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After shipping off their entire star-studded outfield, the rebuilding Marlins have reportedly spoken with free agents Melky Cabrera and Jon Jay, Craig Mish of Sirius reports.
The Marlins are hoping for a cheap one-year deal to find some kind of production for their gutted outfield, although Cabrera may be searching for a multi-year contract after hitting 17 home runs with a .746 OPS in 2017.
As @JonHeyman & @JoeFrisaro noted interest FA’s Jon Jay & Melky Cabrera. Marlins have spoken with both. Melky has told teams he wants 2 years. If he will take 1 yr, MIA is in. If not, looks like Jay could be the choice.
— Craig Mish (@CraigMish) February 13, 2018
Jay, who would be a more likely one-year option, lacks the power of Cabrera but still managed to post a slightly better OPS (.749) than Cabrera last season. He also has posted better defensive numbers, while Cabrera’s -12 Total Zone Rating was far worse than Jay’s (+2).
Aside from serving a PED suspension in 2012, Cabrera has been consistently durable throughout his 13-year career. He has played in over 150 games in each of the past three seasons, while Jay played in 141 games in 2017, after appearing in under 100 in each of the two seasons prior.
The Marlins outfield currently projects to post a league-worst 0.6 WAR in 2018 according to Fangraphs.