Evaluating Ozuna

Corey Dickerson was traded from the Colorado Rockies to the Tampa Bay Rays yesterday....and the main player that the Rockies got in return was a relief pitcher (albeit a good one). The talk around baseball for the last week or so centered around the Rockies having (4) OF's that batted LH. There's been talk all winter long about how the Rockies "Need Pitching", but most of that chatter was about "Starting Pitching" not the bullpen. I don't claim to understand anything about the Rockies methodology here, but that's OK, since I'm writing about the Miami Marlins!.....LOL

Now I'm not going to comment on my opinion of which side probably "got the better deal" in that trade, but I will tie it into a situation that the Marlins should pay attention to. It seems that the Corey Dickerson trade to the Rays has raised a question about what the future holds for Marcel Ozuna as a part of the Marlins. The Marlins are keeping Ozuna for now (apparently), so we'll look at the Dickerson trade, compare & contrast the players performances, and see how it affects Ozuna's value for the Marlins, as they attempt to handicap the return that could be expected for him in a trade later this season.

The difference in the two players at the plate favors Dickerson in regard to BA and raw power. The kid can flat out Mash a baseball. If you look, their 2014 seasons look very similar on the scorecard. But Ozuna is no slouch when it comes to the bat. However, what doesn't show on the scorecard is the significant difference between the two defensively. Ozuna is FAR better in the OF than Dickerson (who happens to have a "rag-arm" by the way). Rockies loved his stick, but couldn't live with his glove/arm. They considered moving him to 1B this season to solve that problem, but apparently, that didn't go well either. He'll and up being a DH on the Rays, with an occasional start in the OF. Ozuna, on the other hand, plays very good defense, and makes good use of his speed and strong arm.

With the focus these days shifting towards defensive abilities (Jason Heyward signing), Teams seem to be willing to spend more on defense than they used to. That premise alone, combined with (potentially) a productive 1st half by Ozuna, should clearly net the Marlins a much better return than the Rockies got for Dickerson. 

I haven't ever believed that the Marlins could get a #1 starter for Ozuna (I guess that's what they said they wanted). But getting a solid #3 shouldn't be out of the question, if Ozuna can prove that his 2014 was his floor, not a fluke. He's got miles of upside, and someone should be willing to pay for that.

"Feel Free to leave a comment below with questions or concerns."

From The Dugout

Montu