Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to DET, Cameron Maybin, Andrew Miller, and others to FLA

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Breaking news from ESPN...

 

The Tigers and Marlins have agreed in principle to a monster trade -- Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to Detroit for Andrew Miller, Cameron Maybin and four minor leaguers.

 

Fox Sports

[TheCouga23]

This puts the Tigers over the top. Unless Boston makes that Santana deal, the Tigers have to be the favorites to win the AL pennant.

[splitterpfj]

Good, now get Santana out of the way too, so the rest of the teams can start matching up and getting things done.

[SoCalBrewfan]

Sounds like a third Tiger is C Mike Rabelo...that's a pretty minor inclusion at this point though there was a time he was highly regarded. Reports have the other three going to Florida as pitchers. As I said elsewhere, I wouldn't be surprised if some combination of Dallas Trahern, Eulogio DeLaCruz, Jordan Tata is included.

[PeaveyFury]

Now on ESPN's MLB front page:

 

http://sports-ak.espn.go.com/mlb/index

[PeaveyFury]

Talk about a deal that came out of nowhere today- prior to this morning, the Tigers weren't even a longshot rumor for Cabrera.

[splitterpfj]

What a bold move, and again, the Marlins have fantastic young talent to work with.

[TheCouga23]

Talk about a deal that came out of nowhere today- prior to this morning, the Tigers weren't even a longshot rumor for Cabrera.

That's usually the way it happens. Just yesterday, Dombrowski was quoted as being satisfied with his team the way it was going into spring training. The next day they make the biggest deal of the offseason so far. This is what makes me think that the Rolen deal is closer than we think. As soon as GM's start pretending that there is nothing going on, that means a deal is about to be made.

 

[PlayerHader]

Both teams gotta love this deal, but Detroit might be bottom feeders again before long.

 

The Marlins will be decent again for a couple years then all these guys get to be traded again. YAY!

[Chio151]

Yeah, I think this is a great deal for the Marlins. They could be scary in 3 years.

[splitterpfj]

It's not all bad being a Marlins fan, you get to see the starts of lots of great careers, and you always get a good parking spot.

[Invader3K]

Like I said in the other thread, this has to be pretty exciting if you're a Tigers fan. I think this trade makes sense for both teams, though.

[Weirdos19]

Considering what Cabrera will make this year and what he will make soon, the Fish did great.

 

Maybin and Miller is quite a haul. To get 4 more prospects is great.

 

Detroit did great for now, but will they sign either of these two when they become free agents? Doubt it.

[SoCalBrewfan]

In related news, the Marlins have decided to get a head start and will be taking a list of teams that anticipate being interested in Maybin in December 2010.

[JJHardy7]

This is what makes me think that the Rolen deal is closer than we think. As soon as GM's start pretending that there is nothing going on, that means a deal is about to be made.

 

This particular deal was not rumored to be happening though (from what I saw)...if anything it makes the Rolen deal even more remote. Blanket statements are nice, but specifics for a GM tells more of the story IMO. The Rolen thing is most likely dead since DM was willing to talk about it. I think the chances are better that we trade Sheets than get Rolen, but anywho...

 

The Marlins made out pretty well. Willis didn't have a great year and is going to the AL (I still think he's a solid pitcher though, but I'm not real high on him) and Cabrera tries to eat his way out of the infield (even though he has shed some pounds). ESPN's site has Cabrera at 210 pounds...how long ago was that? At least Cabrera can DH if he's sick of his diet.

 

I don't think this makes the Tigers the front runner by any means. If Willis pitches like he did in 2007, this is possibly a bad trade for the Tigers. Cabrera should be able to continue to put up good numbers...he's young and he could improve...but his weight could also continue to go up.

[TheCouga23]

The Six players the Tigers gave up are:

 

Cameron Maybin

Andrew Miller

Mike Rabelo

Dallas Trahern

Eulogio de la Cruz

Burke Badenhop

 

I actually don't think that is too much. Trahern is probably going to be a decent #4 down the road, Miller could be a decent #2, but they're all prospects, so not one of them is a sure thing.

[JJHardy7]

One thing is sure...the Marlins just got rid of a lot of payroll for a team in their position (ie cost cutting). I believe Miller is the key piece. I used to be high on Willis, but he isn't the same pitcher he once was. Maybe he turns it around, but he wasn't anything special in 2007. He's still young, but trading Willis now is a smart move by the Marlins.

[TheCouga23]

This is what makes me think that the Rolen deal is closer than we think. As soon as GM's start pretending that there is nothing going on, that means a deal is about to be made.

 

This particular deal was not rumored to be happening though (from what I saw)...if anything it makes the Rolen deal even more remote. Blanket statements are nice, but specifics for a GM tells more of the story IMO. The Rolen thing is most likely dead since DM was willing to talk about it. I think the chances are better that we trade Sheets than get Rolen, but anywho...

 

The Marlins made out pretty well. Willis didn't have a great year and is going to the AL (I still think he's a solid pitcher though, but I'm not real high on him) and Cabrera tries to eat his way out of the infield (even though he has shed some pounds). ESPN's site has Cabrera at 210 pounds...how long ago was that? At least Cabrera can DH if he's sick of his diet.

 

I don't think this makes the Tigers the front runner by any means. If Willis pitches like he did in 2007, this is possibly a bad trade for the Tigers. Cabrera should be able to continue to put up good numbers...he's young and he could improve...but his weight could also continue to go up.

I will have to add a disclaimer that I am a Tigers fan as well here, so I am pretty excited about this trade.

Cabrera is a top five hitter in baseball right now, and with Bonderman and Verlander, the Tigers don't need an ace in Willis, they just need someone to be solid and eat innings. I think Willis will likely bounce back from last year, as last year was more of the exception than the norm. How far is the question. I'm not worried about Cabrera's weight. If he can put up a 1.000 OPS for then next two years, I don't care if he ends up looking like Santa Claus. With that said, it appears that he is losing rather than gaining weight this offseason. I don't think Leyland will allow him to be out of shape come spring training.

 

With Cabrera in the lineup, the Tigers will have 1 through 7 hitters that are more likely than unlikely to bat over .300 with good on base skills and slugging percentage. Plus, they have a rotation that rivals Boston and New York so far. I would like to see BP's PECOTA predicted standings with Cabrera in the lineup, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Tigers come out on top now.

[Schlitz001]

This deal isn't completely out of the blue, as Buster Onley was reporting a Cabrera/Willis for Maybin/Miller early this morning.

[giffted1]

Good deal for both teams. Marlins get cheap prospects with a lot of upside, and Detroit now looks like the best team in the AL. Detroit might be mortgaging the future for now, but Cabrera is the type of player that could put the over the top.

[JJHardy7]

This deal isn't completely out of the blue, as Buster Onley was reporting a Cabrera/Willis for Maybin/Miller early this morning.

 

I guess this is true, but a deal like Rolen to the Brewers has been so heavily rumored...especially here. It did come out of nowhere in comparison to the entire trade. For all the rumors we hear this one still came out of LF in my mind. I"m guessing the Marlins and Tigers were "caught" in meetings. For the talent that was traded this was very low in the rumor mill.

[TooLiveBrew]

In related news, the Marlins have decided to get a head start and will be taking a list of teams that anticipate being interested in Maybin in December 2010.

http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/laugh.gif

 

All I can really say is, "Wow." Willis is a very nice fit in that rotation, Cabrera's bat fits anywhere, [insert obligatory Miggy weight joke here], and the Fish restocked so they can continue to make money off revenue sharing.

I'm not sure that Det. will be in quite as much trouble in the future as some may think - wouldn't the worst-case scenario be that Miggy signs elsewhere as a FA & they get the draft picks? Worst-case, that is, from him going all Mo Vaughn.

 

I see no reason to favor any AL team over Detroit at this point. Especially if Zumaya can return to form, yikes. (I know that's still an 'if')

[JohnBriggs12]

I assume Brandon Inge now becomes available? I don't think they would want to keep him around owing him around $19 million/next 3 years to be a backup. He's coming off of a bad year so he'd probably come very cheap. Don't know either if he wants to go back and catch, but led the AL in gunning down 40 would be base stealers in 2003.

[crewcrazy]

The AL keeps getting stronger for the time being. Incredible. No wonder the Twins are trading everyone away this offseason...between this move and the Indians reportedly trying to trade for Jason Bay, the AL playoff spots may be even harder to get in '08.

[colbyjack]

That's a good point crewcrazy, which makes you wonder if the Royals are picking a bad time to try and make it seem as though they're making a legitimate stab towards the playoffs, spending big money on players like Gil Meche last year and Jose Guillen this year, while also being part of rumors for Torii Hunter and Andruw Jones. And even without Santana, I think the Twins are still going to field a competitive team.

 

The Indians and Tigers will be good, and the White Sox for a while were trying to make it seem as though they were re-loading for 2008. Not that any of them should give up, but that is definitely one of, if not the toughest divisions in all of baseball.

 

I agree that the deal definitely makes sense for both teams. I really like the way Dombrowski works, showing a conviction to go out and get players he wants. If the Tigers are handing prospects away right now, they should try to find a way to get in on available relievers such as Cordero, Street or Fuentes. If they do they'll be tough to beat on paper.

 

The Marlins got a ton of talent. Miller could be very, very good, and Maybin gives them the CF they've been looking for a couple of years now.