The Marlins are tearing it down again, and Sandy Alcántara could be the next star on the move.
Miami’s new president of baseball operations Peter Bandix has methodically dismantled the roster since the team’s Wild Card appearance in 2023. He’s traded three-time batting champion Luis Arráez, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Trevor Rogers, Tanner Scott, A.J. Puk, Jesús Luzardo, and Jake Burger in less than a year. The only star player left standing is 2022 NL Cy Young winner Sandy Alcántara, who missed all of 2024 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Now that Alcántara is showing his typical stuff in spring training and the Marlins are projected to finish last in the NL East, a trade seems inevitable. SI’s Dylan Sanders suggests the Giants should be first in line to pursue the Marlins ace.
“It will be a competitive trade market, but could be worth San Francisco’s time to be in,” wrote Sanders. “Given that the Giants have at least checked in on most of the starting pitchers on the market this offseason, it would be a shock if they didn’t at least start up a conversation with Miami about Alcántara.”
The Giants made their big offseason splash by signing All-Star shortstop Willy Adames to a seven-year, $182 million contract, but their rotation remains full of question marks. Jordan Hicks couldn’t maintain his effectiveness as a starter last season and returned to the bullpen. Robbie Ray looked rusty in his return from Tommy John surgery. Kyle Harrison and Hayden Birdsong, both 23, showed flashes but need more development. Even their marquee pitching addition, Justin Verlander, is 42 and coming off the worst season of his career.
Alcántara, despite not having thrown a competitive pitch since September 2023, is only 29 and possesses the build and pitch repertoire to age gracefully. Pairing him with All-Star Logan Webb would give San Francisco two elite ground-ball pitchers working in front of what should be an outstanding infield defense.
What might a trade package look like?
Sanders proposes Miami would receive outfielder Dakota Jordan, starter Joe Whitman, and infielder Marco Luciano. The centerpiece would be Luciano, once Baseball Prospectus’ eighth-ranked prospect before the 2021 season, who hasn’t yet established himself in the Giants’ crowded infield. Jordan and Whitman both rank in San Francisco’s top ten prospect list – Jordan being a toolsy outfielder taken in the fourth round of the 2024 draft, while Whitman projects as a polished lefty with mid-rotation potential.
The way things are going in Miami, it’s not a matter of if Alcántara gets traded, but when. And the Giants, with thier win-now mentality and prospect capital, might be the perfect match.
