Report: Marlins Talking A-Rod?
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – The Miami Marlins need to acquire a third baseman in the offseason to replace the void left by Hanley Ramirez. But would the Marlins seriously consider filling that hole with soon-to-be ex-New York Yankee Alex Rodriguez?
The idea of a trade was floated by Keith Olbermann on his blog for mlb.com on Wednesday. Olbermann said sources with both teams confirmed discussions about sending A-Rod to the Marlins in exchange for reliever Heath Bell.
According to Olbermann, the Yankees would pay much of the remaining $114 million owed to A-Rod over the rest of his contract if the Marlins would eat the $18 million still owed to Bell under his contract.
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman and Marlins officials have both said there is no truth to the report. There is also no real reason to believe the Yankees would want Bell in the first place given his disastrous performance this year for Miami.
According to CBS4 news partner the Miami Herald, ESPN.com reported the rumor began as a joke between Yankees president Randy Levine and Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria.
Rodriguez, 37, has been benched during the Yankees' current postseason trip. He's drawn the most headlines this postseason for allegedly sending a baseball to some women in the stands hoping to get a phone number.
A-Rod has a no-trade clause in his contract and can veto any trade, according to the Miami Herald. He's currently signed through the year 2017 when he will be 41-years-old.
Much of the focus on A-Rod in recent years has been his quest to overtake the home run record from the disputed record-holder Barry Bonds. A-Rod is currently 109 home runs away from breaking the all-time record.
However, A-Rod's production in home runs has fallen off dramatically in the last two years and his game could be slowing to a pace that will keep him from overtaking Bonds. In 2012, A-Rod hit just 18 home runs in 122 games.
