Marlins Release Catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The Miami Marlins announced on Tuesday that the team has released catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
Miami had been trying to find a trade partner for the veteran catcher after designating him for assignment last month.
With just under $6 million remaining on Salty's contract this season and another $8 million in 2016, it's no surprise that the Marlins couldn't find a team willing to take on at least some of that salary.
Despite that several teams were reported to be in talks with Miami to acquire Saltalamacchia, it appears that none were willing to take on enough of that money to make the deal worthwhile for the Marlins.
Once the 30-year-old clears waivers, which is almost a certainty as any team claiming him would have to take on his entire contract, any team that had interest in him would be able to bring him aboard for a pro-rated portion of the league minimum salary.
Miami signed Saltalamacchia after the 2013 season when he backstopped the Boston Red Sox to a World Series victory. He hit .273 with 14 home runs that year but hasn't come close to those numbers during his time with the Marlins.
Rookie J.T. Realmuto has taken over as Miami's starting catcher and will now have to learn on the fly instead of getting a little more time to develop.
He has shown to be a much better contact hitter than Salty and has a lot more speed.
Teams in need of help behind the plate will be interested in Saltalamacchia at a low price. He's a switch hitter that had success as recent as two years ago and a chance of scenery may get him back on track.
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