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With Chris Coghlan and his repaired knee heading into new territory in center field, the Florida Marlins have made their move in assuring they will have a backup plan in case it doesn’t pan out.

The Marlins have signed outfielder DeWayne Wise to a minor league contract.

Back in December, prior to the Winter Meetings, I mentioned that Wise was a solid candidate for their fourth outfielder role and as a bench player. 

As we all know, Wise kept a Mark Buehrle perfect game intact back in 2009 by making a leaping catch over the center field wall at U.S. Cellular Field to rob the Rays’ Gabe Kapler of a sure home run. 

While Coghlan is the better hitter, should Wise play exceptionally well with the bat and Matt Dominguez struggle, look for Wise to become the team’s starting center fielder with Coghlan sliding back to his original position at second base.

Wise logged 239.2 innings (44 games) as an outfielder in 2010 and committed no errors, not a single one, and had a total of three outfield assists. In his career, Wise has only committed four errors (.991 fielding percentage) dating back to 2000. 

Wise hit .250 with three home runs, 14 RBI and four stolen bases in 118 plate appearances (52 games) last season with the Toronto Blue Jays, where he was teammates with current Marlin catcher John Buck.

However, should Wise fail to stay in the Major Leagues, other outfield insurance policies include spring training invitee Chris Lubansk and outfielders John Raynor and Scott Cousins. Cousins made his debut last season with the Marlins, hitting .297 with two RBI in 38 plate appearances (27 games).

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The numerous ways that the Philadelphia Phillies are affected by the signing of free agent left hander, Cliff Lee, are well documented.

In fact, so much has been made about Lee and the rest of the Phillies’ rotation has basically overshadowed what the signing means for the rest of the league, and in comparison, the division, outside the fact that many experts believe the Phillies are the favorites to win it. We must also examine, however, the decisions that teams will have to face to react to this signing.

Three out of the remaining four teams are easy to evaluate. The Atlanta Braves believe that they can compete with the Phillies’ rotation, and rightfully so. Outside of a couple of upgrades to their outfield, and maybe the bench, they seem to be settled.

The New York Mets and Washington Nationals will undergo, or continue, different rebuilding phases. The Mets will attempt to work young talent back on to their roster and receive boosts from returning, injured veterans, and the Nationals will continue to develop their farm system with little output at the Major League level.

But what about the Florida Marlins?

The Marlins operate in a unique way. Never completely set into a competitive or rebuilding phase, they are the hardest to predict. On one hand, the Marlins always seem to make a commitment to winning, but on the other, they always seem to make questionable moves by trading away valuable pieces of their Major League roster.

So where does the Cliff Lee signing leave the Marlins, and more specifically, their most valuable commodity—ace, Josh Johnson?

The following slideshow will examine some reasons that the Marlins may benefit from moving the face of their rotation, and why the Cliff Lee signing may have forced their hand a bit more than they would have liked.

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The Florida Marlins enter this year with a new ball club. They have so far made some necessary subtractions and some great additions,but as the Marlins make these changes division rivals are making strong notable improvements and these worry fans within the NL East.

Never the less the Marlins have made some big moves this off-season and here we will review their importance and value to help the marlins offense secure a playoff spot this 2011 season.

This review will take an in depth look at each position and how it has changed for the 2011 season.

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With the majority of the major offseason activity behind them (trading Dan Uggla, Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin; acquiring Omar Infante, Mike Dunn, Dustin Richardson, Ryan Webb, and Edward Mujica; signing Javier Vazquez John Buck, and Randy Choate; extending Ricky Nolasco until 2013), we take a glance at the potential Florida Marlins lineup, starting rotation, bullpen, and bench and put it all together to come up with bold predictions for the 2011 season in a crowded NL East. Let’s take an early look at what we can expect to see from the fish in their final season at Sun Life/Land Shark/Dolphin(s)/Pro Player/Joe Robbie Stadium.

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The Florida Marlins have officially announced the signing of right-handed pitcher Ricky Nolasco to a three-year, $26.5 million contract extension. 

The 28-year-old went 14-9 with a 4.51 ERA and missed the final month after undergoing arthroscopic right knee surgery when he tore his meniscus. 

In the deal, Nolasco is expected to earn $6 million in 2011, $9 million in 2012 and $11.5 million in 2013, his would-be first year of free agency.

He made $3.8 million last season and was due to get a pay raise in the neighborhood of $6 million had the two gone to arbitration. 

According to the Associated Press, Nolasco said in a conference call with reporters that he has been running and exercising without any setbacks: “I should be 100 percent by spring training.”

Nolasco has gone 54-39 with a 4.45 ERA in five years with the Marlins, and his strikeout-walk ratio of 638-169 over that time is among the best in baseball.

“I couldn’t ask for anything else from these guys,” Nolasco said. “It helps to just go out there and not worry about the arbitration process.”

The signing of Ricky Nolasco solidifies a starting rotation that is expected to be among the National League’s elite.

Nolasco is expected to be slotted second behind ace Josh Johnson (11-6 with a 2.30 ERA) and ahead of newly signed pitcher Javier Vazquez (15-10 with a 2.38 ERA when he last pitched in the National League in 2009) and pitchers Anibal Sanchez (13-12 with a 3.55 ERA) and Chris Volstad (12-9 with a 4.58 ERA; 8-1 in the second half).

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For the second time this offseason, the Florida Marlins have hit a stumbling block with one of their core players, this time it’s pitcher Ricky Nolasco according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. 

The Marlins‘ first priority entering the offseason lay with getting an Uggla extension done first. Whether that failed or succeeded, they were to move towards locking up Ricky Nolasco past his arbitration years (2011 and 2012) and his first free agent year (2013). Talks, which began back in September, haven’t been progressive and at this point money seems to be the holding pattern in a long-term deal, not years. 

However, to consider a trade in an offseason which has shown the Marlins’ willingness to be competitive (rare free agent signings of Javier Vazquez, John Buck and Randy Choate) seems far-fetched unless the front office receives an overwhelming trade offer. 

Already this offseason, Nolasco’s name has been dangled in trade offers and most notably was involved in a possible three-team trade scenario which would’ve had Zack Greinke headed to South Beach. Nevertheless, those trade talks fell apart before they ever got heated up. 

Teams desiring for pitching in the wake of falling short on the Cliff Lee derby include the New York Yankees, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels. Look for the Marlins to acquire pitching in return in any deal for the right-hander. 

Another option will be to let Ricky Nolasco go through the arbitration process and settle on a basic one year contract which could garner anywhere between $5-6 million considering he earned $3.8 million in 2010. The Marlins have club control of Nolasco through the 2012 season so he won’t end up slipping from the Marlins hands anytime soon. 

Update: In a comment to MLBTR, Nolasco’s agent Matt Sosnick said, “Ricky is still hopeful that a deal can be reached for him to stay in Florida.  We remain optimistic that something can be worked out with the team.  We don’t see it as an impasse, just the normal course of discussions.  Anyone who says we hit a stalemate is reading too much into it.”

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If the Florida Marlins brass thought they were in the driver’s seat in order to compete with the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves, think again.

After Philadelphia remained fairly quiet in the news last week after their former outfielder Jayson Werth signed a mega deal with the Washington Nationals, they now have attracted the spotlight for all the right reasons.

The hottest ace on the free agent market, Cliff Lee, announced he would be taking his talents to South Street, again. This doesn’t help the Marlins’ cause in their aspirations to be a competitive team in 2011 or 2012.

The fact that the Marlins had to face Roy Halladay (who hurled a perfect game against them in May and threw a no-hitter against the Reds in the postseason), Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels was scary enough, and now they’ll have to face 2008 Cy Young winner Cliff Lee.

At least on the bright side of things, Jamie Moyer—who, unlike Lee, Halladay, Oswalt and Hamels, wasn’t a power pitcher—won’t be pitching for Philadelphia or anywhere this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Moyer was the one pitcher that had the Marlins’ number since joining the Phillies in 2006. He went 13-6 (7-0 between 2006 and 2007) with a 3.09 ERA in 19 starts against Florida. 

However, the Marlins have themselves to blame for the position they are now in. Had they kept Miguel Cabrera back in 2007 instead of trading him for a pair of busts (Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller) and not given even more firepower to the division rival Atlanta Braves this offseason by trading Dan Uggla for a less than stellar return, then the Marlins might be a force to be reckoned with, but that’s not the case, now is it? 

Here are 10 things that must happen for the Florida Marlins to have hope of any October baseball in 2011.

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According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the Florida Marlins are hammering out a deal with lefty reliever Randy Choate. 

The 35-year-old left-hander pitched for the Tampa Bay Rays last season and had a 4.23 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 44.2 innings. Used in smart matchup situations, he limited left-handed batters to a .202 batting average in 138 plate appearances. 

Choate was labeled a Type B free agent this offseason, and he’ll net Tampa Bay a supplemental-round draft pick when he signs with the Marlins or any other team for that matter. 

The Florida Marlins have changed their direction from a team who made only subtle moves in 2009. This offseason the Marlins have traded Dan Uggla to the division-rival Braves for Mike Dunn and Omar Infante, signed catcher John Buck to a three-year, $18 million contract and snatched Javier Vazquez from the pitching thin free-agent market with a one-year deal. 

The Marlins attempted a three-team trade that would’ve involved dealing Ricky Nolasco and Leo Nunez in order to acquire 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke, but talks fell through. 

Additionally, the club’s early moves centered around dumping their return from the Miguel Cabrera trade by dealing Cameron Maybin to the San Diego Padres for bullpen help in relievers Edward Mujica and Ryan Webb. 

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The Florida Marlins still need to fill the void at third base before Matt Dominguez is truly ready. A good, cheap option would be former longtime Baltimore Oriole Melvin Mora. 

Mora started his career with the New York Mets back in 1999. He was then traded to the Orioles one year later. Since then, he has played every position except catcher and pitcher.

His versatility will be a huge help for manager Edwin Rodriguez, who would have other versatile players like Omar Infante and Wes Helms to mix around and tinker with.

His power days are behind him, but the 38-year-old can still hit for contact. Last year, for the Colorado Rockies, he hit .285.

He’ll likely command a one-year deal around the Marlins‘ budget. If they’re smart, they would go get this guy.

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Two Thumbs Up

The Colorado Rockies locked up Troy Tulowitzki through the 2020 season with the announcing of a seven-year, $134 million contract earlier today.

Basically, Tulowitzki is going to be a member of the Rockies for the majority of his playing career. He’ll be 36 when his current contract is up.

You can’t blame the Rockies for this one. The 25-year old shortstop is quickly developing into one of the best shortstops in the game, if he isn’t already.

He plays solid defense, runs well and swings a mighty bat.

The Rockies will end up with a huge bargain in the end and that’s what they are hoping for—but it doesn’t come without risk.

Tulowitzki has missed significant time in two seasons now. He sat out most of 2008 with a torn quad muscle. This past season, he suffered a broken wrist after being hit in the hand. The injury caused him to miss a month of the season.

Had he not suffered the injury, Tulowitzki would have been well on his way to another 30 homer, 100 RBI campaign.

I think we will see a 40-homer season from Tulowitzki at some point.

2011 Forecast: .299, 33 HR, 115 RBI, 15 SB, 105 R

Two Thumbs Down

In other news, the Dodgers are reportedly close to signing a three-year, $21 million deal with SS Juan Uribe.

Uribe hit .248 in 148 games with the Giants last season, while posting career highs in homeruns (24) and RBIs (85).

I don’t know why the Dodgers insist on paying Uribe that kind of money to play infield for them. He provides decent pop, but I doubt very seriously that he’ll reach 20 homeruns again.

His defense is average at best, and he produces a lot of outs (career .256 average, .300 OBP).

Uribe hit .280 with 13 homers and 34 RBIs in 261 ABs at AT&T Park last season. To extend upon that, he hit .346 in 182 ABs at AT&T Park with 9 homers and 32 RBI in 2009.

In contrast, Uribe hit a paltry .215 on the road in 2010 and .241 in 2009. Maybe the team that signs him should consider benching him on the road.

This will be another waste of money for the Dodgers organization.

2011 Forecast: 400 ABs, .250, 17 HR, 60 RBI, 45 R

Marlins Bolster Their Staff

Javier Vazquez also cashed in, signing a one-year deal worth $7 million.

Normally, I would say this is a good move, given his poor history pitching for the Yankees, but there are too many red flags here.

He isn’t getting any younger, for one, but he also lost velocity on his fastball last year.

Couple that with career worst ratios in HR/9 (1.8), BB/9 (3.7) and his worst K/9 since his last stint with the Yankees (6.9) and you’ve got yourself quite a risk.

Vazquez likes to use his fastball up in the zone after working his breaking pitches down in the dirt to produce strikeouts. It’s harder to do that when you don’t have your old velocity.

Don’t expect a miraculous recovery in velocity, either. That’s unlikely at his age.

He will really have to use his other pitches effectively if he wants to avoid another 2010 season.

The good news is that he is a different pitcher in the National League—for the better. Another positive, Vazquez only allowed hitters to hit .258 against him last year and 18 of his 32 homers allowed came at Yankee Stadium.

It’s a risky deal for Florida, made even worse by his no-trade clause. That will make dealing him at the break very difficult should he register any success with the Marlins.

2011 Forecast: 165 IP, 6-8, 4.35 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 140 Ks

More to Come

The Winter Meetings are upon us and there are still some very high-profile free agents on the market. It should make for an interesting conclusion to the offseason.

Feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment box below. You can e-mail me suggestions or questions at jtmcadams@aol.com. Follow me on Twitter @JoeSportswriter.

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