The Miami Marlins and Minnesota Twins executed a long-rumored trade Friday, with American League batting champion Luis Arraez heading to Miami for right-hander Pablo Lopez and a pair of prospects, it was announced.
The deal, variations of which the teams have discussed for months, brings a much-needed bat to the Marlins, adding to their winter signing of Jean Segura, who’s expected to play third base.
The cost was significant, though. In addition to Lopez, a talented starter who slots in toward the top of Minnesota’s rotation, the Marlins will send shortstop Jose Salas and outfielder Byron Chourio, two well-regarded teenagers, to the Twins.
Arraez, 25, is a career .314 hitter with unparalleled bat-to-ball skills in the modern game. Last season, he made the All-Star team and finished 13th in AL MVP balloting after hitting .316/.375/.420, scoring 88 runs and registering more walks (50) than strikeouts (43). He is not a free agent until after the 2025 season.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, Arraez is the first player to win a batting championship and then be traded in the offseason since Rod Carew won the AL batting title in 1978 with the Twins and then was traded to the Angels ahead of the 1979 season.
Arraez joins a Marlins team with a strong rotation headlined by National League Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara. Miami’s lineup, however, struggled mightily last year, with injuries sidelining incumbent second baseman Jazz Chisholm while free agent signees Avisail Garcia and Jorge Soler disappointed.
Marlins general manager Kim Ng said Chisholm, who has played middle infield exclusively during his big league career, will move to center field to make room for Arraez as the full-time second baseman.
Arraez also has experience at first base — where he played more than any position last year — or a corner-outfield slot.
Minnesota, meanwhile, can slot young slugger Jose Miranda at first base or play him at third and use Alex Kirilloff at first. Lopez joins a rotation with Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan and a grab bag of other possibilities, from Chris Paddack — who just signed a three-year extension — to Tyler Mahle, Bailey Ober, Josh Winder, Kenta Maeda and Randy Dobnak.
Lopez, 26, threw a career-high 180 innings last season over 32 starts and registered a 3.75 ERA. He has long been a favorite of statistically inclined teams such as Minnesota for his ability to strike out batters (9.2 per nine innings over the past three seasons), limit walks (2.6 per nine over the same period) and keep the ball in the park.
Salas, 19, is a borderline top-100 prospect, signed out of Venezuela for $2.8 million in 2019 after growing up in the Orlando area. He finished last season in High-A and is likely to start there again this year.
Chourio, 17, is a center fielder who hit .344/.429/.410 for the Marlins’ Dominican Summer League team last season.