The Atlanta Braves acquired All-Star second baseman Dan Uggla from the Florida Marlins in a trade for utilityman Omar Infante and pitcher Mike Dunn.
The trade reunited Dan Uggla with his former skipper Fredi Gonzalez who was fired in June after the Marlins underperformed.
Uggla, 30, was in negotiations with the Marlins on a long-term deal but he rejected a four year contract offer valued at $48 million because he wanted a fifth year added to the offer.
Uggla leaves the Marlins as the all time leader in home runs with 154 home runs in five seasons with Florida and takes his talents to Atlanta, bringing a much-needed power bat to a Braves lineup that has lost it in recent years with injuries and departures of Mark Teixeria and Andruw Jones.
Uggla is currently in his final year of team control, and will be a free agent after the season unless the Braves sign him to a contract extension.
On the Marlins end, this deal fulfills team needs rather than acquiring the best available blue-chip prospect for the slugger. All-star Omar Infante is all but likely to be the teams starting second baseman, brining a much better glove at the position than Dan Uggla. If not second, the utlitityman Infante is likely to find a landing spot at third base or centerfield.
Offensively, Infante was one of the better hitters in the National League, hitting .321 (ranked third) to go along with eight home runs and 47 RBIs in 134 games played.
Mike Dunn, on the other hand, fulfills the Marlins need for a left-handed reliever who can be an effective arm and strikeout machine. Dunn was 2-0 with a 1.89 ERA, striking out 27 batters in 19 innings pitched.
Dunn could find himself in the mix for the eight inning job or a specialist role rather than a closer considering the Marlins are thin with lefties.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com