Quote:
Originally Posted by Austin Kearns
Firstly their defense is beyond awful. Perhaps worse than the Reds even. The 3 major flaws there would be CF, 3rd base, and SS. So Cabrera needs to move to first base and HanRam should be tried in CF, and if that doesn't work, 3rd base would be a logical solution as well because of a good arm. His range would play much better there.
The defense switch makes Mike Jacobs expendable (he was a very poor option at first anyways). With Cabrera, Ramirez, Willingham, Uggla, and Hermida in the line-up their offense will again be great. To fill the catcher hole, I think finding a defensive gem would be the smart move. They have more than enough offense to carry on a weak stick. Jason Kendall may work here (assuming an affordable contract could be in place at 3-4M, especially since he could give some stability to Florida's young pitching.
I think with those 3 moves, you have potentially a very improved defensive team depending how well Ramirez takes to centre. If not the Marlins may have to look at a guy like Cory Patterson (*shudder*) to man the huge centrefield.
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You don't move Cabrera. You don't move Hanley. Both were much improved after May and it's not like we have a 3b/ss to replace those guys anyway.
What the Marlins need is health. Josh Johnson needs to come back strong, as does Anibal Sanchez. The bullpen was outstanding this year. The main issues were defense and starting pitching. The defense will improve. The pitching if it can get healthy will improve. And the offense, just by getting another year older will improve.
The Marlins need a catcher. That is the absolute most important thing for them this offseason. They can have a bunch of guys go play CF, specifically Cody Ross and Brett Carroll. A catcher is what this team sorely lacks.