Exploring the most likely and optimal times for a deal"WhiteFanposts Sec

tions News & RumorsAnalysisPodcastsProspects & DraftGame CoverageFull ArchiveMasthead Social Marlins Players on TwitterFish Stripes on InstagramMarlins Media Members Fish Stripes Best of 2018 Marlins StoriesScheduleRosterStatsCommunity Guidelines StubHub 鉁昁ey dates in J.T. Realmuto trade negotiationsExploring the most likely and optimal times for a dealESTShareTweetShareShareKey dates in J.T. Realmuto trade negotiationsJasen Vinlove-USA TODAY SportsIt’s been 93 days since the 2018 regular season ended Tyler Austin Jersey , and the Marlins have yet to deal All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto. Many thought the trade would get done as soon as the general managers’ meetings in early November. Nope. Perhaps the Winter Meetings in mid-December then? Negative. Ken Rosenthal, speaking on MLB Network this morning, said the Marlins are not budging on their asking price of a top player with under three years’ service time like the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger or the Braves’ Ozzie Albies plus good prospects. Rosenthal stated there are a couple factors motivating the Marlins to move Realmuto before spring training. First among them is that if the Fish want a Bellinger or Albies type, it would be difficult to acquire players of that caliber in the middle of a season when teams are reluctant to take them off the major-league roster. Secondly, teams are more flexible in the offseason. They will have addressed their catcher needs by July and might not be inclined to break up MLB team in the middle of the year. Additionally, the incoming catcher would have to learn a whole new pitching staff on the fly, a very difficult task for all involved.With all of this in mind, here are a few milestone dates that would affect Realmuto’s value and the Marlins’ leverage if the 27-year-old is still on the team when they roll around.January 11 - Salary arbitration figures exchangedNext Friday, January 11, is the deadline for teams to exchange salary figures with arbitration-eligible players, of which Realmuto is one. If he hasn’t been traded by then http://www.yankeesfanproshop.com/authentic-giancarlo-stanton-jersey , it means his new team won’t be able to set their own arbitration figures or negotiate with him themselves. His salary for 2019 would depend on the figures he and the Marlins set. This shouldn’t affect his trade value too much because even if he gets more than the $6.1 million he’s projected for, that’s still a steal for any MLB franchise.February 12 or 13 – Pitchers and catchers report Miami, like most clubs, hasn’t set the date for pitchers and catchers to report to spring training yet, but the six teams that have already done so have elected one of these two dates. By this time, almost all teams will have settled on their options at catcher and will be preparing to enter the season with the players in their camp. If trades are made at all during the spring, they tend to involve teams looking to add spare parts or deal away depth pieces that lack minor-league options. It is rare to see a blockbuster after this date barring catastrophic injury somewhere.March 28 – Marlins’ Opening DayThe official Major League Opening Day is March 20 when Seattle and Oakland start the season off in Tokyo, but most clubs won’t begin playing meaningful games until March 28. If a Realmuto deal is not in place by then, the Fish would risk losing even more in return if he were to get injured or simply not play to the level he has over the past couple years. As Rosenthal mentioned in the above video, most clubs aren’t going to want to trade away a major piece of their roster after the season begins.July 31 Trade DeadlineIf Realmuto is still in Miami once the season begins, a trade around this date would seem like the last logical possibility. However Miguel Andujar Jersey , clubs still may balk at the idea given the upheaval involved with their pitching staffs. 2019 Winter Meetings This year’s version will be held in San Diego in mid-December. It is highly unlikely Realmuto sticks in Miami this long, as he would have just one year of control left. The Jeter ownership group will want to avoid taking any more beatings in the court of public opinion. Their best bet is to trade their backstop as soon as possible while he is at peak value and health. HOUSTON (AP) — Touted prospect Forrest Whitley will start the season in the minors but has certainly showed why he could factor into the Houston Astros‘ plans at some point.Whitley allowed three runs over three innings in his final exhibition start as Houston beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 12-9 on Monday night. The outing capped a solid spring for the young right-hander.Whitley said he was able to learn from Astros veterans in camp, with preparation being the biggest thing.“I thought this spring was very beneficial, and it’s going to help me during the season,” he explained. “Sitting in (Justin) Verlander and (Gerrit) Cole’s back pockets as much as I possibly could, learning from them.”Whitley, rated the top pitching prospect in baseball by MLB.com, allowed all three runs in a 31-pitch first inning that was capped by Francisco Cervelli’s two-run homer. But he settled down after that, retiring the side in order in the second and permitting two singles in the third.The 21-year-old finished with two strikeouts and gave up six hits. He struck out 17 in 15 innings this spring.“This outing was pretty weird,” Whitley said. “I haven’t had one of these in a while. I had everything except my fastball. It’s kind of hard to pitch without the fastball. I had a hard time locating that pitch. Pitching off that was a real struggle, but I found a way to bounce back a little bit. That was encouraging.”Whitley Tim Tebow Jersey , a 2016 first-round draft pick, will start the season at Triple-A Round Rock.“I’m very excited,” he said. “Going to the affiliate here shortly and try to pitch as well as I can to get back up here.”Houston manager AJ Hinch said the spring was a good learning time for Whitley, and he’s got a bright future.“It’s going to take an adjustment or two and attention to a couple details to be ready to pitch in the big leagues,” Hinch said. “When we call him up at some point, we are going to need him to be good.”CHISENHALL HITPirates outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall exited after being hit in the right hand by Framber Valdez’s pitch in the sixth.BIG INNINGSPittsburgh’s three-run first started with Adam Frazier scoring on Starling Marte’s double before Cervelli’s home run. The Pirates added a five-run sixth on RBI singles by Melky Cabrera and Corey Dickerson sandwiched around a two-run double by Frazier and Marte’s sacrifice fly.Houston scored seven in the third. George Springer and Alex Bregman had RBI groundouts before Michael Brantley’s two-run single and Tyler White’s three-run homer. Nick Tanielu added a three-run homer in the sixth. Garrett Stubbs and Myles Straw hit consecutive solo home runs in the seventh.JAMES’ OUTINGHouston right-hander Josh James gave up one run and three hits in the eighth. James, slowed early by a strained right quadriceps, allowed only that one run in four spring outings.UP NEXTPirates: RHP Brandon Maurer starts the exhibition finale Tuesday against the Astros.Astros: RHP J.B. Bukauskas starts Tuesday.