Report: Marlins exploring options with Yelich after Ozuna trade
Don't get too comfortable in South Beach, Christian Yelich.
The Miami Marlins traded Giancarlo Stanton to the New York Yankees on Monday, and on Wednesday they apparently struck a deal to send Marcell Ozuna to the St. Louis Cardinals. Yelich appears to be next on the list, as the Marlins reportedly told teams they're willing to trade him, sources told Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.
But, Miami is apparently placing an even higher price tag on Yelich than Ozuna (the full return from St. Louis isn't known) due to him being under team control for longer than his soon-to-be former teammate, reports Passan. Yelich has four years and $43.25 million left on his contract, plus a $15-million club option in 2022.
Shortly after word that Yelich was potentially available, a source told ESPN's Jerry Crasnick the Marlins decided to take him off the market and rebuild around him, in part thanks to his team-friendly deal.
Yelich, however, may not wish to stay in Miami through this latest teardown after watching Stanton, Ozuna, and Dee Gordon get traded over the past few weeks. Though he hasn't publicly commented, the 26-year-old is said to be frustrated, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, and Yelich sent a cryptic tweet Saturday as word of the Stanton deal was breaking.
To that end, Heyman reported Wednesday that although the Marlins would prefer to keep Yelich, they now plan to regroup and talk with him to find out if he'd prefer to be traded.
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Yelich, a former Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winner, continued his solid play in 2017, hitting .282/.369/.439 (117 OPS+) with 18 homers, 81 RBIs, 36 doubles, 80 walks, and 16 stolen bases over 695 plate appearances.
Before news of Yelich's availability broke Wednesday, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reported that at least 10 clubs, including the Atlanta Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks, had inquired about him. St. Louis also discussed Yelich with Miami both earlier in the offseason and again this week, Frisaro reported Tuesday, before ultimately trading for Ozuna.
The Oakland Athletics are another team that's reportedly expressed interest in Yelich this winter.