the season and I feel like, hey man, God put me here for a reason,” Prado said. “I’m a really big believer in God and why he does stuff for me. I know I could probably get more money somewhere else if I go to a different team, but I truly believe in this group of guys. They have fun. They play hard. I feel comfortable.”
Comfort played a significant role in Prado’s decision to stay. When he started out with the Marlins in 2015, he was on his third team in 12 months and fourth organization in as many years.
Last season brought a degree of stability to the Marlins and to Prado’s life. Don Mattingly and his coaching staff instilled a new culture in the clubhouse. The front office spoke regularly of the team’s core and its commitment to that core.
There were personal reasons for Prado, too. His wife, Valeria, is a doctor completing her residency in Miami, their daughter, Martina, was born last April and Prado wasn’t keen on the idea of leaving them for most of the year or having to uproot them. Miami has become home.
“I started with nada. I was not a prospect. I was a utility guy coming up,” Prado said of his second $40 million deal, the first coming with Arizona in 2013. “At the end of the day, I might look back and say, ‘OK, what if?’ But I’m very happy with my decision and my family is happy. That’s all that matters.”
Locke shut down Left-hander Jeff Locke
has stopped throwing for a couple of days due to bicep tendinitis. The Marlins expect him to resume his program by the end of the week.
“We just want to get him calmed down before we get him back started again,” Mattingly said. “We got plenty of time.”
Locke is still participating in each day’s workout — bunting and fielding drills and the like — but not the throwing portions. He doesn’t except this pause in his ramp-up activities to be a big deal.
“Just with it being early, take the precautions you can take,” Locke said. “Donnie says it best in the meetings: ‘If any little thing picks up, let’s not make it a big thing by not taking care of it. Let’s do the smart thing here.’ ”
Locke is a candidate for the No. 5 starter job, but if he loses that race he’ll likely end up in the bullpen as a long man.
If this issue indeed passes within a couple of days, it should not alter that competition.
“The best thing is to take a few days [off ],” Locke said. “Listen to your body as best you can.”
Who’s on first
J.T. Realmuto has begun learning how to play first base. He is participating in the Marlins’ daily workouts as a catcher, then doing extra work with infield coach
Perry Hill at his new parttime position.
“There’s enough time here [in spring training] that we feel like he can get what he needs, and he’ll be ready to go,” Mattingly said.
In addition to Realmuto, outfielders Matt den Dekker and Brandon Barnes are taking reps at first base. Neither has played there professionally. Both are in camp with the Marlins as non-roster invites.