Marlins nearing five-year extension with Sandy Alcantara, per report

The Marlins are moving toward a five-year extension with right-hander Sandy Alcantara that will pay him “north of $55 million,” according to the Miami Herald’s Craig Mish:

While this deal might afford the 26-year-old Alcantara a slight raise over what he would’ve made in his first season of arbitration, it seems to be a pretty clear win for the Marlins — they’ll retain one of the most consistent starting pitchers in baseball and buy out two of his free agent years for an average annual value of roughly $11 million.

Alcantara, who the Marlins acquired from the Cardinals as part of the December 2017 Marcell Ozuna trade, has a 3.48 ERA over 78 career starts for the Marlins. He was an All-Star in 2019 and has posted an ERA+ at least 10 points above league average in each of his four seasons with the Marlins.

As great as Alcantara has been, there’s an argument to be made that there are three or four starters just as good as him in the Marlins’ rotation, and the starting five should be a real strength for Miami for years to come. Right-hander Sixto Sánchez looked to be a budding ace in 2020 before missing all of the 2021 season due to shoulder surgery. Lefty Trevor Rogers was an All-Star and NL Rookie of the Year finalist in 2021 and posted a stellar 2.64 ERA over 25 starts.

Righty Pablo López has struggled to stay healthy, but he posted a 3.07 ERA with 115 strikeouts and just 26 walks in 102.2 innings in 2021. And Zach Thompson, Jesús Luzardo, and Elieser Hernandez are intriguing options at the back of the rotation.