*Photo from Marlin Maniac*
Now here's the big trade we've been waiting for. The Miami Marlins have acquired IF Luis Arraez from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for RHP Pablo Lopez, IF Jose Salas, and OF Byron Chourio, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. Both teams have confirmed the trade.
Marlins GM Kim Ng said of the move that "Pitching is our strength, and that’s our foundation. I think this was a very good baseball trade for both clubs. This offseason definitely felt a little bit like, you know, ‘The Little Engine That Could.’ It was a slow build. But we finally got to a better place."
Arraez comes to the Marlins under team control through 2025, and is fresh off winning the AL Batting Title in 2022 along with his first All Star Game appearance. He drew 50 walks while striking out only 43 times, making him the only player in baseball history to strike out less than 50 times in at least 500 plate appearances.
The 2022 season was an impressive one for Arraez, his 4th big league season. He had a .316 batting average, .375 on base percentage, and .795 OPS, hitting 8 home runs with 49 RBI's in 144 games for the Twins, playing all over the infield defensively.
Arraez will play second base for the Marlins but has also played first and 3rd base in the majors. The Marlins were looking for upgrades to their lineup this offseason, and Arraez certainly is that, giving them a top of the order bat with great on base ability.
Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey said of dealing Arraez that "I’m really proud of what he’s accomplished, and winning the batting title at the end of the year, but ultimately, we feel like when we look across our diamond, we’ve got a lot of good players and a lot of good middle-of-the diamond players, and depth."
The acquisition of Lopez deepens an already strong Twins rotation, bolstering a rotation that does have injury concerns with it. Lopez will hit free agency in 2025, so he also comes with multiple years of control. Lopez isn't an ace, but has been a consistently effective pitcher since debuting in the majors in 2018, reaching a career high in innings pitched in 2022.
Lopez pitched in his 5th big league season in 2022, all with the Marlins. Lopez ended the year with a 1.17 WHIP, 3.75 ERA, and 3.71 FIP, throwing a career high 180 innings while striking out 174 hitters in 32 starts, also a career high for Lopez.
Asked about how his season went, Lopez said that "To this point, 2022 was the year where a lot of things clicked. I really found my identity as a pitcher, my identity as a teammate. In 2022, I was able to really just come to the field excited. Excited to be on the field, excited to find new ways to get better. And the process of getting better is really encouraging."
The second piece coming to the Twins is Salas, an infielder who is the 5th ranked prospect in the Marlins system per MLB Pipeline. Salas spent 2022 with Low A Jupiter and High A Beloit, hitting .250 with a .723 OPS, adding 9 home runs and 41 RBI's in 109 games, 48 of which were spent with Beloit.
The final piece to the puzzle is Chourio, who hasn't played baseball in the U.S. yet. He spent 2022 with the Marlins Dominican Summer League team, posting a .344 batting average and .838 OPS, hitting one home run with 23 RBI's in 51 games of action.
In Miami, Arraez will share the infield with Joey Wendle, Jean Segura, and Garrett Cooper, with Jazz Chisholm Jr shifting to center field. Lopez joins Sonny Gray, Tyler Mahle, Kenta Maeda, and Joe Ryan in the Twins rotation, while Salas and Chourio await their minor league assignments for 2023.
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