Marlins Get AL Batting King Luis Arraez From Twins For Pablo Lopez

The Miami Marlins have added a batting champion to their lineup.

In a Friday afternoon trade, the Marlins acquired Luis Arraez from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for Pablo Lopez, a promising young starting pitcher, minor-league infielder Jose Salas, and another prospect.

It was the first time a reigning batting king was traded since the same team — the Minnesota Twins — traded future Hall of Famer Rod Carew to the California Angels in 1978.

The versatile Arraez, 26, hit .316 with a .375 on-base percentage and .420 slugging average. Though he scored 88 runs as a top-of-the-order performer, he did not deliver many home runs (8) or stolen bases (4). He carries a .314 career average over his four-year career.

How he’ll be used by new Miami manager Skip Schumaker is uncertain.

Newly-signed veteran Jean Segura played second for the the Phillies last season but could play third for Miami after Brian Anderson left for Milwaukee via free agency. Holdover Jazz Chisholm, Jr. succeeds the traded Miguel Rojas at short but his double-play partner is unclear, with Jon Berti, Joey Wendle, and Arraez all possibilities at second base after all spent time at the position last year.

Berti, who led the National League with 41 stolen bases, played five different positions for the Fish in 2022, while Arraez played each of the infield bases and provided a left-handed bat in the DH spot for the Twins.

Arraez played 65 games at first base for Minnesota but will have competition in Miami from Garrett Cooper, a 6’5″ right-handed hitter who can also play the outfield.

The budget-conscious Marlins, whose only high-priced addition is starting pitcher Johnny Cueto, face a tough task in the National League East, a division dominated by the National League champion Philadelphia Phillies and two teams that won 101 games, the Atlanta Braves and New York Mets.

Miami finished fourth with a 69-93 record that left it 32 games behind the Braves, who won their fifth straight division title by edging the Mets in their season’s series.

Its American League trading partner, the Minnesota Twins, are far closer to contention – and hope Lopez will help them close last year’s 14-game gap to the top of the AL Central.

After going 78-84, the Twins retained star shortstop Carlos Correa with a six-year, $200 million contract. They also added outfielder Joey Gallo and catcher Christian Vasquez, among others, in addition to Lopez.

Lopez, a sinker-baller who induces numerous ground balls, has posted a 3.52 earned run average over the past three seasons while also coping with shoulder issues that sent him to the IL three times with the Marlins. His 180 innings pitched last year (32 starts) were a career high.

The 26-year-old Venezuelan joins an all-right-handed Minnesota rotation that also includes Sonny Gray, Chris Paddack, Joe Ryan, Tyler Mahle, and perhaps comeback candidate Kenta Maeda.

Lopez will be under team control for two seasons, while Arraez will be tied to the Marlins for three.

In addition to Lopez, Salas might help fill the void created by the departure of Arraez. He was the fifth-ranked prospect on the Top 100 of MLB.com and No. 4 among Miami’s prospects.

The trade was first reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN following earlier rumors revealed by Jon Heyman of The New York Post and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.