Why Edward Cabrera Trade Talks May Have Led Marlins to Sign Christopher Morel
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There is ample evidence that the Miami Marlins are looking to move a starting pitcher, perhaps Edward Cabrera. Miami likely won’t part with him without getting a high price in return.
Cabrera is a right-hander who is arbitration-eligible and has three years of team control. He’s only estimated to get $3.7 million in 2026, per MLB Trade Rumors’ salary arbitration projections. He’s coming off a season in which he went 8-7 with a 3.53 ERA as he started 26 games and threw more than 100 innings for the first time in his career. He struck out 150 and walked 48.
With an intriguing pitch mix, three years of team control and other pitchers in the rotation, Cabrera might be more important to Miami as a trade option than a starter. But the cost to the trade partner may be high, so high perhaps that no one wants to pay it yet. One report shed some light on that aspect of a potential deal — and it may shed light on a recent Marlins transaction.
Pursuing Edward Cabrera
The San Francisco Giants are reportedly among the teams that have had discussions with the Marlins about Cabrera, per The Athletic (subscription required) and Giants beat writer Andrew Baggarly. But the discussions didn’t get far, according to Baggarly’s sources:
“… the asking price was prohibitively high, according to league sources,” per Baggarly. He also wrote that the Marlins’ demands appear to be so high that if Miami got that in return it would, in his own words, set a “disturbing market precedent.”
That’s strong language to describe what the Marlins might be asking for. If the reporting is precise, then it means Miami is seeking a franchise-altering group of players in return for Cabrera. The Giants are a mature team, especially in the field. It might lead one to assume that Miami might have asked for a young player the Giants see as part of their future, such as No. 1 prospect Bryce Eldridge.
He's projected as a power-hitting first baseman. Giants president of baseball operations Buster Posey has said they’re willing to listen on any trade. But Posey is on record as saying he believes Eldridge can be one of the best hitters in the Majors for the next 10 to 15 years. That’s high praise — and a high price to pay for Cabrera.
But if Posey is right, then a player like Eldridge would be the answer to the Marlins’ troubles at first base. It’s a position that has such a limited future that Miami has toyed with moving Connor Norby from third to first as a way of keeping his bat in the order and limiting his defensive liabilities.
Taking those discussions into account, it’s possible that the Marlins passing on their talks with the Giants led them to agree to a deal with Christopher Morel and plan to move him to first base. He’s flashed the kind of power that works at the position, but he’s never played there before. It feels like a short-term solution for a longer-term problem that a player like Eldridge could solve.
Miami may still move Cabrera. But, based on the reporting, for now, the price the Marlins are seeking looks sky-high.
