Miami Marlins DH’s market is now more clear.

The Miami Marlins have an important free agent…Designated Hitter Jorge Soler. Wewrote before that I won’t miss him if he leaves due to his major red flags. Despite those red flags, it was strange to see The Fish not even bother to issue him a Qualifying Offer. Why didn’t Peter Bendix issue him one? Did he think that giving him $20 million for one season (had he accepted), was too much of a risk? For now, let’s look at his current market?

Jorge Soler has as many red flags as green flags when you look at his career… He was seemingly a bust with the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Royals from 2014-2018. He batted .249/.326/.424, in 307 games and 1002 AB. He finally broke out in 2019, when he rewarded Kansas City with a .265/.354/.569 batting line, with 48 home runs and 117 RBI in 162 games and 589 AB.

Soler was back to struggling in 2020 and the first half of 2021. Things got better upon a trade to the Atlanta Braves midseason, as he ended up winning the World Series MVP. He was back to his injury-prone and inconsistent self in 2022, as he batted .207/.295/.400, with 13 home runs and 34 RBI in 72 games and 270 AB. In 2023, he batted .250/.341/.512, with 36 home runs and 75 RBI in 137 games and 504 AB.

Jorge Soler can’t be trusted to stay healthy and his production is incredibly inconsistent. That said, Peter Bendix should’ve still offered him a QO. It’s a weak free agent market for hitters, and it’s still a decent one-year price to pay for his services. A rejection would of course lead to a compensatory draft pick.

The Miami Marlins have an interest in bringing him back. It sems that Bendix probably expects to pay him a lot lss annually, which is rasonable but questionable based on the market. He was going to b paid $15 million next season, had he picked up his player option.

The Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners have interest as well. Seattle is trying to cut down their team strikeout rate, so I’m a little surprised that they’re interested in him. Arizona needs a DH after a surprise and *cough fluke *cough pennant run. It’s not clear what Soler’s contract expectations are, but I have a hard time seeing him signing with Seattle. I also wouldn’t be surprised if a mystery team became involved.