REACTION: Miami Marlins Sign Christopher Morel, Why This Changes Expectations

REACTION: Miami Marlins Sign Christopher Morel, Why This Changes Expectations

The Miami Marlins signed their first free agent of this off season, Christopher Morell. And it’s a lowrisk, highreward signing. You are Locked On Marlins, your daily podcast on the Miami Marlins, part of the Locked On Network, your team every day. Welcome into Locked On Marlins, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. now the number one sports podcast network. I’m your host Jeremiah Guyger. I’m a diehard Marlins fan and I’ve podcasted about this team for the last four seasons. Make sure you subscribe to the YouTube channel or follow wherever you get your podcast because they’re free and available on all the major podcast platforms. Today’s episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, use code locked on MLB for $20 off your first purchase. And they did it. The Marlins finally did it. They signed their first free agent of the off season, Christopher Morell. I’m going to dive into this news, break down what the Marlins are getting, I also have a realization about this team, about this off season and Christopher Morell. This signing, although I like it. I I don’t hate the move, it proves a couple of things about the organization I’ll get into later. Also, are the Giants possibly in the mix for Edward Cabrera? More on that later on. No more waiting around. The Marlins signed a free agent. They don’t have to wait till late January, early February, and I don’t have to speculate about the timetable of when the organization is going to do something this off season. Now, I was driving all day. If you’re watching on YouTube, backdrop’s different. We’re at a hotel here, but I have to react to this move because it’s something. All right. And anytime the Marlins do something, any transaction trade free agent, there’s a sense of excitement. Now, is it the biggest move in the world? No. I is it is it the type of free agent I ultimately want to see the Marlins go pursue? No. But it is a low-risk, highreward signing. I’m gonna get into why. Christopher Morurell is a player who just a couple of seasons ago was really, really impressive for the Chicago Cubs. So, he made his major league debut back in 2022 with Chicago, played two and a half years there before getting traded in the at the deadline in 2024 to the Tampa Bay Rays. But back in 2023, so you go back a couple of seasons, Morell hit 26 bombs, drove in 70, hit 247, an OPS of 821. That was over 107 games. Now, his production started to decline right after that year. So, split between the Rays and the Cubs, he hit a combined 196. Although the power was still there, 21 bombs, he he struggled a lot with strikeouts. Obviously, the contact went way down. on the OPS went down by almost 200 points from an 821 to 634. And then last season with Tampa Bay, a little bit more of the same. He hit 219. The OPS was at 685 and this is across 105 games and then the power dipped to just 11 home runs. So, you have an impressive 2023 where you’re a 800 plus OPS guy. You’re hitting close to 30 bombs and then you’re slowly seeing your production dip over the last couple of seasons. So, the Marlins say, “All right, we’re going to scoop him up.” The Rays non-tendered him this off season because he just hit arbitration. He gets non-tendered. the Marlins sign him and to to a one-year deal, but ultimately it could end up being a situation where they have multiple years of team control. And we know the Marlins like team control, especially with a billow candidate. At the end of the day, Morell isn’t projected to be the long-term answer at first base. He he’s not someone that is, you know, a top prospect at the M or a a top free agent, a top trade acquisition. No, it’s a clear buy low candidate. I want to emphasize that. Number two is this. The Marlins and first base, I find this fascinating. They’re banking on him providing competition at a position he’s never played before in at the professional level. So the Marlins plan when they signed him is all right, we’re going to play him at first base. Well, has he played there before? No. No, he hasn’t. He He has a really strong arm. If you if you go to Savant, baseball, Savant, his arm strength 93rd percentile. But where did he play defensively? Not first base. Ultimately, the Marlins are striving to become a a defensive versatile team, a a team where guys can play multiple positions. That’s something that I’m noticing, something that they’re trying to emphasize this off season. Griffin Conine might be getting first base reps in spring training. Morell’s played the infield, he’s played the outfield, but he’s never played first. And the majority of his time at the major league level has definitely been split between the outfield and third base slash second base. He He’s kind of done it all, but he’s actually mixed in a little bit of shortstop. I don’t think you’re going to see him there, though, especially with Otto Lopez manning that position. The point being is that the Marlins look at him and they say, “Okay, here’s a guy that’s played around the diamond. Let’s give him a first baseman’s glove. Let’s teach him the position. New infield coach Brett Butler is in is in town. He’s going to get to work here in a couple of months with these guys in spring training. and let’s see what Morell can do. Because if he’s played all over the the infield, he’s played the outfield, he has power, then maybe we stick him at first base, he’s adequate there, and he provides competition at a position that we need competition at. That’s why Griffin Conine is going to be getting reps in spring training. Does this mean that the Marlins are done addressing the first base position? Well, I don’t know. I I can’t definitively say, well, the Marlins sign Morell. That’s it. That’s their one free agent signing. They’re not going to address first base. That’s their guy. Maybe that’s the case. Because if if it is the case or if it isn’t the case rather then why would you say Morell is going to going to play first because you still have Eric Wagaman and you mentioned the possibil possibility of Conine playing first as well. Ultimately, it’s not the most exciting deal, but it does get you a player who’s shown signs of promise, especially in the power department. And you’re you’re banking that he can get back to, you know, hitting somewhat average and not being a sub 200 guy. You know, anytime you’re below the Mendoza line and you have a 30% strikeout rate, it’s worrisome. And last season, I mean, it was pretty bad. It was really bad. 35.7 strikeout rate. He whiffed 39% of the time. The swing and miss with Morell is a very real issue. And that’s something that hitting coach Pedro Guerero is going to have to work with him on. The swing and miss has to be cut down for this signing to work. I know he has elite bat speed. I know he’s got a ton of power, but that’s not going to matter if you’re hitting a buck 90 and striking out 33% of the time. It’s just not. So, the way the Marlins are looking at it, it’s a boil low candidate. If it works and he goes into spring training, makes the necessary adjustments he has to make and and gets the lion’s share of the playing time at first base, then you’re ecstatic because you signed him to a one-year deal. He’s not going to be making a ton of money. And if he gets gets back to that 2023 version of himself, you’re in a good position. A very good position. Again, just a couple years removed from an 821 OPS 26 home run season. The strikeouts are an issue. They’re going to have to be going to have to be worked on. You can’t you can’t be successful with that type of approach, that free swinger mentality. I’m going to swing at everything. That’s like the Davis and De Los Santos cut from the same cloth. That’s why Davis and De Los Santos isn’t in the major leagues. Interested to see how this plays out. I’m glad they did something regardless of who it is. I’m excited that the Marlins sign somebody. But that takes me into the second part of this episode. I had a stark realization about where the Marlins are as an organization. I’m going to tell you about that right after this. First, this episode is brought to you by our friends over at Game Time. The World Cup is coming back to North America for the first time since 1994. And with 48 teams for the first time ever, it’s going to be massive. But let’s be honest, getting tickets is usually the hardest part. That’s why the Game Time app is clutch. Finally, giving fans a real advantage when it comes to getting seats. 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And thank you for making Locked On the number one sports podcast network. You already live your team, the Marlins, every day. So now take it up a level and go ad free. Join the Everyday Club today and get locked on Marlins with no interruptions, members only Discord access, and more. All for just $5 a month or $50 a year. Click the link in the show notes to learn more. So, I had this realization when the Marlin signed Christopher Morell. And shout out to my buddy Alex, friend of the program, Forever Marlins over on X. He tweeted out something that just resonated with me, right? And and I think I’m guilty as charged when it comes to this comment. I’m trying to find it here. He said, I’m scrolling through Twitter trying to find exactly what he said, but pretty much it was, hey, if if you don’t think that 2026 is a development year for this organization, then you’re wrong. That was pretty much what he said. And I thought to myself, you know what, Alex, you’re probably right because the Marlins are going out and signing Christopher Morell, who’s a perfect boil, low expectations, but if it works out great, he’s that kind of prospect. What have the Marlins done the last two off seasons? They signed Tim Anderson and Calantrol. Can you guys tell me what’s the common denominator with those three players? coming off of really bad seasons, low expectations, and they’re all cheap options who if it works out, great, but if it doesn’t, you’re not spending a lot of money. They all fit that same bill. This isn’t a an organization certainly at this point at this juncture in the offseason that is in any rush to add a star to their lineup to add $80 million an $80 million $90 million contract to their payroll. It’s not going to happen. And we we saw the bits and pieces of information slowly over the last couple of weeks seem to indicate this. Number one, they’re interested in these proc or in these players, but nothing gets done. Then it’s the Marlins have been offering one-year deals primarily to free agents. Just one-year contracts. Oh, well, I wonder what kind of player warrants a one-year contract. someone like a Christopher Morell who is coming off of a season in which he hit 219 and struck out 35% of the time. There’s a reason Morell comes that cheap. There’s a reason the Rays non-tendered him because they don’t see him as part of their long-term plans. And Miami comes in and says, “Well, we’ll take them. We’ll scoop them up. It’s going to provide some competition at the at first base. He’s got some good power and and we like that. And hopefully he can work through the swing and miss. Now, if he doesn’t and he strikes out 35% of the time, what do you have if you’re the Marlins? Someone that certainly isn’t moving the needle. It’s not getting you any better from 2025 to 2026. this isn’t the free agent signing that is going to make you a playoff team. This isn’t this isn’t that kind of addition. So, my realization is the Marlins aren’t taking 2026 as a year in which they expect to be in the postseason. That’s what it feels like. And as a fan, that sucks because as a fan, if money wasn’t an object, I’m looking at this team and I’m saying to myself, okay, you just won 79 games. You were right there up until the final week of the season trying to get into the playoffs. It didn’t happen. But hey, if we plug a couple holes and we go out and spend some money in free agency, then this is a playoff team. If everyone stays healthy, obviously there’s no freak injuries. You know, Yuri doesn’t go down for half the season. Cabrera doesn’t go down. You’re going to have one of the best rotations in the National League. You need some juice to the lineup, but we can address that. We just have to open up the wallet and spend. And the first free agent they sign is for a player is is is a player who to be honest I don’t know what my expectations for Morela for Morell is. I want to see him get back to that 2023 version because if he can then Peter Bendix is going to look like a genius and this is a good signing for the Marlins but that’s a big if. It’s no surefire thing. This is a low-risk, highreward signing just like they did the last two seasons. Calantrol, lowrisk, high reward. What was the risk with Cal Quantrol? They ended up dfaing him in August, putting putting him on waiverss. Tim Anderson, he was cut four months into the season. DFA didn’t work out. And if it did, great. You you get a former AL batting champ. And so once again, they’re doing they’re following the same blueprint. Sign a player. Maybe it works out. If it doesn’t, it is what it is. I don’t think Morell should be viewed as the savior of the Marlins first base situation. In fact, I I still have more questions about first base because going into next season now, if there aren’t any other moves, and right now I can only react to what the Marlins have done regarding first base, and that is say Griffin Conine is going to get reps at first, sign Christopher Morell, who’s never played the position, and say he’s going to play the position, and then return incumbent Eric Wagaman. with Davis and De Los Santos down in Triple A who may or may not make an impact at the major league level. It’s still a mess. There’s no surefire answer. So this off season, I think my my glasses, the rosecolored glasses I started this off season looking at the potential to build and and add to this roster. I think I’m taking them off a little bit. I’m setting them to the side and I’m just taking a step back and I’m saying, “Look, it is what it is. I’m used to it, right? I’m used to the Marlins not going after the top free agents, but three, four weeks ago, I I’m on this podcast saying they should go get Josh Naylor. and you go from Josh Naylor to signing Christopher Morell. Two vastly different players. I don’t really need to elaborate much more. That’s the state of the Marlins right now. And and and the the whole plan is long-term success. It’s building your organization to be successful, not just this year, but the year after and the year after and the year after to be a perennial 90- win team, a perennial playoff team. That’s the vision Peter Bendix has. But he can only do so much in the current moment if he’s handcuffed financially. if he doesn’t have the resources to go out and spend money. What’s the most recent big contract the Marlins under Bruce Sherman h have done is Avi Garcia 3 years 54 million somewhere around that somewhere around that it blew up albatross of a contract it was a disaster Garcia says I want to bring a ring to Miami no he he wanted the bag and that was it he wanted disaster of a contract. And since then, Bruce Sherman hasn’t really spent. You could you could throw Jorge Solair into there into that conversation. And I I think it worked out. It’s two years plus a club option. The first first year of the contract in 22 wasn’t that great, but 2023 they go to the playoffs. So, I think that the Solair contract was a resounding success, even if they didn’t offer him a qualifying offer, and Solair hasn’t done much anyway outside of Miami. His his career’s on the downturn. Garcia is not even playing organized baseball. Besides that, Tim Anderson, Cal Quantrol, and now Christopher Morell. I’m wishing the best for Morell. I hope I sincerely hope he goes out and hits 25 bombs like he can. But this is the reality. The organization isn’t going to spend money like these other teams at all. They’re not even going to dip their foot in the water, at least this off season. And may maybe I’m wrong and in a week’s time they’ve signed a top free agent. I doubt it. I don’t see that happening this year. It’s a developmental year. That is what it is. That’s what it sounds like. Can they can they get feisty? Can they get into the playoffs? Maybe. Maybe they can. They have the rotation to do so. And there’s still the possibility of course of swinging a big trade and addressing the lineup because I still think it needs to be addressed if this team is going to compete. But I don’t see it happening in free agency. Not after Morell was just signed. Coming up next, we’re going to talk about that that rotation. Could the San Francisco Giants be in the running for Edward Cabrera? This episode is brought to you by FanDuel. 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If you like Miami to pull the upset, slight upset on Monday Night Football, you can go over to FanDuel right now and bet FanDuel. The game moves fast and so can you. Shout out to all my everyday everyday listeners who make locked on Marlins a part of your daily routine. It’s been a long day. Been driving all day. Get to the hotel, set up the podcast equipment. I’m reacting to the Christopher Morell signing, but I also want to talk about Edward Cabrera. So, I I did an episode a couple days ago with Rehark, Exiled Axe, over on Twitter for those of you who know him. Big Marlins fan. Does a does a lot of great work with prospects and and breakdowns. And this was about Edward Carrera to the Baltimore Orioles with the Orioles being a potential trade partner. That episode on YouTube at least has been my most watched episode ever since taking over Locked on Marlins. A lot of Oriole fans in the comments and so if you want to after this episode, go check that one out. But Edward Cabrera is definitely being talked about among general managers. They know the asset that the Marlins have. I’ve been asked uh um for from one of my locked on counterparts about Edward Cabera. Would this player intrigue the Marlins? Could you build a package around him? And I’m of the opinion that the Marlins are in number one, they’re in no need, no rush, no need at all to trade Cabrera right now. They don’t have to. The cards are in their hands. if they don’t want to trade Cabrera, if they feel like they don’t they’re not going to be getting the ultimate prize that they’re going after, the best return possible, then you hold on to them. Worst case scenario, worst case scenario, quotation marks, air quotes there. You have one of the best rotations in baseball in 2026 with Sandy Alcantra, Yuri Perez, another year older, a healthy Ryan Weathers, Edward Cabrera, not to me, not to mention Jansen Junk, who’s a really really good backend starter with some of the best control of all of baseball. And then Robbie Snelling on his way up, Thomas White. So there’s no need to necessarily move Cabrera just to move him. I think we’re past that point at the rebuild of just trading everyone. And now we’ve entered a new a new I guess point in the rebuild or point in this organization’s progress where now you have some more leverage. Now you’ve built up your farm system. You’re still trying to improve it, but you also have valuable players at the major league level. So the San Francisco Giants, obviously one of those teams that could be in the running for Cabrera, and I I’m I like the Giants as an organization because number one, they have Buster Posey who’s going to be in the Hall of Fame. Hall of Fame catcher calling the shots. I think he he’s going to work out and and be really good there. Number two, big market team that they spend money and I like that for them. They’re a winning organization. They’ve won three World Series. I’m not a Giants fan at all. I don’t even like the Giants, but I like the way their organization operates because they don’t shy away from the big move. And so if the if the Giants and Buster Posey feel like Edward Cabera is their target, then something could be done. Could they go after Trick Scoo? Maybe. But Scooble is is a one-year guy. Cabrera has three more years of control. What would it take for the Giants to get Cabrera? Here’s my thing. It starts and ends with Bryce Eldridge. Simple as that. I If you want to give me a package surrounding your top prospects and you’re trying to leave out Eldridge, you’re saying no. Anybody else? You can get our two, you can get our three or four. Nope. Hang up the phone. Bryce Eldridge is one of those players that if I’m the Marlins and I’m Peter Bendix, I’m seriously considering pulling the trigger if he was made available cuz Eldridge has that kind of power that you just you just don’t have in your organization right now in the top of your farm system. Yes, you have Davis and De Los Santos. the concerns with Eldridge and and maybe why you’d be hesitant to just give him the first baseman’s glove. No, there there’s none of those. Eldridge comes into your organization, he’s going to be your long-term first baseman until it doesn’t work out. D Santos compared to Eldridge, not even on the same stratosphere of prospect of my in my opinion. I don’t think De Los Santos is close to making an impact on the major league at the major league level, which is why if you’re the Marlins, you’re trying to address first base. It’s why you signed Morell and said, “We’re putting him at first.” But Eldridge, I mean, this guy has 70 grade power. He’s he’s one of the scariest dudes to pitch to in all of baseball. 6’7, 240 lbs, insane exit velocities. Stick him at first base. Something I would consider is building a package surrounding him because he’s already debuted. It’s not like he was drafted a year ago and and he would probably be starting for the Marlins next season. Again, major league ready players in exchange for Cabrera. I don’t think the Giants would do that. I don’t think the San Francisco Giants would give up Eldridge plus more for Cabrera. I may be wrong, but the Giants love that guy, man. Nevertheless, I know this organization, the Giants that is, they’re always on the in the mix for top free agents. their name is always brought up when it comes to trade targets. And with Edward Cber, it’s the same thing. He’s available. I’m sure Buster Posy’s on the phone seeing what’s up, trying to see if he can get a get a good offer. I think Peter Bendix though is at the point where, hey, if you’re not going to pay up, then the talks are going to cool down. And that’s what happened. because nothing’s gotten done. I do think that conversation had to do with Eldrich because the Giants and Marlins were talking. We’ll see if those talks ramp up again in the next couple of weeks. You never know when something may get done. We’re going to wrap it up here, guys. Thanks for tuning in to Locked on Marlins. Of course, you can follow me on Twitter, Jeremiah 2. And until next time, stay safe, stay locked on, and as always, let’s go fish.

The Miami Marlins signed their first free agent this offseason, former Chicago Cub and Tampa Bay Ray, Christopher Morel. Why this signing redefines the realistic expectations for 2026. The Giants and Marlins talked about Edward Cabrera, but it would cost alot.

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