Marlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk tradeMarlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk trade

Marlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk trade 3:08 AM UTC Christina De Nicola @cdenicola13 Share share-square-765156 MIAMI — The Marlins made their first move of Trade Deadline season on Thursday night, sending setup man A.J. Puk to the D-backs in exchange for a pair of Arizona's Top 30 prospects: Corner infielder Deyvison De
Marlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk tradeMarlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk trade

Marlins acquire pair of D-backs prospects in Puk trade

3:08 AM UTC

MIAMI — The Marlins made their first move of Trade Deadline season on Thursday night, sending setup man A.J. Puk to the D-backs in exchange for a pair of Arizona’s Top 30 prospects: Corner infielder Deyvison De Los Santos and outfielder Andrew Pintar.

Marlins president of baseball operations Peter Bendix spoke to MLB.com on Tuesday and shared the club’s strategy for the Deadline.

“Being open-minded,” Bendix said. “We’re always going to listen to what other teams propose, what they want to do. There’s nothing that we’re going to cut off before we find out more details. We just have to be flexible and move quickly.

“Once we find an offer that we’re excited about, we’re not afraid to move forward. We’re always going to make sure that we have a good sense of what the market can give us or not give us. But there’s always a point at which you need to decide, ‘All right, this is it. This is enough.’ And when we get to that point, we’re not afraid to move forward.”

De Los Santos, 21, received a promotion from Double-A (where he had a 1.122 OPS) to Triple-A this season and hasn’t missed a beat despite facing competition more than five years older on average. In 49 games with Triple-A Reno, he had 14 doubles, one triple, 14 homers, 47 RBIs and a .926 OPS.

According to MLB Pipeline’s scouting report, De Los Santos’ raw power and exit velocity rank among the best in the Minors, thanks to his bat speed and strength. What could hold him back is his plate discipline, though he has dropped his strikeout rate from 26% to 22.9%. His walk rate (5.2%) has remained the same.

Ranked as Arizona’s No. 14 prospect per MLB Pipeline, De Los Santos is projected to make his big league debut this season. This comes on the heels of Arizona leaving him unprotected on its 40-man roster and the Guardians selecting him in the Rule 5 Draft before returning him in late March.

In 2024, De Los Santos has seen more time at first base than third base. There could be a vacancy should Miami trade away first baseman/designated hitter Josh Bell, whose contract expires at the end of the season. The organization’s highest-ranking corner-infield prospect is Jacob Berry (Miami’s No. 6 prospect), a former first-round pick currently playing at Double-A Pensacola.

As for Pintar, the 23-year-old was struck by the injury bug to end his collegiate career at BYU (shoulder surgery) and then early in 2023 when he sustained a broken ankle by stepping on a ball while playing with Single-A Visalia. He opened ’24 at High-A, where he posted a .919 OPS and earned a promotion to Double-A. Pintar has played just 10 games at that level.

The D-backs moved Pintar from second base to center field to utilize his elite speed. He has 19 steals and has been caught just once in 69 games this season. Other center fielders in the Marlins’ system include Triple-A’s Victor Mesa Jr. ( No. 4 prospect) and Single-A Jupiter’s Dillon Head ( No. 5), who underwent season-ending hip surgery.

The 29-year-old Puk opened 2024 in the rotation after an impressive Grapefruit League performance, but the results didn’t translate over four regular-season starts (9.22 ERA) before he landed on the injured list with left shoulder fatigue.

When Puk returned, he pitched out of the bullpen. He changed his sweeper back into a hard slider and ditched the splitter, helping him become a dominant setup man (2.08 ERA in 28 outings) for closer Tanner Scott.

Puk, who is making $1.8 million in 2024, has two more years of arbitration eligibility before he can become a free agent.

Miami acquired Puk from Oakland for outfielder JJ Bleday at the beginning of Spring Training last season. Though Puk trained over that offseason to be a starter in the Majors for the first time with the A’s, he began the season as the Marlins’ closer before losing the role in July.

Dealing Puk is likely the first of several trades Miami will make in the coming days. Other candidates include Scott and Bell, each of whom has an expiring contract, as well as center fielder/second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr.

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