2 duds that the Miami Marlins were right not to sign in the offseason
I talked about the Miami Marlins making a splash during the last offseason. It made sense at the time and allegedly led to Derek Jeter leaving, but you know what maybe Kim Ng was right not to sign these players. Are you shocked? Let’s look at these big bats that the Miami Marlins didn’t sign and maybe you’ll agree that she made the right call.
The Miami Marlins were smart to pass on signing these hitters.
2. The home run machine with issues
PHILADELPHIA, PA – MAY 31: Kyle Schwarber #12 of the Philadelphia Phillies in action during a game against the San Francisco Giants at Citizens Bank Park on May 31, 2022 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
There was a lot of hype for Kyle Schwarber when he hit free agency last off-season. He was a power hitter that the Miami Marlins seemingly needed as he hit .266/.374/.554 with 32 home runs and 71 in 113 games and 399 AB’s last season. This looked very impressive but his poor defense was a concern. He had a -1.3 dWAR last season.
Kyle Schwarber was a defensive liability when he signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. Still, many people looked at his power numbers and wondered how he could do if he played with the Miami Marlins. Didn’t putting him at DH make sense? Wasn’t paying him $80 million for 4 years a good deal? Locking up the DH spot with a streaky low-average hitter clearly proved to be a mistake for Philadelphia.
Kyle Schwarber is currently batting .192/.314/.429 with 12 home runs and 25 RBI in 49 games and 177 AB’s. He’s worth 0.3 WAR and has an atrocious -0.5 dWAR as Philly is using him as their left fielder. Can you imagine if the Miami Marlins wasted money on him instead? I don’t think that most of us would’ve praised this signing. Schwarber doesn’t have that much upside either due to the aforementioned issues with his defense and contact.
