Few teams have been as active this offseason as the Miami Marlins. The latest reported move up their sleeve involves third baseman Casey McGehee. The team announced the deal on Friday night, according to Chris Haft of MLB.com.
“The Giants filled their third-base vacancy on Friday night, announcing they obtained Casey McGehee from the Marlins for a pair of Minor League right-handers,” wrote Haft.
The Giants confirmed the players involved in the trade:
John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle passes along comments from Bruce Bochy and GM Brian Sabean:
Alex Pavlovic of the Bay Area News Group provides comments from McGehee, who spoke about replacing Pablo Sandoval:
Rodriguez noted on Twitter that McGehee was likely the next player to be moved by Miami after the team acquired Martin Prado from the New York Yankees earlier in the day:
It’s a deal that makes sense for both sides. The Giants desperately need to find another bat, particularly a third baseman after Pablo Sandoval signed with Boston earlier this winter. McGehee isn’t the hitter Sandoval is, but he is coming off a breakout season with a .287/.355/.357 slash line.
McGehee did that at the age of 31, and the average and on-base percentage totals are substantially higher than his .264 and .324 career marks, but the Giants need something to get by in 2015 after missing out on all their main targets (Sandoval and Jon Lester).
Giants general manager Brian Sabean said in early November, before Sandoval signed with Boston, that the team would have to find a replacement for Sandoval outside the organization, via ESPN.com.
“We don’t have a solution in house, so it would have to come from the outside,” Sabean said. “I’m not going to address anybody at this time other than Pablo; that’s who we’re engaged with. It wouldn’t be fair to the other guys.”
The Marlins have gotten better in the offseason with all their moves and should be able to compete for a playoff spot in the National League. The Giants haven’t made a big splash after winning the World Series, but they often seem to defy all expectations.
Both teams solved a problem with this trade, making it a clear win-win at this moment. The final results won’t be known until the season starts, but for now, it’s hard to find fault with either side.
Stats via Baseball-Reference.com
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