We already knew that the Marlins' new ownership group wants to trade superstar and NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton along with as much of his 10-year, $295 million remaining contract as possible. This latest report shows just how badly they want to deal him. Keep in mind that Stanton has a full no-trade clause and we've already heard details on that, including his desire to play for his hometown Dodgers.
On the no-trade front, check this out, from the Miami Herald:
According to two sources with knowledge of discussions, the Marlins informed Stanton in October that if he refused to waive his no-trade rights and accept a trade, he would remain a Marlin and team officials would look to trade off other top players to reduce payroll.
While it wasn't presented to Stanton as an ultimatum, one source said, it shows that the Marlins aren't without leverage in their efforts to deal Stanton and relieve them of the financial burden he brings.
OK, so even if they didn't present it as an ultimatum, that's really how it comes across. It's like they are saying, "hey, you don't want to be part of a rebuild? That's cool. If you don't accept a trade to the destination we choose, we're dealing Marcell Ozuna, Christian Yelich, Dee Gordon, Justin Bour, J.T. Realmuto and anyone else with any value."
Sounds like an ultimatum to me, maybe even a threat.
The big takeaway here? Stanton is probably a lot more open to trades to places like St. Louis or Boston that we previously heard he might veto.
As this has been for weeks (months, even), the situation remains fluid.
